Melbourne’s Best Cafés to Work From (Free WiFi)

Here’s an ideal place to kick off your day’s work, while enjoying a scrumptious breakfast to fuel you on your day’s concentration. The cool, understated white tile and timber surroundings are an ideal space for creating the ‘workplace’ vibe. The longer tables are ideal for communal work, too, if you have colleagues or fellow students with the same idea.

Of course, that work-heavy schedule you’ve set up takes its toll on your stomach – and here, Elephant Café’s got you covered. The signature dish, though, may well be Colonel Hathi’s Big Brekkie, available in ‘Herbi’ (veg) or ‘Carni’ (meat-eater’s) varieties. For the former, you’ll find everything from spinach to haloumi to home-made baked beans, all served on sourdough with Hollandaise sauce. And if you’ve out-coffeed yourself after too many caffeinated study recharges, try supplementing your intake with a Coco Craze smoothie (featuring mango, banana, yoghurt, coconut milk, and honey).

Website: https://elephant-cafe.com.au/

The pleasures of a roaring open fire can’t be underestimated when you’re sitting down to do some work. This is where Second Home, a work-friendly café in Melbourne’s leafy suburb of Eltham, comes into its own. Housed in an iconic warehouse built by renowned architect Alistair Knox, you couldn’t ask for a lovelier environment to get some serious work done.

The people who run Second Home aren’t into the stressful, high-pressure image of what a café should be. Instead, they value a slow-paced and quiet experience, where customers can converse and flick through a book. These values make Second Home ideal for those long sessions where concentration’s the key.

Everything about the vibe of Second Home is designed for a relaxed and peaceful experience, from the ambient music choices to the warm and hearty fare. It’s the ideal spot for a long, considered look at that seemingly endless report.

Website: https://secondhomeeltham.com.au/

Sometimes, when you’re working for extended periods, you just want a cozy vibe with staff who’ll take care of your needs throughout the day. That’s what you’ll get at the warm, welcoming café Gaia, which prides itself on creating a congenial atmosphere for everyone who comes through its doors. There are large round tables for conversations, as well as benches for solo work – the best of both worlds.

If you’re looking for a culinary accompaniment when you’re ticking off each of your workplace goals, perhaps try the HoiAn eggs benedict, complete with chilli jam and apple cider hollandaise.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cafegaia/

If there’s one café in Melbourne that screams ‘study’, this is surely it. Nestled on the ground floor of inner Melbourne’s City Library, Journal is suitably decked out for quiet conversations about that philosophy assignment as well as extended work meetings. Just a minute’s walk from Flinders Street Station, it’s also the logical place for business meetups.

The smell of coffee absolutely infuses the place, as it should. There’s no better place to keep the espressos coming, and the staff of this free WiFi Melbourne-based café are more than equal to the challenge.

Website: https://www.journalcafemelbourne.com/

Here’s a café and artisan bakery, serving all-day brunch and artisanal coffee in a light-drenched converted industrial space. All signs point to a work or study experience that can stretch all day, with that light-filled environment providing what could be considered a gold-standard workplace vibe that will see you right through the day.

And to keep you refuelled when you hit the book, do your interviews, or finish your homework, you’ll be able to choose from a dizzying range of carefully prepared house-made bread, pastries, and assorted other treats. A couple of examples to make the point – the ricotta hotcakes with brown butter, yuzu crème, maple caramel, roast chocolate, grapefruit, blueberry, and lemon balm; or the Godmother Chilli Scrambled Eggs with fresh chillies, coriander, spring onion, and parmesan. The WiFi’s blazingly fast and the atmosphere’s toasty warm, so dig in!

Website: https://www.faradayscage.com.au/

It stands to reason that a café right next to Melbourne’s famed Reading Room would be a great place to get some work done on your own. That’s why Guild Café is such a drawcard for eternally busy types – it seems to bring some of the vibe of the library with it.

At Guild, they understand their customers are seeking a relaxing atmosphere rather than the endless noise of some of those inner-city noise machines. With a simple, classic menu designed to provide tasty sustenance rather than drawing attention to itself, Guild knows what it’s tasked with – and does it well.

If you’re after something a bit more luxurious when studying near the State Library, yet want to sustain that peaceful vibe, the Moat Café downstairs may be the place you’re after. It’s one of the best laptop-friendly cafés in Melbourne.

With a thick red carpet to absorb the hubbub, the Moat is the place to go over documents in peace, either by yourself or in consultation with one (or more) like-minded colleagues. The people who run it are clued up on the demands of work, and the rock-solid WiFi won’t quit on you.

Website: https://www.themoat.com.au/

Inner Melbourne takes its work/café balance very seriously. The atmosphere is subtle and timeless, offering global dishes in a simple, wood-accented café – so no unwelcome distractions when you’re ploughing through the day’s tasks.

Many of the dishes on offer here seem custom-designed to sustain the mental engagement you’ll need for a successful day at the office. Try the House Bircher muesli, featuring coconut yoghurt, mango lime & mint compote, fresh berries, toasted macadamia & coconut flakes.

And as you’d hope from a defacto work nook, the drinks list is awesome here too. Aside from the amazing coffee, you’d be mad not to try one of the kombucha drinks for which this café’s renowned.

Website: https://aminorplace.com.au/

An undeniable highlight of one of Melbourne’s most iconic restaurant centres, Fitzrovia prides itself on combining the best of contemporary Australian cuisine with the convenience of a buzzing cafe. It’s set in a refurbished nurse boarding house, and has one of the most diverse and creative menus going.

And just because the food’s quick and convenient, don’t think for a second that it hasn’t been thought through. The ingredients are locally sourced from around Victoria, including goats’ cheese from Red Hill and organic Port Phillip mussels. As an example of how the ingredients are transformed into something exquisite, see how Fitzrovia works wonders with café staples, such as the Hot chilli jam scrambled eggs with tamarind and kaffir lime. And while you’re downing all this, Fitzrovia has you covered with a range of single-origin coffees – or, for those with a sweet tooth, the Mörk 50% cacao hot chocolate, which is almost impossibly dense and delectable.

All this will keep you fuelled for extended periods of work or study, as the toasty warm interior of Fitzrovia will shelter you from the elements while maintaining a peaceful and pleasant environment for extended work sessions. Set amid a pleasant environment of slatted wooden tables with plentiful foliage to add to the relaxing vibe, Fitzrovia is a great place to burn up the hours while deep in thought.

Website: https://fitzrovia.com.au/

With aged wooden rafters making triangular patterns above your head, salvaged industrial lights warmly illuminating the space, and raw brick walls offering warmth, Hobba provides a uniquely rustic, relaxing feel for extended work binges. There’s inside and outside seating, with several tables nestled up against the walls for some extended contemplation time. Keep yourself hydrated with a range of fresh coffees and tea – or go for a Vietnamese iced coffee if the weather’s getting warmer.

It’s pretty hard to choose a highlight from so many, but the Hobba Benedict with pastrami, house-made sauerkraut, and emmental cheese would be a great start between writing those reports. And for something more substantial once you’ve polished off the morning’s tasks, few things would hit the spot like Hobba’s signature Pork and beans, with tomato, smoked pork belly, and baked eggs (among other delightful accompaniments!).

Website: http://www.hobba.com.au/

Just next to Williamstown’s Commonwealth Reserve is Tick Tok, a place where minutes of work can turn into hours. Many of the dishes seem to be based on a simple truth: to focus for long periods, a full stomach of hearty food is essential that can’t be overlooked. That’s where the Tick Tok Big Breakfast will come into its own, complete with everything from wilted spinach to roasted truss tomatoes.

And when the breakfast dishes are cleared away and the papers come out, you’ll be able to get down to what really matters – the workday vibe, where you’ll be able to power on through.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ticktokcafe/

If the wind’s blowing and the rain’s pouring outside, and all you want to do is get your work done in this wifi café in Melbourne’s inner north, offering specialty coffee and bites.

With a great line in early-morning pastries, accompanied by an extremely welcome cup of coffee in various varieties, Wolf and Hound deals in comfort. There’s a buzz here sometimes, but the overall vibe is one of calm, respect, and (dare we say it) peace – something that’s in very short supply these days!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wolfandhoundcafe/

A haven for students from the nearby University of Melbourne, this is a study-focused spot if ever there was one. Featuring a menu of breakfast favourites with a twist, such as the inventive Waffle Benedict, Seven Seeds also has a roster of Australian classics such as the Avocado toast with finger lime and macadamia. (And as Melbourne café WiFi goes, this is top-notch.)

The open, spacious feel of the café lends itself to long sessions exchanging ideas or patiently working on extended tasks. And throughout it all, you can count on the Seven Seeds staff to keep you hydrated, caffeinated, and work-ready.

Website: https://sevenseeds.com.au/

Coffee bean supplier Ampersand also does a great line in creating a work-friendly environment. With a long wooden seat lining one of the wood-lined interior walls, you can get in some quality work time as the day goes by outside.

There’s lots of light throughout the cheerful and spacious interior – and if the weather’s fine, what better place to do your work than Ampersand’s brick-paved courtyard, which includes a large table for communal work? It’s all supported by a hearty yet imaginative menu which is represented by such gems as quinoa porridge with poached rhubarb, baked apple, and strawberry dust.

Instagram: instagram.com/ampersandthornbury/

This trailblazer of Melbourne coffee backs up its brews with a collection of memorable brunches, perfect if your meeting threatens to extend towards the middle of the day. This in-house coffee roaster has formed a special relationship with farmers, providing a conscientious way to grab your much-needed morning brew while hacking through your long-neglected email backlog.

And if all that proofreading is making you peckish, why not take a break for the one-pan breakfast, featuring eggplant, chickpeas, gnocchi, labneh, poached eggs, jalapeño cornbread?

Website: https://stali.com.au/

Near Windsor train station, there’s a nice environment for working, reading and studying that also happens to have superb coffee. This is School of Seven Bells, a café with WiFi in one of the calmer corners of the often-frenetic Chapel Street.

The incredibly tasty menu – with the stuffed French Toast being a particular star – does everything it should without dominating the whole experience. For hydration during long marking sessions, the loose-leaf chai should do the trick. You’ll find yourself being able to get lost in the atmosphere here, even as you’re only a few short metres away from one of Melbourne’s shopping meccas. And as your business-related breakfast starts to become lunch, you’ll really appreciate the selection of focaccias and muffins.

Website: https://artfuldodgercoffee.com/

With so many work cafés dotted liberally throughout Melbourne’s CBD and suburbs, there’s no excuse to delay that urgent assignment … but at least you’ll be working in style!