Crumb Coffee is a fresh face with deep roots in Newcastle’s hospitality culture.
Opened in March 2025, Crumb is the brainchild of hospitality veteran Ben Richardson (of Autumn Rooms) and acclaimed pastry chef Gareth Williams (formerly of Covered in Crumbs).
The menu here covers the classics (always a yes to pain au chocolat), unique savoury creations (hello chorizo hot honey croissants), and of course, coffee made from Single O beans.
In their first few months, Crumb has built a large and loving following. The cafe is regularly packed out, filling the footpaths, and bringing a warm and lovely vibe to Lambton.
Local Guides are brought to you by your friendly concierge, Worktones. We’ve got the plug on the best restaurants, cafes, bars and other gems in the neighbourhood by those who know a thing or two about serving up good times in the area.
Whether you’re a local or just passing through Newcastle, we’ve teamed up with the good people at Crumb to give suggestions on what else should be on your list in the area.
The Crumb team helping us put together this guide to Newcastle:
- Gareth - Owner
- Kylie - Marketing
- Taris - Patisserie Manager
- Leo - Manager
What's your go-to when you knock off?
- Gareth - Monella Gelato with my family for afternoon gelato, they always have great flavour and texture combinations.
- Kylie - Scottie’s. An afternoon natural orange wine and something delicious to eat on the grass under the palm trees and festoon lights by the beach!
- Taris - Any of the independent breweries in the city are a good pick. Rogue Scholar, Grain Store, Grainfed and plenty others I haven't mentioned. All serving great craft beers and good food. Perfect mix if you feel like having a few.
- Leo - Me and my friends love to go for some drinks and bar food at Merewether Surfhouse. They have some of the best views that a Newcastle venue has to offer, so it's great to wind down with the view of the sea and a schooner at the end of a long work day!
Where are you eating on a day/night off?
- Gareth - Arno Deli, best sandwiches not just in Newcastle but up there with Melbourne and Sydney. At night, it would be Humbug or Bistro Penny for an amazing meal out or if it’s casual dinning, it would be Alfie's Italian or the Prince Pub.
- Kylie - Humbug or The Flotilla.
- Taris - For breakfast, Equium Social. Simple food done extremely well. For lunch, Hokkaiya for the best, most authentic ramen in Newcastle. You can taste the love and energy they put into their food. For dinner, Bistro Penny, Newcastle's newest hatted restaurant. French food cooked over flame and served in an alluring, moody restaurant. Top level food and service.
- Leo - Sticky Rice Thai is my go-to when I want something Asian that I can convince myself is relatively healthy! The Chicken Pad See Eew is my favourite dish, I could eat multiple portions in one go! I have visited the restaurant in Wickham and the one in Newcastle centre, both of which deliver every time.
It's staff party time... where would you take the whole team?
- Gareth - Signal Box Restaurant.
- Kylie - Coal & Cedar.
- Taris - Either Light Years or The Lucky Hotel for a vibing staff dinner with great food. Followed up with drinks at Bartholomew's and Roxanne, both intimate cocktail bars with friendly staff and both bound to get your colleagues showing their other sides.
- Leo - Parry St Garage. It's a big venue with lots of space for everyone. They have a good selection of beers on tap, as well as good wines (so easy to please everyone). The food is also great - Italian cuisine with great wood fired pizza! They also have good deals/specials depending on the day.
You have a 15 minute lunch break... where are you grabbing a quick bite?
- Gareth - Arno Deli or Sukimama for Korean.
- Kylie - Autumn Rooms have beautiful fresh takeaway salads and snacks made daily. I’d grab something from the cabinet with an oat iced latte & sit in the winter sun.
- Taris - Arno Deli for the best sandwiches of your life. Their menu is full of good options but the hot honey pepperoni is next level. If a sandwich could turn you on, this is the place.
- Leo - I'd grab a ham & salad sandwich from our neighbour's Lambton Tasty Bake. Not only are the sandwiches fresh and made to order, the couple who own it are lovely and very welcoming, always making it a great experience even if it is just a quick call in!
Gotta kill time... where are you going window shopping?
- Gareth - Abicus Darby Street.
- Kylie - Abicus or The Lair.
- Taris - Walking down Darby St. Lots of cool little stores to look through like Steel & Anchor or Cooks Hill Books and plenty of great cafes to stop for coffee in between like Autumn Rooms. The Newcastle Memorial walk is close by for the best views of the city and its coastline, great at sunset. And finish it up with dinner at The Del.
- Leo - It's got to be Abicus on Darby St - although I find it hard to leave without a purchase.... They have the best style of clothing in store and have a really interesting vinyl selection to browse through. You can easily spend a while in store just looking through all of the cool stuff they have for sale.
Worktones make custom caps and aprons for Crumb.
