Cairns cafes: Ten top coffee shops in Far North Queensland
Whether you prefer a double macchiato, a latte, cappuccino or an espresso, there’s a cafe around Cairns to suit your taste. SEE OUR GUIDE TO THE BEST COFFEES
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THE Cairns region has a well-deserved reputation among coffee fanatics for some of the best shots around.
Whether you prefer a double macchiato, a latte, cappuccino or an espresso, there’s a cafe somewhere across the city to suit your taste.
As one person’s rich crema is another’s frantic heart-starter, we acknowledge that no one cafe meets everyone’s taste – so we have done our research and compiled a list of the leading coffee providers in our regional city.
This is not a best-of or usual suspects list, it’s acknowledging the baristas and owners who go the extra mile – and if we missed your favourite, please let us know.
So in alphabetical order by area, drum roll please.
Bungalow – Blackbird
Since 2016 a steady stream of workers and residents head to 205 Newell St to enjoy NQ Coffee’s freshly made brews by manager Ally Cockrell and staff including Eli Lawrence and Summer Indiana.
Ms Cockrell said flat whites, lattes and cappuccinos were always in demand.
“We are plastic-free champions and 50 per cent of our customers bring in keep cups and the other 50 per cent use our recycled cup,” she said.
“In this area of town a lot of customers are regulars and we have a chat which is nice.”
General manager Brent Powell said the Bungalow and the city store in the Oceana Walk, which opened in 2014, were destinations for a wide range of coffee lovers.
“We wholesale beans to cafes in the region from Thursday Island to Port Stephens,” he said.
“Coffee is personal preference dark and storing, light and fruity but it always had to be nicely extracted.”
Cairns City – Coffee Works
At 46 Spence St, manager Lauren Murphy is part of the 34-year-old tradition of Coffee Works which has been keeping Cairns residents buzzing with their in-house freshly roasted coffee beans.
Ms Murphy said a secret to their success is the quality roasting undertaken by their main Mareeba store.
“Coffee is like wine, they have top notes,” she said.
“It does not matter if you like a mellow coffee or something darker.
“Our most popular blend is Black Mountain, it’s where we start people off if they are not sure what they want as it’s a big crowd-pleaser because not many people don’t like it.
“With this we can gauge people’s tastes if they want it darker, smoother or more chocolate notes.”
Cairns City – Envy Espresso
It’s always buzzing at this popular cafe at 111 – 115 Grafton St, with visiting celebrities trying to be incognito while enjoying the house blend.
Manager Maiko Tomita has been with the bustling cafe for three years and she said her staff have built up a loyal clientele.
She said her staff are amazing and she was very proud of their dedication to making every coffee to the best of their ability.
“A lot of our regulars are also baristas or work in the industry,” she said.
“This makes us even more passionate and motivated to make good coffee.”
Cairns City – The Source Bulk Foods
OK, so while this is not a cafe, this retailer does sell coffee in the bean or ground and has built a reputation for local coffee aficionados.
Manager Tracy Cran said the shop sells two brands of coffee in bulk.
“We sell Jaques Australian Espresso by the bean and a Byron Bay roasted blend that is ground,” she said.
“The Source has been in Cairns for seven years and a lot of our customers come here especially for our bulk coffees.”
Cairns City – The Dispensary
Barista Oswaldo Neto said business was good at the moment and he’s delighted that as well as the regulars, he was making coffee for lots of new faces who were also becoming repeat clients.
Known as the cafe with the bike rack in Orchid Plaza, which runs between Abbott and Lake streets, Mr Neto said his espresso machine had been going full tilt.
“Our top sellers are cappuccino, flat whites and lattes and then iced coffees,” he said.
“The regulars make up 50 per cent of our customers and the other 50 per cent are new, a mix of locals and tourists.”
Cairns North – Mykie’s Cafe On Lily
At this hidden treasure at 22 Lily St, Mike Beatty and Kie Miller operate a business which offers great coffee, flavoursome meals and yummy takeaways.
It’s the kind of neighbourhood place where visitors in boardshorts, tradies in steel-capped boots and office workers in a suit all feel comfortable as they get their coffee.
Mr Beatty said he bought the business in April 2021 and had not looked back.
He said their welcoming cafe, which was on a side road off Sheridan St, was part of the local community.
“Our customers are local workers, tradies and tourists at the Lakes as they can walk here,” he said.
“Mykie makes a really good coffee and we offer good basic wholesome food, it’s not flash but it’s really tasty and really good value.”
Mooroobool – High Tide
Co-owner Callum Brown said the business which he opened with Jamie Lane 14 months ago at 1/8 Carnation Drive, was the result of realising an opportunity to create a sense of community.
“We have a very local approach and get a lot of coffee lovers from City View, Kanimbla, Mooroobool and Earlville,” he said.
“The double shot latte is very popular but in summer time it’s the iced late.”
Mr Brown said their app allows time-poor parents and workers to get their caffeine fix on their way to work or when dropping off kids at school or daycare.
“We noticed a massive increase in app use during lockdown,” he said.
“Parents in the morning they need every minute.”
Manoora – Ten One Twenty Cafe
After running a boutique cafe in Edge Hill, Ten One Twenty Cafe owner Josie Zulaikha said she loved running her drive-through coffee shop situated in a retro caravan at Piccone’s shopping centre.
Ms Zulaikha said it’s a great business and she enjoyed her loyal customers who come by several times a day.
“We sell lots of large cappuccinos and flavoured coffees,” she said.
“Some of our regulars come through three times a day.
“We are open seven days a week with a great team and we have a silver bullet Airstream, a caravan we take to music festivals which is lots of fun.”
Stratford – Sipping Duck
Known as a top spot for many cyclists who glide in for a restorative coffee or three after a long ride, Sipping Duck Coffee Roasters at 29 Johnston St, has been in business since 2012.
Co-owner Fiorella Denari and barista Katerina Pagana, who would have to take the cake for the most effervescent baristas in town, said they love the wide variety of customers they attract.
“What sets us apart is we roast our own coffee from our Bungalow store, we specialise in high altitude beans and we have six different blends for people to enjoy at home from dark roast to single origin,” Ms Denari said.
“Everything is done in-house from our different sweets in the display cabinets to the spices and hummus.”
Yorkeys Knob – Cafe Yorkeys
Beach-goes, workers and locals are at the door of the Varley St cafe when they open at 6am, according to barista Robyn Walker.
Clad in thongs, bare feet, sandals or work boots, commuters are keen to grab a brew to get their day started.
“Our busiest time is from 6.20am to 8am and get a mixture of workers, locals and some paddlers,” she said.
“Some people we see twice a day and they love the freshly-made brekkie wraps, caramel slices and coconut and raspberry cake.”
Ms Walker said there’s not one most popular coffee type.
“We sell lots of all types of coffees as well as chai teas and powders, and smoothies,” she said.
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