My Cafe – Furneaux St Manuka, ACT
I am here in Canberra for the Easter long weekend already craving a cup of good coffee. Being between Sydney and Melbourne the 2 cities that pride themselves on great coffee you would think Canberra would be overflowing with great little cafes. There an abundance of cafes but really good coffee is hard to come by. Today I am in the posh leafy suburb of Manuka just minutes from the centre of Canberra city. I settle down at My Cafe on the main drag in Manuka. The locals like their Saturday breakfast as the area is packed, sure is a good vibe to hear the chatter and clanging of forks and knives.
Now to my coffee a cappuccino with one sugar. The sting of perhaps over roasted beans lingers just a little too long. The coffee temperature is perfect and once you get over the bitterness there is some smooth flavour notes. My Cafe uses Ona beans a brand of coffee I have not come across previously. All in all it was a decent cup of coffee but my search will continue for that great cup of coffee in Canberra!
We have breakfast here and quite simply everyone at the table is impressed. My eggs Benedict is perfect as I cut into it and having the egg oozing out. The big breakfast is huge and it takes a couple of the family at the table to conquer it. Omelette with chorizo is much appreciated. So while the coffee is ok the breakfast is quite good. Prices are quite reasonable with the big breakfast topping out the breakfast menu price at $18.50. Most breakfast choices hover around th $14-15 mark. There are a range of lunch and dinner options.
Recommendation : My Cafe is a good all rounder along the Manuka strip for food and a coffee, though I wouldn’t consider it a dedicated coffee stop.
Even for Canberra, which doesn’t really have the exceptional coffee culture of Sydney or Melbourne, My Cafe is just average. It’s a shame that some of the best places are closed over the Easter long weekend, but the best coffees can be found at the Lonsdale St Roasters in Braddon, followed by a few other great cafes including Silo Bakery (Kingston) and Ona (in Manuka).
Thanks for Tim for suggestions. I was pretty sure that Manuka would have a couple cafes open on the Easter weekend. I will definitely go check out Lonsdale and Silo when I am down in June
When I lived in canberra, cafe Essen in the cbd was quite good and roasted their own beans. I haven’t been back for quite a while so I don’t know if they are still around.