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Coffee roasters and baristas are the unsung heroes of Sydney hospitality. It takes a special person – part scientist, part artist, and part sustainability advocate – to take coffee beans and craft them into caffeinated magic. The teams at these cafes and coffee shops are some of the best.

This category is the cornerstone of Good Food’s Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025. Presented by T2, this guide celebrates the people and places that shape our cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 11 categories, including icons, those best for food, tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city’s best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. (These reviews also live on theGood Food app, and are discoverable on the map.) See you at one of these venues tomorrow.

Artificer

“COFFEE ONLY” states the Instagram account for Dan Yee and Shoji Sasa’s 10-year-old cafe and roastery. It’s part advice to anyone in search of a jaffle, part mission statement that this corner site of honeyed light and welcoming hospitality is all about the purity of the bean, no distractions. That could mean a Panama Gesha batch brew with notes of maraschino cherry, or just a really bloody great espresso.

Good to know: Well, it does also sell Artificer caps made by the neighbours at Worktones.

547 Bourke Street, Surry Hills, artificercoffee.com

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Diggy Doo’s

Descend the graffitied stairs of Region Food Arcade to this unassuming basement cafe, where coffee nerds and corporate types converge among the brewing equipment. The barista is always friendly, the coffee is always excellent, and if there were ever a cafe capable of convincing you to spend $15 on a hand-poured cup of filtered single origin, it would be this one. Don’t discount the food – kimchi cheese toasties are simple but satisfying.

Good to know: Visit Thursday or Sunday, when Yuki Bagels pops up with turtle-shaped matcha bagels.

3/2 Bridge Street, Sydney, instagram.com/diggydooscoffee

FBR

Backlit green interiors, a wall-mounted vintage television, and a young computer engineer-turned-barista at the helm of modified brewing equipment. This is FBR, the experimental, efficiency-focused, next-gen cafe where you can order a cup of specialty coffee after 3pm in Sydney (yes, really). The atmosphere is relaxed, if wilfully clinical, until the DJ turns up and the caffeinated rave begins.

Good to know: The cafe has started serving a small selection of focaccia sandwiches exclusively on Saturday.

Chambers Arcade, 370 Pitt Street, Sydney, instagram.com/fbr.cafe

Headlands

This is the democratisation of specialty coffee – a minimalist-industrial cafe-roastery where everyone is invited to partake in free weekly tasting sessions; to try rare or experimental brews in a seasonal four-cup coffee “omakase” for under $20; or to drop past for a friendly chat and takeaway flat white, using the smooth, nutty South Head house blend. Early birds to the historic flour mill are rewarded with freshly baked, salty honey croissants.

Good to know: Not into coffee? The matcha latte is also excellent.

Mungo Scott Building, G03/18 Flour Mill Way, Summer Hill, headlandscoffee.com

Ickle Coffee

Ickle is an aquamarine beacon of caffeinated joy. This is feel-good coffee: sourced from small, sustainable farms, roasted by women and served with informational cards illustrated with smiling cartoon brewing equipment. Bring your dog, and buy them a treat when ordering your food – umami-driven kimchi or miso tuna toasties hit the spot, but the gingery chicken congee is the go-to.

Good to know: Co-owner Rowena Rangwan Chansiri is the head roaster behind each cup.

251 Kingsgrove Road, Kingsgrove, icklecoffee.com

Jibbi Coffee Roasters

The pour-over coffee costs (at least) three times more than your regular batch brew, but it could be the best cup you’ve had all year. It’s subtle, nuanced and remarkably smooth – one to linger over, not power through, as the soul record plays and afternoon sunshine warms your back. Like all specialty coffee here, it’s developed by world-renowned roaster, barista and judge Rawirat Techasitthanet, otherwise known as Jibbi Little, who opened the laneway cafe last year.

Good to know: Jibbi also serves matcha, and house-made Thai milk tea cheesecake.

Shop 2, 224 Commonwealth Street, Sydney, instagram.com/jibbi.coffeeroasters

Ona

If there’s a secret to this Canberra-born roastery’s success (a Dubai opening is imminent), it’s the ability to go deep but still keep things approachable. Avocado toast and house blends (including one flavoured like Ona’s breakfast tiramisu) cover the basics, while the coffee counters inside offer lessons on provenance and processing methods, with cups served every which way by staff who just get it.

Best for: Classic neighbourhood cafe vibes, except with eye-opening coffee.

58/60 Smith Street, Marrickville, onacoffeesydney.com

Only Coffee Project

This is the cutting edge of coffee in Artarmon, Crows Nest and North Sydney. Rare specialty beans and experimental blends sourced from small roasteries across the world, in countries including Colombia, South Korea and the United States. They’re precisely ground, extracted or brewed for full impact, with optional add-ons such as mineralised water or freeze-distilled milk. It’s a fun journey of flavour, but friendly staff also make a damn good flat white.

Good to know: In a rush? Stick to the batch brews on tap.

Multiple locations, onlycoffeeproject.square.site

Primary Coffee

Dan Kim opened Primary in 2017 with the aim of serving coffee as a singular pursuit, including roasting his own beans. Years later, it remains one of Sydney’s best. There might not be more than a few pastries to distract you from the serious coffee business, but there is A-grade people-watching. Grab a seat outside, under the umbrellas, and observe the stylish locals (and dogs) of Potts Point wander by while sipping a smooth, single-origin coffee.

Good to know: Primary just introduced cupping sessions for anyone keen to learn more.

9 Ward Avenue, Potts Point, primarycoffeeroasters.com

Ratio Coffee

Coffee is the only thing champion roaster Daniel Wu does at Ratio, but he does it better than most. The modest micro-cafe hides a four-seater bar behind the espresso machine. Pull up a stool and ask for a recommendation. Wu carefully sources, roasts and brews each batch, and his enthusiasm is contagious – you’ll be swapping your skinny cap for his signature “dirty ratio” (custardy freeze-distilled milk layered with rich espresso) in no time.

Best for: Delving deeper into your daily cup.

2/473 Pacific Highway, Crows Nest, coffeeratio.com.au

Good Food’s Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025, presented by T2, celebrates the people and places that shape our excellent cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 11 categories, including icons, those best for food, tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city’s best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. Download the Good Food app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store to discover what’s near you.