Koko Black looks to be a higher end coffee and chocolate shop. I didn't try their chocolate, but…read moredid come multiple times for their coffee. Drinks: - I would definitely recommend you try their Iced Coffee! It's pretty much ice cream, honey, slathered with espresso...a large cup of heaven. Can't forget that it's topped with chocolate shavings :) - I've also had their hot drinks - Soy Flat White (for non-Aussies, this is pretty much a latte w/ less milk and more espresso) Seating: - There is ample indoor and outdoor seating. If the cafe is closed, there is an area outside the door to queue.

We went to Kokoblack yesterday and it hasn't changed at all in the last 4 years since we were there…read morelast. Everything about this chocolateir is 5 star: the ambience, the chocolate, the drinks and the service. I wish they had a Kokoblack in Seattle, Washington as they would make a killing. If someone is reading this, please open a Kokoblack franchise in the United States! I had the Iced chocolate which was perfection with the not too sweet chocolate and chocolate shavings on top. I also had two chocolates to go with my drink and it was amazing. I'm glad they serve you free chilled water and leave the bottle as you need it to help you enjoy all the chocolate. This is the place you go to for a first date or for dessert after going out to dinner in one of the many restaurants in Civic. Thank you for not changing Kokoblack and being the best dessert I've ever been to.

This place is great! We ordered our big breakfasts and beverages at the counter and then went to…read moresit in one of the little buildings in the plaza. Everyone was friendly and helpful. They had many delightful options, but we went with the standard big breakfast, which was yummy! I asked if my cappuccino could be made with cream instead of milk and they were happy to give it a try for me. It was wonderful! Lots of food and an enjoyable breakfast on a beautiful day. Their desserts and gelato were tempting, so we may need to go back to try some of that another time.

Excellent Place! Service was Friendly and Fast. Atmosphere is cool/chill and it's perfect place to…read morecome enjoy gelato or coffee but also good for breakfast or pizza.

This is one of the oldest, and also one of my favourite, cafes in Canberra…read more It seems like its been around forever; one of the original cafes located in the Garema Place arc (right next door to the much larger, but not as good, Gus's). The coffee is always really good; they have a huge selection of very good teas, and the food is great; whether breakfast and brunch (which I find myself here for more than anything else) or the great desserts. Insiders tip: if you like banana smoothies, try the Buzz. They've added two shots of espresso to it and I can't get enough of them. There's no better place to sit outside in Garema Place.

Brunch is such a touchy subject with me: Cafe cruises are one of my favourite pastimes despite the…read moresheer number of average cafes that overwhelmingly outweigh the must-go-back brunch spots. I can't count the times I've had eggs over poached and roasted tomatoes that just tasted like, well, tomatoes and nothing else! Cafe Essen is nestled within Canberra's cafe hub - Garema Place in the city. There are four or five cafes in a row here, making it incredibly difficult to decide which one to go for. In my opinion, none of them are "stand out," as they all have similar menus and outdoor seating; and by outdoor seating I mean tables set within a commercial shopping mall strip. The server was really kind and very accommodating for my vegetarian requests. I ordered a big breakfast and swapped out the bacon for spinach, and a cappuccino to match. It was.. just... food. There was nothing spectacular or noteworthy in the flavours of the items and for around $18 a plate, I can't say the portions were particularly generous either. And the coffee was.. just .. coffee. Not delicious, but not undrinkable either. Standard brunch fare for too big a fare strikes again!

Experiences here vary from 5 star to 1 star. Basement bar is a good place for a secluded drink but…read morethe impressive decor is reflected in the price of drinks, even allowing for the overpriced nature of Canberra.. A plus is that the stock of Australian spirits. Last visit the bar was not open at 4pm (as advertised) forcing us to sit upstairs, where the service is slow and somewhat disinterested. A.Baker may have changed since I first drafted this review a few years ago, but if the name is the same.... :)

Go at your own risk- heard mixed reviews and I can see why. If u want a sure thing amazing…read moreexperience I'd recommend going somewhere else. However if you're a gambler and want to throw caution to the wind and laugh in the face of bad service and the chance for a rather disappointing experience than strap on your Indiana Jones costume and come on down! I had been recommended A.Baker by a mate in Sydney however my local contact had received mixed reviews. She'd never been and so we thought we'd give it a try. We came here for brunch so I can't really comment on the dinner/wine bar side of things (maybe that is their saving grace?). A.Baker looks pretty suave and funky. The layout and design inside is madhot and I always give extra points to a place that has invested time in decorating. It's honestly worth coming here just to check out the decor. The food was quite nice, but I think they were trying too hard to be avant-garde and different. I understand that the chefs want to do something new and different but it all just seemed a little bit pretentious for my simple tastes. I got the toad in the hole- which sounds weird considering my previous sentence- however it had lardo (cured pig fat) on it and some other thing I couldn't even name. Nevertheless it was rather pleasant. The coffee was alight- nothing special but definitely a good bean nonetheless. The biggest issue was the service and the treatment of the staff. They were just inattentive and did not care at all. We ordered a round of bloody marys which kind of never came. We eventually asked the waitress when we were 1/2 way through our meals and her response was that no one was in the bar... After all of us staring blankly at her for a few seconds she said that she guessed she could go ask her manager and walked off. After we'd all finished our meals and were about to give up and head off the manager came out with the bloody Mary's, put them down and hurried off. No apology for the delay or smile or anything.. This would have been fine- I'm not precious about service- however the drinks were undrinkable. I love chilli and can handle my heat, however this was like drinking Tabasco sauce. We spoke to another waiter and asked if they could be taken off the bill- which they did. Another group sat at the table next us and no waiter have them menus or anything for the 20 minutes they were there. Might also point out it wasn't busy at all. This seems to be the biggest critique of this place (the service not the Bloody Mary's) and I've heard several stories of this since going. Normally this wouldn't get in the way of good food for me. I'd be comfortable paying to eat in a gutter of a highway with the waiter spitting in my face if the food was worth it, however the overall experience just wasn't really worth it. I'm giving it two stars as the whole experience was simply disappointing. I always look for the best in a place but there were too many factors working against this place for me to ignore. The next time I come to Canberra I think I might just make my toad in a hole at home- or try and come here for a wine at night,

Hi, I am emailing today asking for help! There is a staff…read moremember here in Canberra ACT that is abusing and refusing to serve customers. Today at 10th January 2026 1:30pm Woden/Phillip Westfield Dibinsons. 3 staff members 2 female 1 male(short bad tempered manager) decides chatting amongst themselves was a better thing to do rather than serve my wife while she was in a rush on lunch break wanting something to eat. The male(which claims to be the manager) looked straight at my wife made eye contact while she was on the phone to me(her husband) and decided to ignore her attempts to purchase a couple of pies for lunch while she was the only person standing at the counter. She waited about 10 minutes hoping one of the lady's working would help but they to looked at her and ignored her. My wife felt unwelcome and ostracised by his behaviour and left to go back to work after having not eating anything for lunch. This short male staff member has done this multiple times to my wife and due to his behaviour last year my wife stopped attending dobinsons altogether. I have made multiple reports in store regarding, his behaviour, him swearing at me, refused service, called names while walking by dobinsons while he is on shift and even being threatened and told to meet him after work for a physical altercation. Still after all my attempts to report this unethical unfriendly aggressive behaviour nothing seems to have been done and he is still refusing to serve my wife and yelling out to me over the counter while i walk past the dobinsons at Belconnen. I was informed by the tall manager last year at belconnen dobinsons that he had been spoken to. So my wife and i were able to make purchases at Robinson's again. But after today it is apparent that the short aggressive male(manager) doesn't care about the reports made last year nor does he care about upholding a professional manner while attending/working at dobinsons. If possible to have the Short male manager even moved to Tuggeranong so neither my wife nor I have to be subjected to this kind of treatment it would be really appreciated. Not sure how someone acting like this treating customers like this is allowed to remain employed. But I think at the very least he should not be allowed to attend the Woden/Phillip nor the Belconnen Dobinsons from now on. When I find a way to take this report higher or directly to someone I will send another email/message. Thankyoy for your time. Kind regards,

I live in America but come to Canberra every year. One of our go-to spots is Dobinsons Bakery in…read morethe Tuggeranong mall for delicious and iconic Aussie meat pies. This is a walk-up counter in the a mall. You can take your food home or eat in the nearby food court. The service is fast and efficient. The pies are consistently delicious with a flaky crust and tasty fillings. I had their Thai chicken this time and it didn't disappoint. Their pastries are also excellent. We especially enjoy their Lamingtons. We will be back!

Another great brunch spot in Canberra! The chorizo benedict was pretty good and the mushroom toast…read morewas nicely seasoned! hubster did add smoked salmon and egg to the order. Salmon was a tad salty for but the eggs were perfect! Drinks were enjoyable as well especially their biscoff latte! (no espresso though) it was almost like a dessert drink. lol Inside was nice and spacious with option for outdoor seating as well. Pups welcomed fyi!

The Cupping Room is a solid spot for brunch in Canberra. The coffee is honestly really good -…read moresmooth and not bitter at all. I had the huevos bollo and it was really tasty, with the chorizo giving it a nice kick. The vibe's chill and bright, but it does get busy, so go early if you don't want the wait.

My friend and I had been wanting to try yumcha at Spicy Ginger in Acton for a while, so we finally…read moremanaged to go there on a Sunday. I've only ever been there once a few years ago, and living up to its name, most of the dishes we ordered were very spicy. Yumcha is $22 per person, and you can basically have anything you want from the trolleys or from the dishes the wait staff bring around. Pan-fried pork and vegetable dumplings - probably my favourite dumplings of the day. Really yummy pork with grated veggies and chives in a perfectly pan-fried dumpling. Surprisingly yummy! Yumcha here is reasonably priced and you can eat whatever you want until you're full. The wait staff come around with plates of dumplings and other food, asking how many you'd like, so you could go to town here and have as many dumplings and other dishes as you want. I thought the food was average but decent. I noticed there weren't any desserts (atleast during the time I was there). I found service was attentive and friendly. Our tea and cold tap water was served very quickly after we had arrived. I still prefer yumcha at The Scholar or Noble Palace, but for the price, Spicy Ginger offer a pretty decent alternative. Read more and see photos at my blog http://foodpornjournal.com/2013/11/yumcha-spicy-ginger/

Was a bit apprehensive going there cause of reading about its bad service reviews..However went…read morethere for their lunch time yum cha and the service was excellent. .the food mostly was really good. .there were a few things on the set menu that was below standard but all in all but most of the dishes were really good and the exceptional service made it a really good experience overall. .