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September Cafe, Darlinghurst
Chances are, you’re already familiar with Bryce Heyworth’s work. Search “Sydney florist” on Instagram, and he’s usually one of the first options to appear – moving in time to a trending rap song as he drops outlandishly beautiful bouquets into vases at September Studio in Darlinghurst.
Heyworth opened his debut cafe in April. It’s next door, in a small space hemmed by glass, well suited to waking up with a batch brew, a book, and a view of the morning flower delivery. The adjoining courtyard recalls memories of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s 1911 novel The Secret Garden, walled in and lush with foliage.
You have to admire Heyworth’s subtle, but persistent, commitment to the bit. The cafe is in literal bloom: floral shapes appearing on silver stools, stained-glass signage and patches of frayed material on the barista’s jacket. It could have been cringe. Here, it works.
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The theme extends to a botanical matcha latte, pairing single-origin, stone-milled powder (Suro Matcha) with a delicate twist of lemon myrtle, from Ziggy’s Wildfoods. It has an earthy, creamy quality (with just a touch of tannin) that matcha purists will appreciate. Coffee is supplied by Sydney roasters Primary, and is predictably solid.
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This isn’t, yet, somewhere you’d go for a meal. Food is limited to pastries from Bronte bakery Iggy’s and cookies from hospitality veteran Brittany Rowe (of Sorry Not Sorry collective, awarded the Good Food Guide Culture Change Champion in 2025). On the day we visit it’s a pistachio cookie with a soft, satisfying chew and a liberal dusting of salt. A lovely afternoon tea, if it hasn’t already sold out.
Heyworth said there are plans to introduce “slightly unexpected” breakfast dishes, though the menu won’t expand much. “I’m much more interested in doing a small number of things really well,” he said.
Open Mon-Fri 7am-3pm, Sat 8am-2pm and Sun 7am-2pm
27 Boundary Street, Darlinghurst, septemberstudio.com.au
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Adelaide’s Kitchen, Paddington
We visited Adelaide’s Kitchen before it became overwhelmed by its popularity and hit pause on most of the menu. It was mid-morning, mid-week and all 10 tables were full. A confused-looking crowd hovered by the red door of the little corner terrace. Inside, staff said there were no bookings, no waitlist, and no indication of wait time. Just grab a table when one became available, they said.
Owners Adelaide Darling and Tom Langdon want Adelaide’s Kitchen to have a relaxed, neighbourly feel. I get it, but in the absence of staff willing to organise the chaos, corralling falls to customers. Call it community building, I guess.
Darling, the resident chef-baker, said opening her first cafe with husband Langdon in July has required constant learning and adjustment. Following council approval for additional staff, brekkie and lunch dishes such as egg soldiers with sage buttered toast, and porridge with poached spiced pears are expected to return early October.
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For all their growing pains, they’re clearly doing something very right.
The space is a dreamy, contemporary take on the French country interiors once made popular by the likes of Martha Stewart – deep red tones, timeless wood furniture, and vintage plates. It has a lot of heart, too – each coffee cup was handmade by Darling’s mum, emerging ceramicist Alexandra Darling; coffee comes from Langdon’s own Lay Day roastery; and matcha (delicately grassy, enough verdancy to leave a moustache) is sourced from Sad Girl, a single-origin Melbourne brand founded by friend Yukako Sunaba.
And there is that warmth Darling worked to create – once seated, with a lime-dusted cardamom cream cold brew and a little, perfect square of lemon and thyme cake, it feels as though you’ve stepped into an alternative reality, like afternoon tea at your best mate’s house – if they lived inside a magazine. Oh, and the chocolate chip cookies are easily among the best in Sydney.
Open Tue-Sat 7am-3pm
9 Regent Street, Paddington, instagram.com/adelaides.kitchen
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Kiddo Coffee, Surry Hills
Cool kids never sleep. That’s the motto of Kiddo Coffee, a hole-in-the-wall Surry Hills cafe that opened in August. “There is still a kid inside all of us, no matter how old we are,” explained Thai-born owner Pakasit Wawongmoon (also known as Zen), with an endearing sincerity. “We all still have dreams.”
For Wawongmoon, this cafe is the dream. It’s his second attempt, following his departure from now-closed cafe Bondi Kiddo two years ago. This time, there are no partnerships – this one is all on him.
It’s still finding its feet. Staff are a bit unsure, cabinets are still being assembled, and the seating (exclusively outdoors) is made up of spray-painted Ikea stools and red plastic milk crates.
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Kiddo Coffee is largely inspired by Hong Kong. Wawongmoon has spent a lot of time in the city, enjoying the cafes, and watching films by director Wong Kar Wai. To that end, he contracted his friends from Hong Kong, siblings Jansen and Joyce Li, to make their traditional family recipe for polo bao, or pineapple bun.
So named for its appearance rather than flavour, they are heated to order in a small oven, emerging like a soft, fluffy bread roll, served with a side of Pepe Saya butter. If you’ve a bit of a sweet tooth (as I do), opt for the pandan flavour – bold green, stuffed with sugary coconut filling, sticky and warm as you pull it apart.
The main drawcard is the drinks menu, with 22 options ranging from batch-brewed coffee from Summer Hill roaster Headlands, to elaborate concoctions such as “Fly me to the moon” (cold-press coffee beneath a cloud of orange-spiked cream, like a caffeinated jaffa), and the foamy Thai-inspired coffee called “Es yen mak”, which tastes suspiciously like Milo (he won’t reveal what the “signature cream” is). There’s also matcha (house sourced from Uji, Japan), house-made strawberry sauce, and a few unusual options such as chrysanthemum cream cheese tea.
The “official” launch is Sunday, September 20: “We’re planning to make it feel a bit like a coffee club, with a DJ and free pineapple buns,” Wawongmoon said.
Open Mon-Fri 7am-3pm and Sat-Sun 7.30am-3pm
84-86 Mary Street, Surry Hills, instagram.com/kiddo.coffeesydney
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Bianca Hrovat – Bianca is Good Food’s Sydney eating out and restaurant editor.AdvertisementAdvertisement