It’s been an energising two years for the Mid North Coast’s food scene, which continues to bloom in confidence and consistency, and this fresh crop of eateries are no exception. This time we’re largely focusing on Bellingen and Coffs Harbour, with a mix of new places and those soon-to-open, plus a couple of old faves for good measure.

For drinks with a view

Stef & Co is a chic Coffs Harbour waterfront bakery, cafe and downstairs bar from the former owner of the Jetty’s beloved Fiasco restaurant. Hidden away in the Promenade complex, the restaurant juts directly above Coffs Creek with cool breezes blowing off the green water stuck with mangroves.

Hot drinks are from the health playbook – medicinal mushroom-laced cacao, for example – while the booze list is a tight collection of Italian and Australian wines and tasty cocktails. A Euro-leaning menu lists plenty of snackable, shareable options for casual dining, and the pizza oven fires out simply topped classics. Hot news: a Sicilian osteria by the same owners is due to open next door in early 2025.

319-321 Harbour Drive, Coffs Harbour, stefandco.com.au

For coffee

Longtime coffee roasters Amelia Franklin (co-founder of the International Women’s Coffee Alliance Australia) and Toby Smith (founder of Toby’s Estate) formed Amelia + Toby in 2024, roasting organic Fairtrade beans each week and starting a collaboration with smart-casual favourite Fiume. What that means is inhabiting the restaurant’s veranda and bar area and brewing up excellent coffee daily. They use quality alternative milks, and have organic loose-leaf teas, sticky chai and a solid range of wellness-boosting beverages.

58 Hyde Street, Bellingen, ameliaandtoby.com.au

For fish, chips and burgers

While not exactly “new” – the riverfront shop has mostly been in business since the 1800s – a change of ownership has seen a stylish refit at North Beach General Store. This place pumps hard during holidays, with a netted river pool and kids’ playground across the road, sparkling water views, and the magnificent, wild ocean of North Beach one block away. Roll up for battered fish tacos, burgers, and old-school chips cooked traditionally in lard. Dogs are welcome.

16 George Street, Mylestom, northbeachgeneral.com.au

For beer and pizza

“What’s happening at the Brewery?” is the question on locals’ lips who are missing the staple local watering hole which has been mostly shut since COVID. Set to open in early 2025, Bellingen Brewery’s proud new owners are brothers Nick and Charlie Boshier. Will there still be organic, sourdough pizzas? Yes. The wood-fired oven has been walled-in and there’s a new prep kitchen upstairs with plans to expand the menu. Nine taps pour local beers (including four house-made brews), and there are top-notch cocktails with local gins and vodkas. Will there still be live touring bands and DJs? Absolutely.

3/5 Church Street, Bellingen, instagram.com/bellingenbrewingco

For the whole gang

Aanuka Beach House received an injection of glam in 2024 with a takeover by Sydney hospitality group Tilley & Wills. They’ve gone all out to let the good times roll: happy hours, bottomless brunches, sundowner spritzes, movie nights, seafood buffets and DJs – Aanuka knows how to party and how the botoxed groups dressed to the nines love it. Out the back, a massive grassy expanse rolls gently to the sheltered Diggers Beach. Here, it’s more of a towel-and-thongs vibe with family-friendly games. Who’s up for a quick round of quoits?

11 Firman Drive, Coffs Harbour instagram.com/aanukabeachhouse

For smart-casual dining

Run by Fiona Richardson and chef Megan Black, Fiume had a complete rebrand in 2024 loosening the formality for a more casual vibe and moving from an Italian menu to a modern Australian offering. Perhaps a tuna crudo with celeriac puree or pork belly with zucchini and capers? Always showcased are Nambucca oysters served natural with an eschalot mignonette, and seafood is fresh-that-day off the Coffs’ trawlers. In other news, Fiume now does brunch Friday to Sunday, too.

58 Hyde Street, Bellingen fiumebellingen.com.au

For hotel dining

After a slightly rocky start, Three Blue Ducks has settled nicely into The Lodge. The renovated hotel-motel boasts 16-acres and stellar mountain views of Dorrigo National Park, and there’s plenty of space in the no-expenses-spared dining room (with capacity for 200 guests, weddings are a big hit). It’s best suited for a long, lazy lunch, and on Sundays there’s a full roast with all the trimmings.

1381 Waterfall Way, Bellingen threeblueducks.com/bellingen

For low-key French

You could easily miss Miquette, a natty French cafe in a low-key strip of downtown Coffs. Views there aren’t, but this is the place if you’re into French vibes – owners Edouarde and Jade Deschamps met while working at famed Paris restaurant Bistrot Paul Bert. Expect buttery pastries, filled baguettes, and texturally splendid crepes. On Friday, Miquette stays open until 8pm for drinks and food (and live music on the first Friday of each month).

214 Harbour Drive, Coffs Harbour, miquette.com.au

For pastries, pies and bread

New creations are paramount at Peaches Patisserie, the two-year-old patisserie where owner Beth O’Loughlin bakes seasonal treats. In summer, you can try a blueberry pastry then head to Boss Blueberries where the fruit is grown and pick some yourself. Start the day with cold brew from local micro-roaster Full Spectrum at Supply Coffee in Coffs, throw in a waterfall sighting and Dorrigo’s mountain-town charm, and it’s a tops country outing all round. Back down the hill, Hearthfire bakes incredible organic, woodfired sourdough loaves and made-from-scratch pies.

Peaches Patisserie, 53 Hickory Street, Dorrigo; Boss Blueberries, 24 Emersons Road, Bostobrick; Supply Coffee, 15 Orlando Street, Coffs Harbour; Hearthfire, 73 Hyde Street, Bellingen and 9A First Avenue, Sawtell

Highlights from The Sydney Morning Herald 2025 Good Food Guide

Bruno’s

A subtle scent of smoking timber lingers behind the easy-to-miss door of this eatery off Bellingen’s beaten path. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, and here it’s blazing – licking salty, plump king prawns later drenched in fermented chilli butter; hunks of zucchini teamed with house-preserved lemon; and a preposterously juicy pork chop that comes with smoked fennel and velvety apple sauce. Banquette seating is the best spot to watch the action, but it’s the shady tables on the verandah that really make this polished Mediterranean restaurant feel like home.

2 Oak Street, Bellingen brunosbellingen.com.au

Bar Que Sera

Snack-sized options suit the small dining room of this cheery bar and restaurant, with its wood floors and vintage tiles, and super-fluffy sourdough flatbread with sumac-whipped labne and burnt butter is something of a signature. Meanwhile, crunchy, buttery crumpets are paired perfectly with Balmain bug, lemon mayonnaise and chives, while the intensity of wild boar rillettes is cut with mustard and pickled onions. Kicking off next door with a local lager at Que Sera’s dive-style sister bar Morty’s Joint is a fine idea (and Morty’s fried chicken is pretty banging, too.)

61 First Avenue, Sawtell, bar-que-sera.com

Charlie’s at Church

This green-toned, warm-lit Italian is the place to be on a Friday night in Bellingen. Beneath pendant lights, seating is comfortably spaced, with room for friendly staff to dance between tables. Pepperoni and pesto sourdough pizza is a highlight, pulled at the precise second from a raging fire, and humming with honey and spice. Dorrigo lamb stars in a rich ragu clinging to ribbons of mafalde pasta, and you can expect a solid selection of weekly specials, often headlined by rib-eye dry-aged in house. Good food to put you in a great mood.

7 Church Street, Bellingen, charliesbellingen.com.au