The Best Cafes in Launceston

Inside Cafe 

10-14 Paterson Street

A real emerging star on the Launceston cafe scene located, ironically, just outside the central CBD, Inside Cafe has been quietly making a name for itself with brilliant modern Australian dishes, plus international takes on cafe standards, presented beautifully. It has a swish modern interior, fantastic coffee, a comfortable atmosphere, and a tantalising all-day menu that runs the gamut from light and bright to heavy and hearty. Breakfast highlights include the decadent apple crumble waffle and the chai bircher muesli topped with puffed quinoa, coconut labneh and macadamia crumble; while the rich bao buns – 24-hour pulled pork, 12-hour puled lamb or Korean karaage fried chicken options – are hard to pass up for lunch. 

Prince’s Square Bar 

164 Charles Street 

As an espresso bar, it shouldn’t be shocking that coffee is king at this busy little space. It is situated in prime position on the edge of Prince’s Square Park, so it’s a great spot to sit down and take a load off after wandering around the city. They showcase different single-origin roasts from local Launceston coffee roasters Provenance, as well as do a superb house-bend milky coffee with top-shelf latte art (if you’re into that). However, the focus on coffee doesn’t mean you have to go hungry here: they also do delicious pastries and small snacks, both sweet and savoury. Don’t pass on the chicken and jalapeno toastie if you like a bit of a kick, or the peacan carrot cake with cream cheese icing if you want to treat yourself to something sweet.

Florence Cafe 

49 Brisbane Street

Wholesome, down-to-earth, and friendly, Florence is surrounded by the hustle and bustle of the CBD, but it feels a bit like you’re visiting your grandma for Sunday lunch, knowing you can look forward to a nice big hug, a comforting space and plentiful portions of delicious, handmade food. The staff are super sweet. The fresh baking is top-shelf – the muffins in particular. And the breakfast and lunch menu is simple, but done very well. The coffee is also reliably good, whether takeaway or sit in. They even do a white hot chocolate as a bit of a specialty.

Tower Cafe 

11 High Street

If you’re looking for a morning coffee and brekkie spot in East Launceston that the locals go to, Tower Cafe is probably what you’re after. Making fresh baguettes and bagels every morning, plus doing delicious coffee, this classic Tassie cafe does a decent range of typical Australian brunch fare plus a few surprises. The egg and bacon brioche roll or fresh blueberry bagel with cream cheese are fantastic quick options if you’re in a hurry. Otherwise, sit down and treat yourself to a more indulgent breakfast, like some vanilla-bean pancakes, Canadian waffles, house-baked beans with gooey gruyere, or Tower’s popular “best of both worlds” Caesar breakfast salad. 

Great Scot 

41 George Street

Any 80’s movies fans hoping for a décor decked out with Delorean and hoverboard paraphernalia, and a pun-laden menu loaded with references to time travel, may feel a bit let down upon entering this George Street cafe – because the name comes more from the heritage of the owner than it does Doc’s catch phrase in the Back to the Future film franchise. The Scottish influence is hinted at in the menu, which excels at classic breakfast fry-ups and comforting standards like homemade porridge, a classic bacon and egg breakfast roll with brown sauce, and fish and chips or curry and rice for lunch. However, Great Scot pushes far past simple British pub-cafe fare into much more adventurous dishes – like a chilli scrambled croissant with chorizo or delicious nut granola with Greek yoghurt and maple syrup for breakfast, or a sweet potato-based vege burger and health-boosting grilled caulifower, quinoa and avocado Nourish Bowl with zingy orange-maple dressing for lunch.

Relish Cafe 

43 Arthur Street

If you like cafes that go the extra mile with sweet little touches, you might like Relish Cafe for one reason alone: they serve sweet popcorn with their delicious, local Zimmah-bean brewed coffees. There’s a lot more to like at this swish little spot in East Launceston, though, from a house-fermented kimchi scrambled eggs or dukkah-loaded vego benny for breakfast, through a number of satisfying house-baked buns and bagels and onto heftier plates of everything from lamb souvlaki and nasi goreng to a beefy BLT or beet-and-feta laden chicken salad with halloumi and glazed pepitas. Relish is also fully licensed, and even offer catering and bulk orders, in case you’re so swept off your feet you want to take some extra food home! 

The Toasted Times 

112 George Street

No secrets what makes this place a sure-fire addition to the best cafes in Launceston: it has some of the best, most creative and most downright satisfying toasties in town. Don’t expect boring bland ham-and-cheese standards here, though. Think more a beefy Rueben, the “Notorious” maple-bacon BLT, a marinated-mushroom and jarlsberg vego option, a banana-and-peanut butter sweet toastie option with brie, and the deliciously decadent Fat Albert, somehow squeezing all of bacon, steak, mushrooms, spinach, caramelised onion and three types of cheese in between two crunchy bits of bread. Delicious. It’s not all toasties, though – the homemade donuts are famous winter warmers, and the coffee can kick it with the very best cafes in Launceston.

Local Hideout Cafe 

82 Brisbane Street

Another CBD gem hidden just off the main drag down a laneway, Local Hideout is a place that goes to every effort in making you feel warm and welcome. There’s the cute, awww-inspiring, humanity-empowering positivity quotes written on their takeaway coffee cups. Then there’s the space: a cosy hideout (funny enough) that exudes comfort, warmth and safety from the busy crowds outside. Then there’s the food: some dishes are pure hugs on a plate – think fresh buttered raisin toast or homemade Nepalese momo dumplings – while others would look just as much at home on a degustation menu as on a breakfast menu (it’s lucky the Nourish Bowl, in particular, doesn’t need to stay warm, because it’s hard not to take several photos of it before tucking in).

The Elm Tree Licensed Cafe 

184 Cimitiere Street

A straight-up, honest, good old-fashioned, community-minded cafe, The Elm Tree has been dishing out fresh homemade (and house-baked) sandwiches to hungry bus-goers from Cornwall Square Transit Centre for a while now. In addition to the counter-style service, they also have a lovely large seating space, both indoor and outdoor, and plenty more substantial dishes that will have you hanging around. They are famous for their Sri Lankan lunch special and iconic chicken schnitzel baguettes, but there’s a lot more on offer from fresh and light wraps to hearty burgers and fresh pies. Of course, as the name suggests, it also has a ful drinks menu, if you’re in the mood.

Roam Newstead 

108 High Street, Newstead

This is the latest (Launceston) iteration of Tasmania’s popular Roam franchise, which serves up delicious takeaway coffee and food to “roamers” around Tassie, with sites in Legana, King’s Meadows and the full sit-down Cabin Coffee brunch cafe in Exeter. Despite being a small space, Roam packs in a lot of character – with a real wood fire, cool quirky-vintage decor, and a vinyl record collection any expert flea-market hound would be proud of. Their coffee is absolutely top notch (using locally roasted Zimmah beans), and the fresh pastries are really hard to pass up when they’re right under your nose, too.

Tinka Coffee Brewers 

147 St John Street

Mixing things up on their menu and in Launceston CBD, Tinka go a lot further than the coffee obviously at the forefront. A baked egg slow-cooked chorizo shakshouka, sauteed mushrooms with roasted carrot and labneh, and a Middle Eastern breakfast bowl loaded with roast potatoes, asparagus and avocado on a bed of hummus and spinach are just a few of the dishes showcasing an international flair here. More typical Aussie favourites include the “classic” BLAT (with espresso-maple bacon), a zesty-lemony smashed avo, and some seriously mouthwatering sourdough toasties. The coffee can also obviously compete for the best in Launceston CBD, so there are plenty of reasons to put this among the best cafes to visit in Launceston. 

Ready to book brunch…and a bit more?

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