The cafe culture in Australia is huge, but one place where it particularly stands out is in Bulimba: a wealthy suburb of Brisbane where everyone seems to indulge in coffee and breakfast in one of it’s many cafes on a daily basis.
So I headed down there to see what the fuss was about, and went on a quest to discover the best breakfast in Bulimba!
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
Oxford Street:
Oxford Street is the main street in Bulimba. Here you will find lots of cafes full of people sat outside, socialising and enjoying breakfast over a great coffee.
The fashionable upper-class neighbourhood of Bulimba also prides itself in it’s unique and independent businesses.
You’ll find dozens of restaurants and boutique lifestyle & fashion stores all the way down Oxford Street, from Bulimba Pier up to Balmoral.
Pretty much all of the cafe’s in Bulimba have an outdoor area, perfect to soak up some of Brisbane’s year-round sun! But where to go for the best breakfast in Bulimba? Read on to find out my recommendations!
I narrowed it down to my two favourite, but I have included 8 of Bulimba’s top cafe’s for you to experience!
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
il molo
Located at the very end of Oxford Street by the Brisbane River and Bulimba Pier is il molo, meaning ‘the pier’ in Italian.
Whilst actually more of a restaurant than a cafe, il molo is super trendy and the views from here over the river onto Brisbane are beautiful – the best views you will find in Bulimba!
Perfect place for breakfast, although breakfast is only served on Saturdays and Sundays here, from 7am-11am so make sure to plan your visit then!
The rest of the week il molo is open for lunch, aperitivo and dinner from 11.30am til late.
Weekend breakfast sessions at il molo are fairly busy, but try and bag the best seat if you can: on the outside patio overlooking the waterfront.
When I was there the staff were super attentive and within no time I had my espresso and the ‘Little Green’ cold pressed juice.
Containing all the greens: kale, spinach, celery, lemon, cucumber, ginger & spirulina, it was so healthy and tasted really good.
Like many places in Australia, they also bring a jug of tap water to your table, which is much appreciated especially during the summer!
There was a real variety of tempting choices on the breakfast menu, but in the end I went for the Eggs Benedict, a popular breakfast choice for Aussies.
Ham off the bone, poached eggs, lemon steamed spinach, seeded mustard hollandaise sauce and sourdough. It looked and tasted really delicious!
And of course it was made even more perfect with the views! Il molo’s weekend breakfast definitely gets my vote!
Best part: the food and the al fresco views.
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
Bellissimo Coffee
Walking up Oxford Street from il molo, the next cafe you’ll come to is Bellissimo Coffee.
Bellissimo Coffee is a cafe where they not only serve great food and coffee, but they also roast their own coffee beans in the warehouse at the back and distribute them to many businesses and coffee shops around Australia!
They actually distribute to most of the cafe’s in this list!
Bellissimo Coffee is ALWAYS busy. Whatever time of the day you visit – whether it’s 6am or 11am, this place is always full! And that’s always a great sign!
It’s actually what enticed me to come in in the first place, as from the outside it looks fairly modest and unassuming. But once you step inside you’ll see what all the fuss is about.
There is a nice relaxed atmosphere in here, their staff are very welcoming and their coffee is often referred to as the best in Bulimba. So naturally I had to try it!
Their super kind and friendly waiter Dan made me a ‘Melbourne Magic’ coffee: a double shot of espresso with steamed milk on top.
Along with the coffee I definitely needed a cool drink too as Brisbane gets pretty warm, especially in the summer! He suggested the strawberry apple and mint frappe and it cooled me down a treat.
The breakfast menu had lots of yummy options available – I was spoilt for choice and actually struggled trying to decide what to have! In the end I went for the good old classic – Smashed Avo.
You can’t go wrong with Smashed Avo: it is after all Australia’s most loved breakfast dish! Smashed avo literally took the world by storm in 2016 and pretty much every cafe in Australia serves it.
I have yet to meet an Aussie who doesn’t love this dish, that’s how popular it is!
The smashed avocado came with 2 poached Free Range eggs, Persian Feta, Dukkah (Egyptian seed, nut and spice mix), Olive oil and Sourdough bread. I went for an extra side of bacon too. I’ll just let the pictures do the talking shall I?
You know those rare moments in life when something tastes SO good that you actually want to eat as slow as you can so you can keep the taste as long as possible? This was definitely one of those moments.
The mix of all the flavours together was incredible. I’m not kidding, I think I just discovered Australia’s best Smashed Avo! It was so good that I even had to ask the chef to come out afterwards so I could personally thank him.
Despite it being very busy at Bellissimo Coffee, the staff don’t make you feel rushed here. They greet you with a genuine smile and are always happy to help.
At the coffee shop you can also purchase bags of their coffee beans.
As Bellissimo Coffee gets pretty busy, sometimes you may need to wait a short while for a table, however there is a bench to sit on and even some cute stools outside where you can wait.
You can even watch the coffee roasting process taking place whilst you wait.
Due to the popularity of Bulimba’s Bellissimo Coffee, the owners have decided to move the warehouse section to another location (in Coorparoo), therefore creating more dining space for customers here in Bulimba.
The Coorparoo venue is due to open in 2020 and will include rooms for barista training. This will make it the third Bellissimo cafe (the original one, opened in 2009 is located in Fortitude Valley).
Bellissimo Coffee is open from 6am to 6pm 7 days a week.
Best part: the coffee, food and friendly staff.
Bellissimo Coffee’s breakfast menu.
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
Ollie’s Coffee & Catchups
Located below street level is Ollie’s Coffee & Catchups. Here they have a lovely private courtyard, which is great if you want to escape the hustle and bustle of busy Oxford Street!
Named after their own pooch, Ollie’s is really dog friendly, with faux grass which the dogs love, and they also offer doggy treats!
But Ollie’s is best at the weekends after 7am for breakfast, when they fire up the BBQ and serve bacon and egg rolls – delicious! There’s nothing better than a good old barbecue!
Open from 5am- midday weekdays, and from 6am- midday on weekends.
Best for: weekend barbecue.
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
Park Bench
Park Bench Espresso bar is a little hole in the wall cafe opposite Bulimba Memorial Park, run by the same people who run the cute homeware and shop Indigo adjacent to it.
This small cafe offers lovely views over the park and there are a few seats and a bench here where customers can relax and enjoy their breakfast over a nice view. They even have complimentary doggy treats for your furry friend!
Open 7am-5pm Tuesday – Saturday. Sunday 10am-4pm and Monday 9am-5pm.
Best for: people watching.
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
Coco Bliss
If you are looking for a healthy superfood breakfast, Coco Bliss is the place for you! This is the place to go for all things raw, gluten-free, vegan and completely free of refined sugars.
Their food is nutritious and pure and the menu features a whole range of açai bowls, protein bowls, fresh superfood smoothies and health shots: view their menu.
There are several other Coco Bliss cafes located throughout Brisbane.
Open 7am-4pm.
Best for: healthy breakfast choices.
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
Cafe 63
Another really popular place for a spot of breakfast is Cafe 63 located in the heart of Oxford Street. People regularly come back here for the extensive menu and the very reasonable prices.
From waffles, French toast, pancakes, rosti, smoked salmon, fruit salad to porridge – there is nothing that they don’t serve! They also have a children’s breakfast menu.
Cafe 63 also has several other locations (38 in total) in and around Brisbane, and even some as far as Perth!
Cafe 63 is open from 05.30 until 9pm, with breakfast being served all day.
Best for: value for money.
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
Wow Breakfast
Right at the top of Oxford Street opposite Coco Bliss is Wow Breakfast.
This cafe has a gorgeous white picket fence outside and the interiors are really modern and crisp with lots of plants inside. Wow Breakfast is really cute and the best part? It is SO dog friendly!
There is a little doggy pen in the outdoor seating area to put your doggo so you can eat and relax without your pup getting impatient or watching you eat!
Wow Breakfast offers a large choice of breakfast dishes, from the classic Smashed Avocado to fluffy pancakes and waffles, all presented to a very high level with great attention to detail.
Their coffee, of course, comes from Bellissimo Coffee just down the road.
Breakfast is served 06.30-11.30am.
Best for: people with dogs!
BREAKFAST IN BULIMBA
Ambrosia & Co
Ambrosia & Co is a Mediterranean cafe with a real variety of breakfasts available, from sweet to savoury. This is one of the most extensive breakfast menu on Oxford Street infact!
You can get anything from a Middle Eastern breakfast to buddha bowls, Turkish breakfast to vanilla crepes or even lobster! Their cold pressed healthy juices are all made in-house and they have a lovely spacious outdoor area available.
Breakfast is served from 7am – 11.15am.
Best for: breakfast variety.
My verdict on the best breakfast in Bulimba
It’s a tough one – all the cafe’s mentioned here (and there are even more on Oxford Street that I didn’t include!) all offer something unique.
They all offer high-quality breakfasts, but I must admit, the breakfast at Bellissimo Coffee definitely won my vote. Also something that is really important to me is to have friendly, welcoming staff.
This always makes me want to come back to a cafe, and for that I would have to say Bellissimo Coffee gets my vote, as the staff were so genuine and you could see they enjoyed their job and took pride in their work.
Can I take my dog to a cafe in Bulimba?
Bulimba is one of those areas where if you have a dog or a pram you’ll fit right in!
People are very accommodating to dogs here: often you’ll see water bowls outside the cafes for doggos, and some even offer doggy treats so your furry friend won’t feel like they are missing out whilst you are eating your breakfast!
Dogs are always welcome in the outside areas of the cafes.
How to get to Bulimba:
Bulimba is located along the Brisbane River in south-east Brisbane. It can be easily reached from Brisbane’s South Bank in 15 minutes by car (providing it is not rush-hour when it can take the best part of an hour!).
Alternatively you can reach Bulimba by taking the City Cat ferry from central Brisbane downstream to Bulimba.
It is a lovely ride along the river, past the Botanic Gardens and underneath the Story Bridge. The City Cat ferries runs every 20/30 minutes: view the timetable from Bulimba.
You can purchase a ticket onboard the ferry, or use your Go-Card or TransLINK card – just remember to tap in and tap out. A single fare from Bulimba to Eagle Street Pier (for Brisbane’s CBD) costs around $4AUD during peak hours.
About Bulimba:
Bulimba has a big community feel, with lots of older residents, but equally a sizeable millennial population of working professionals.
The houses in Bulimba are typical Queenslanders, although there are many modern developments around. There are lots of green spaces, such as Bulimba Memorial Park, Bulimia Riverside Park and Vic Lucas Park.
If you are looking for the best things to do in Brisbane, check out my post 24 Hours in Brisbane!
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Sponsored, but all opinions are my own.