Victoria

Where to find the best coffee in regional Victoria

cup of coffee and a latte

Lou Sanz

Posted October 05, 2021

The regional cafés cupping some of Victoria's finest brews.

Gone are the days of relying on petrol station coffee for your caffeine fix when visiting the regions (unless that’s your thing, of course). Thanks to a booming coffee scene, over the last five years the cafes of regional Victoria have been giving Melbourne’s coffee monopoly a run for its money.

Here’s our choice when it comes to the best cup of coffee - north, east, west and south of Melbourne.

5 of the best coffee makers in regional Victoria
 

FIKA Coffee Brewers 

Ballarat

Located in the heart of Ballarat on Doveton St North, you’ll find FIKA Coffee Brewers. Even though exceptional coffee is what they do blindfolded (everything from batch brew to creamy lattes), it’s their friendly staff, simple yet satisfying menu with a focus on quality over choice (think poached eggs to bagels to the trusty roast lamb sandwich), and minimalistic but inviting décor that cements them as a coffee must when visiting Victoria's western district amongst our top 10 things to love about Ballarat. 

Pond Cafe

Torquay

You don’t have to compromise on your morning beachside walk and the coffee that fuels you with Pond Café conveniently located right on the enviable Torquay esplanade. Using Seven Seeds beans, Pond Café churns out Melbourne-style coffee to everyone from the surfer and early morning jogger to the afternoon coffee pick-me-up crew. And if you don’t want your coffee on the go, with a menu that covers toasties to vanilla macadamia nut granola, you won’t be disappointed when exploring everything Torquay has to offer with a cuppa in hand. 

Old Green Bean

Bendigo

When looking for a great cup of coffee, you can't really go past a café that roasts its own beans. This cafe and micro-roastery in one of our regional favourites, Bendigo, are very specific when it comes to its coffee, with the menu sectioned off into COFFEE and NOT COFFEE – you're not going to find a chai-tea lurking on the menu between your short mac and long black at this place.

Fika coffee brewers

FIKA Coffee Brewers are a must-visit when in the Ballarat region. Image: Supplied. 

Nordi Cafe

Red Hill

Proudly boasting Scandi taste and style with coffee made with Allpress coffee beans, don’t just drop past Red Hill's Nordie Café on your way to somewhere else, make this your next brunch destination when visiting the Mornington Peninsula. A child-friendly herb garden, complete with a cubby house and a mini-market selling everything from Allpress coffee beans to homewares by award-winning Danish designers Hay, you'll need a good cup of coffee to work through all the scandi-inspired delicacies on offer. Plus, you can drop in any day you like - Nordie Cafe is open seven days a week

Pancho

Daylesford

This cool little café in Daylesford keeps visitors and locals alike happy and well-caffeinated thanks for their spot-on baristas and hot beef rolls (a must for the meat inclined). Their coffee made with beans from Wide Open Road roasters hits creamy new heights thanks to Camperdown Jersey Milk and aromatic black coffees of your choice. If you're looking for more of a kick from your afternoon coffee when out and about in the region, we hear they do a pretty mean Espresso Martini.

Of course, these are just five of the best places to grab a cup of coffee when heading out of Melbourne, but they're by far not the only places smashing out quality lattes, flat whites, magic, batch brews – you get the idea. So special mention also goes to Udder and Hoe in Gippsland, Cobb’s Coffee in Ballarat and the Bean Station Café in Wodonga.

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