Adelaide

Meli runs loukoumades in four flavours and a baklava freddo that treats dessert and coffee as the same problem. The Greek beach-bar styling is doing a lot of work, but the saganaki sando holds up once the loukoumades stop being the only thing you photograph.

Order Loukoumades (traditional, pistachio, biscoff, Nutella), Melizana, Saganaki Sando, Galaktoboureko Cups, Pistachio Baklava Freddo

Bora puts a Brazilian spin on the Grange breakfast routine — the BELT swaps the usual BLT for Dijon and pecorino, and it works better than it reads. It hosted Adelaide's first Brazilian festival from this beachside corner, which tells you the acai bowls aren't an afterthought.

Order The BELT (BLT with eggs, Dijon, pecorino), acai bowls, breakfast tacos

Jenny's Bakery took over the old Sylvia's Deli site in Keswick and spent 2025 turning a quiet opening into a standing queue. The Asian bakery range is the draw, and the cult around it has had a year to harden.

Order Asian bakery specialties, cult-status pastries

Pinco's third site lands on Exchange Place betting the sando has outlasted the burger, and the alla vodka pasta with stracciatella suggests the kitchen isn't only thinking about bread. The Jumbo Smash founders know the CBD lunch crowd well enough to make that bet look safe.

Order Sando lineup, baked alla vodka pasta with stracciatella, pappardelle with ragu bianco

Pompom fires its flatbread in a Gozney oven and builds an all-day menu around it — the Cypriot sausage pita is the order, the whipped ricotta with spicy salami the one you'll go back for. The Whistle & Flute crew timed it to Forestville's redevelopment, so expect the room to fill out fast.

Order The Pompom (chicken, roast capsicum, feta, tabouli), Cypriot sausage pita, whipped ricotta with spicy salami

Arlos took the old Cibo corner at King William and Grenfell and pointed it at the CBD coffee run. The cinnamon scrolls come in three versions — the frangelico one is the reason the office orders go in early.

Order Cinnamon scrolls (original, blueberry, frangelico), specialty coffee, fresh sandos

Homeboy started as teenager Tom Oswald's Hahndorf cafe and has reopened on North Terrace with the cinnamon scrolls that did the numbers in 2025. The recipe is his mum's; the focaccia toasties are the reason the queue doesn't only show up for sugar.

Order Mum's famous cinnamon scrolls, focaccia toasties, Homeboy coffee blend

Yuku dō answers the Japanese-brunch craving the CBD didn't know it had, plating breakfast sets that sit somewhere between Tokyo and a local all-day menu. Order a matcha alongside and let the fusion plates make their own case.

Order Japanese breakfast sets, matcha drinks, contemporary Japanese-Australian fusion plates

Cha-no-wa is a Japanese brand's first Australian outpost, and it landed on King William Street still sourcing matcha straight from Kyoto through the global shortage. The frappes and sundaes get the attention; the hojicha is the quieter reason regulars keep the table.

Order Kyoto-sourced matcha and hojicha, matcha frappes and sundaes, Japanese cakes and ice-cream

Gathers & Grounds took a sunny Glenelg corner and made its name in a matter of weeks on hojicha, matcha and a properly strong Vietnamese coffee. The chicken katsu sando and ube hotcakes are why the beachside crowd stays past one drink.

Order Chicken Katsu sando, Ube hotcakes, Vietnamese coffee, matcha drinks