LIST: Kings and queens of Gold Coast coffee shops
Gold Coast is the perfect spot to get out and about – and these are the people doing their part. From tiny shops to big business, these are the faces behind our booming industry. FIND OUT WHO’S WHO
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THE Gold Coast loves its coffee – and these people love making it. Here are the kings and queens behind the Gold Coast’s most popular coffee shops.
URSULA & BEN WATTS
True royalty of the Gold Coast’s cafe scene, the husband and wife operate three venues across the city.
A carpenter by trade, Ben has become a self-taught baker and with interior designer wife Ursula, the entrepreneurial pair grabbed the Gold Coast’s attention with Paddock Bakery, which they let go of in 2017.
Their knowledge from the bakery that attracted A-list fans including Hugh Jackman and Margot Robbie has been spread across equally well-loved Bam Bam Bakehouse at Mermaid Beach, Custard Canteen at Tallebudgera and Cubby Bakehouse at Chinderah.
Despite the COVID-19 crises, they have kept many of their pre-COVID team of 89 in jobs.
With more than 40k followers across their three bakeries on Instagram, there’s no doubt the duo are Gold Coast cafe royalty.
Andrew & Jodie Whiting
Another couple who were fundamental to the cafe culture on the Coast, the Whitings opened Vintage Espresso in Mermaid Beach in 2009 to much fanfare.
The cafe was sold in 2014 to Chantelle Steele, but the pair continued to operate cult cafes Elk Espresso and Sparrow Eating House.
The latter operated in Nobby Beach from 2015 until closing in 2018, a moved that shocked locals at the time.
Still owning Broadbeach venue Elk, the pair have turned the cafe into one of the Gold Coast’s most popular with many celebrities enjoying a coffee and feed on the premises, including Orlando Bloom and Javier Bardem.
Forced to move from its original location on Chelsea Ave in Broadbeach to the exterior of the Oasis Shopping Centre in late 2017, the cafe has gone from strength to strength with 28.4k followers on Instagram.
Jessica Winters & Peter Tutton
Opening their first venue in 2016, the new couple on the block impressed with Double Barrel Kitchen in Mermaid Waters.
The venue on Karbunya St brought simple, seasonal breakfasts and coffee, helping it quickly become a fan favourite.
With more than 5k followers on Instagram, Double Barrel Kitchen was given another location.
Winters and Tutton opened a Benowa venue with the same name in September 2019, bringing with it a greater focus on its lunch and dinner menu.
The kitchen is a part of the Marina Village residential development and has gained its own fan base with 4k followers on Instagram.
Mark Wilson
The general manager of hospitality company PLB Group has plenty on his plate across the Gold Coast and Tweed area.
Mr Wilson’s portfolio includes Ancora in Tweed Heads and Osteria Casuarina, along with his new venue Lolita’s Mexican Cantina, but it’s his cafes that sit alongside his wedding facilities across the border that put him on this list.
The Kiosk at Casuarina opened in December last year and pays homage to Australia’s classic beach and public pool kiosks with ice-creams, milkshakes and of course coffee.
Closer to home is Baked at Ancora on Tweed Heads, which brings a slice of Parisian cafe culture to the area.
Opening in December 2018, Mr Wilson promised his new venture would deliver some of the best baked goods in the country thanks to state-of-the-art baking equipment and the skills of baker Gavin Rudd of Bam Bam Bakehouse and Paddock Bakery fame.
His promise was kept and more than 10k followers on Instagram agree.
Graham & Kate Bennett
The experienced hospitality operators Graham and Kate Bennett were at Helm in Surfers Paradise before they opened their Mudgeeraba cafe Mudjira Village Eatery in 2015.
Having lived in the area for 15 years before launching the cafe, the couple had a good understanding of the community and have now become a part of the local family.
The Swan Lane cafe is located in the Mudgeeraba Market Shopping Centre and refreshes its menu every six months but most of the popular dishes remain, including the benny burger, cheesy scramble, breakfast gnocchi and acai bowls.
The hinterland haunt was voted by the Bulletin’s readers as the best breakfast cafe on the Gold Coast for 2020.
It’s not only the Bulletin’s readers who love the place, with more than 2.5k followers on Instagram and Hollywood heart-throb Chris Hemsworth also enjoying a coffee there in 2017.
The Bennetts have been hinting at some big news on Instagram, launching a page for what looks to be a new cafe coming soon called Hudson and Rosie’s Table.
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