Friday Five – Best Coffee on Campus

Welcome to Friday, the single greatest day of the working/uni man’s/woman’s week ☺

There’s something about Fridays that just makes the world seem like a brighter place, isn’t there? Everyone on the train seems nicer, work seems easier, and you get that slow euphoria from about 2pm in the arvo that says, “the weekend is close”.

So it’s no surprise that you’d want to start off this magnificent day the only way magnificent days can be started… with a kick-ass coffee.

Well here it is then, for your Friday Five, the best coffee haunts in and around the UNSW region. As always, your thoughts are far more appreciated than mine so be sure to leave them at the bottom!

1. Coffee cart. I’ve never had a bad coffee from here. Ever. And yes, coffee afficiandos, I hear you screaming out that it’s not a particularly strong blend and it doesn’t give your system that ZIIINNGGG we all love from a pot of crazy good crema, but these guys are solid, consistent and one of the only reasons I can think of to walk to upper campus.

2. Bar Navitas. This is the new-ish café at the bottom of the Tyree Energy Technologies Building, from which I experienced a lip-smacking long black on Tuesday morning. They have yuuummmmy food too but not the cheapest on campus. (link)

3. Whole This one isn’t technically on campus, but it’s a stones through (if you’re good at baseball or softball) away. Right here.(link) This blend has a bit of a different taste to it (I would guess because of its’ organic origins) so it may not please everyone, but it certainly a far mile away from some of the other horrible drops you find around campus. I’m yet to have a milk based coffee here (latte, cap and the like) so I can’t comment on the barista’s abilities in this arena. I would love someone who has to tell me all about it.

4. Coffee Republic Now, this one is a bit harder, as I’ve had good and bad coffee experiences here. Usually, one of my most important benchmarks for a good coffee haunt is consistency, so I was devastated that after quite a few good lattes here, I got one where the milk was completely burnt. In fact, I haven’t really been back. What I can say is that when I mentioned I was writing a coffee top five, this place was mentioned by a few different people, and particularly for their Chai Lattes, which I definitely CAN vouch for. Technically coffee? No. Technically yummy? You betcha.

5. The Corner Store (borders the COFA campus) (I have a horrifying feeling I have the name of this place wrong, so if I do, someone please please let me know) I discovered this incredible part of heaven whilst undertaking a subject on the COFA campus last year, and I have to say, if I have an hour break, I still make the 5 minute drive around the corner and down Oxford St. to taste a wonderful drop of the delicious Campos coffee these guys churn out. They are so so consistent, so lovely, the brownies and muffins always look amazing and, like everything at COFA, it’s just generally cooler than anything on main campus. Excuse me while I get a little romantic here but it’s just utterly stunning to take a little trip to The Corner Store around this time of year, the trees are all green and leafy, the Jacaranda comes out and it just makes you forget you even attend a thing called uni. So worth it.