Recess Coffee

Recess is like a cross between your Nonna’s dining room and the retro charm of a ’70s diner. Aqua booth seating, chrome accents and butter yellow tabletops made from recycled plastic surround an open kitchen that pumps out coffee and home-style plates.

Co-owner Anthony Iannelli, also behind Terra, draws from his Italian heritage with a menu featuring a hearty sausage and fennel ragu and porchetta sangas for lunch. Turn up for breakfast and you’ll be met with renditions of old-school classics like sausage and egg muffins oozing with scrambled eggs, and a deceptively simple-looking pancake served with a knob of butter and a little maple syrup pourer.

Coffee is roasted by co-owner Scott Brewer (ex-Barrio Collective Coffee), just 10 minutes away at Fyshwick’s Dairy Road precinct. There’s also matcha, house chai and a selection of natural and local wines on offer.

A turntable takes pride of place on the front counter underneath an eclectic record collection and a set of Pitt & Giblin speakers handmade in Tasmania. (You may have also seen a pair at Melbourne wine bar Waxflower.) A small but extensive retail section fills timber shelves near the entrance, selling a curated selection of goods ranging from Recess coffee to matcha powder, records and small-run magazines and publications.