Coffee Anthology | A Heavyweight Stop in Brisbane, Ranked No. 8 in the World’s 100 Best Coffee Shops

 The World’s 100 Best Coffee Shops ranking is often regarded as the “Michelin Guide” of the global coffee industry. In the 2025 list, Australia once again secured an impressive number of spots. Among the cafés that made it into the top ten, Toby’s Estate in Sydney claimed the No. 1 position, while Proud Mary—my very first stop after landing in Melbourne—ranked fourth.

Today, I want to talk about the café that took eighth place: Coffee Anthology, located at 155 Charlotte St, Brisbane City QLD 4000. If you’re planning a trip to Brisbane and you genuinely love coffee, this is an absolute must-visit.

A CBD Icon with a Multi-Roaster Philosophy

Coffee Anthology sits right in the heart of Brisbane’s CBD. It’s best known for its multi-roaster collaboration model, offering a rotating selection of beans from both Australian and international roasters. On top of that, the café serves excellent food and pastries, making it a true one-stop destination for both coffee and dining.

They open daily at 7:30 a.m. and operate until 3:30 p.m., with earlier closing times on weekends (2:00 p.m.). Even so, the place is constantly packed. No matter when you arrive, there’s almost always a long line at the bar—something that’s actually quite rare to see in Brisbane. And honestly, it’s kind of exciting.

Finding the Café (and Being Blown Away by the Space)

One nice thing about Brisbane’s street-facing buildings is that the street numbers are huge and easy to spot. Coffee Anthology is housed inside a classic white building, and there’s barely any obvious signage outside. But once you find No. 155, don’t hesitate—just walk in.

The space is massive. Half of the ground floor belongs to the café, while the other half serves as a public walkway, subtly divided by lush greenery acting as a natural screen. Inside, the café is split into three separate bar areas, each with its own brand and menu. Depending on whether you’re ordering coffee or food, you’ll need to choose the appropriate counter.

Three Bars, Three Experiences

• Front Bar – Coffee Anthology
  This is the main coffee bar, where you order espresso-based drinks.

• Middle Bar – The Whisk
  This is where you order food and pastries, with seating nearby.

• Back Bar – Fika
  A takeaway-focused guest coffee bar featuring rotating international roasters.

Coffee Anthology regularly invites well-known roasters from around the world, and the Fika bar becomes a true “guest coffee station.” For coffee lovers, this is one of the best ways to explore the global specialty coffee scene in a single visit.

A Design That Truly Impresses

This was my first time visiting a café with such a large, open, tiered architectural layout—and I was genuinely stunned. Once you understand the design logic, the flow makes perfect sense. The movement of people is carefully guided within the space, creating the feeling of three independent cafés coexisting within one large structure—connected yet distinct.

Since I was already there, I obviously had to try all three bars.

Espresso at Coffee Anthology

At the front coffee bar, the design beautifully echoes the building’s arches. The high ceilings create an open, relaxed atmosphere that instantly puts you at ease.

For this rotation, the espresso menu featured four different options. If you like to plan ahead, Coffee Anthology regularly updates their bean list on their official website.

Their house roasting brand, The Maillard Project, supplies the café’s standard blend. This blend combines Brazil, Nicaragua, and Papua New Guinea, aiming for classic chocolate and caramel flavors while maintaining cleanliness and balance. It works well for both black coffee and milk-based drinks.

I ordered a flat white, and I loved that dine-in orders use a single cup size—perfectly suited for a flat white. The integration was excellent from the first sip to the last. The milk texture held beautifully, temperature control was spot-on, and the flavor delivered rich milk chocolate notes with a smooth, creamy mouthfeel. Toward the finish, a gentle caramel sweetness emerged. Incredibly satisfying.

A Bright and Juicy Long Black

I also ordered a single-origin Ethiopian natural Aricha, roasted by Offshoot Coffee from Perth. Founded in 2018, Offshoot is a highly respected Australian roaster known for sourcing rare and distinctive coffees while maintaining clean, consistent results. They roast on a Loring S15 Falcon, which uses hot air as the primary heat transfer method—known for its stability and precision.

I chose this bean as a long black, and wow—instant wake-up call. The cup opened with extremely bright stone fruit acidity, followed by a surge of sweetness that pushed the profile toward a jammy character. Acidity and sweetness danced together throughout, with absolutely no bitterness. It was refreshing, vibrant, and incredibly clean—almost like a very full-bodied pour-over disguised as an espresso drink. I was hooked.

The other two espresso options on the menu included a washed Guatemala Santa Clara SOE from Primary Coffee in Sydney, and the Maverick Blend from Brisbane’s Cavalier Coffee Roasters, a Costa Rica–Ethiopia–Brazil blend. Discovering new roasters through a single café visit is always a pleasant surprise, and this front bar truly feels like a coffee “blind box”—you never know what you’ll get next time.

Food at The Whisk: A Benedict Like No Other

Moving on to the middle bar, The Whisk handles all food orders. One important thing to note: dining is not allowed in the coffee-only areas, so once you order food, you’ll be seated nearby and assisted by staff.

As someone who absolutely loves Eggs Benedict, I almost always order it when it’s on the menu. And I can confidently say this is the most creative and memorable Eggs Benedict I’ve had so far.

Here, the dish uses a flaky pastry shell as a hidden “container.” Once you break into the two perfectly runny eggs, the experience is already incredibly indulgent. But there’s more underneath: thick-cut mushrooms (with optional bacon or smoked salmon), followed by layers of spinach and braised leeks. Somehow, it even carried a hint of wok hei—a surprising but delightful touch. The hollandaise was also unique, infused with dill, adding a fresh and aromatic twist. Absolutely delicious.

Mushroom on Toast (For Fellow Mushroom Lovers)

I also ordered the Mushroom on Toast, because yes—I’m unapologetically a mushroom lover. This dish features a house-made waffle with truffle butter, a special coffee-infused cream sauce, forest mushrooms, and a runny fried egg. Every bite was deeply satisfying, with rich layers of flavor and incredibly juicy, tender mushrooms. Comforting yet refined.

The Guest Coffee Bar: A True Hidden Gem

Finally, let’s talk about one of the biggest highlights of the entire café—the guest coffee bar at the back. I like to think of it as a “curated roaster blind box.” Every visit brings a new lineup.

This time, the featured roaster was Calendar Coffee from Ireland, founded in 2018. I’ve been a long-time fan of Calendar, and many specialty coffee lovers are already familiar with their work. I chose an Ethiopian Guji Buku Abel, a natural heirloom variety—one I’ve enjoyed many times back home as well.

The barista who brewed my coffee happened to be Chinese, and after chatting in English for a while, we naturally switched to Mandarin—an unexpectedly warm moment. The brewing experience felt very intimate: freshly ground coffee was offered for smelling before brewing, and the slow conversation with the barista made the large space feel like a small neighborhood café.

The dry aroma was explosively sweet and juicy, bursting with tropical fruit notes. In the cup, it was vibrant and refreshing, with bright citrus and berry acidity, exceptionally clean and crisp. Honestly, the perfect summer pour-over—and one I absolutely loved.

Sustainability Matters

If you order takeaway coffee from the back bar, there’s one more meaningful detail worth sharing. Coffee Anthology participates in the Simply Cups program, Australia’s first and largest paper cup recycling initiative. Millions of cups have been diverted from landfills and given a second life. Near the entrance, you’ll find a dedicated recycling station where used cups are collected and transformed into new sustainable products.

Final Thoughts

This visit to Coffee Anthology was truly a standout experience. I spent an entire morning there, completely immersed in food and coffee. It felt less like visiting a café and more like attending a curated exhibition—from espresso to brunch to pour-over.

The success of a café isn’t just about consistent quality. It’s also about how well it integrates its upstream and downstream resources, building strong collaborations and creating reasons for customers to return again and again. Coffee Anthology does exactly that—and in doing so, it energizes the entire local coffee ecosystem.

If you ever find yourself in Brisbane, don’t miss it.

One in a Million Coffee Brisbane Review | 89+ Point Specialty Coffee & Best Pour Over Experience

 Today, I’m continuing my Brisbane café-hopping series. Every stop on this coffee-scented journey feels like a small harbor for the soul. Music knows no borders—and neither does coffee. If you want to quickly connect with a city and truly blend in, there’s no better place than a local café. Step inside, order a cup, chat with the owner or barista, and just like that—you’re in local mode.

This time, I’m sharing One in a Million Coffee, located at Unit 16/25 Figtree St, Yeerongpilly QLD 4105. They also operate a roasting facility called Blue Sky, at 9/25 Lerna St, Woolloongabba QLD 4102, Australia.

Before visiting One in a Million, I actually went to the Blue Sky roastery the day before. It used to be a café with the roastery at the back—but I ran straight into a closed door. So when I finally ordered at One in a Million, I couldn’t help but “complain” a little. The barista explained that Blue Sky is no longer open to the public. I mentioned that their website still showed Saturday opening hours, and she laughed and said those are no longer public hours either—it’s now staff-only. That also explains why Google Maps no longer lists business hours.

The tricky part is that Blue Sky’s Google Maps listing still has a ton of photos of drinks and the space, which makes it easy to assume it’s still a café. It isn’t—so don’t make the same empty trip I did.

One in a Million is very close to Yeerongpilly Station, and you can get there directly by train. No worries—everything’s just a few cents anyway, haha. Just don’t forget to tap off after getting off the train; the card readers on the platform aren’t very obvious.

The area itself is lively and feels like a core community hub, with restaurants and supermarkets all around. One in a Million sits as a small standalone shop inside a mixed-use mall—not super eye-catching—so keep an eye out for its side signage when navigating on foot. Or you can just pin the huge Woolworths nearby. Honestly, it’s my favorite supermarket in Brisbane—the prices are unbelievably friendly. Definitely worth stopping by after your coffee, especially since it’s literally right across the way.

The café itself isn’t large—it feels like a neat, box-shaped space. Shelves are lined with various Blue Sky roasted beans and some branded merchandise. Before coming, I’d already spotted their Treehouse Blend on the website, mainly because I loved the illustrated packaging. That bag has to go on my wall.

Treehouse is Blue Sky’s flagship, year-round espresso blend: a medium roast combining natural Brazilian and washed Rwandan coffees. It’s designed to work beautifully for both milk-based drinks and black coffee, delivering classic notes of chocolate, caramel, and hazelnut spread. For the past two years, this blend has been the backbone of their espresso program. The philosophy behind it is to strike a perfect balance between modern lighter roasts and more traditional darker profiles—easy to drink, yet layered and expressive.

Like many classic espresso blends, it includes natural Brazilian coffee. To keep things distinctive and seasonally fresh, they regularly rotate washed coffees from Central America into the blend. This approach helps maintain consistency throughout the year while still creating subtle differences among otherwise similar blends. Previous seasonal components have come from Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Mexico, regions known for their gentle, balanced profiles that complement the richness of a blend.

I ordered a flat white made with the Treehouse Blend. Australia these days… well, even flat whites are starting to come in small and large sizes—this one was edging toward latte territory. Still, the coffee held onto its bold, full-bodied character. It was delicious, with notes of vanilla, cream, and even a hint of ice cream aroma. Seriously good.

They’re very supportive of home espresso brewing. During internal testing at the roastery, they actually dial in their blends on common home machines to ensure quality outside of commercial setups. Because of that, their beans perform smoothly and reliably whether you’re using a café-grade machine or a standard home setup.

I also grabbed a muffin. Australia’s love for sweets is already legendary. The sweetness was fine at first, but once I hit the caramel-filled center—boom. Very tasty, but for someone like me who isn’t big on overly sweet desserts, it was a bit of a sugar overload. Still good, though.

Behind the bar, a large blackboard listed the pour-over options for the day—which immediately made my heart happy. Of course, I had to order one. I chose a washed Ethiopia Sidamo, brewed using the Ceado Hoop dripper. Some cafés back home use it too—I even own one and have written a full review on it.

The Hoop features a “large ring surrounding a small ring” design. At the center is a cylindrical extraction chamber for the coffee grounds, surrounded by a circular outer space that functions like a water reservoir. During brewing, water isn’t poured directly onto the grounds. Instead, it’s poured into the outer ring, then seeps into the inner chamber through 12 evenly spaced holes around the cylinder—creating a kind of lateral infusion. No need to spiral-pour or control flow rate. You just add water and let it do its thing.

Because of this, once the barista finishes pouring, she can move on to other tasks—and even brew multiple cups at once. It’s called “hand brew,” but honestly, it gives off strong batch coffee vibes, haha. Once brewed, the coffee is served in a sharing carafe with perfectly marked volume lines—easily enough for two people. You’re handed an IKEA glass and invited to pour for yourself. Drinking pour-over like this in Australia? Absolute bliss.

And wow—this Sidamo was outstanding. The Ceado Hoop is impressively consistent. The first sip was incredibly juicy, bursting with red fruit intensity. A whole spectrum of berries exploded across the palate. Clean, silky, and beautifully rounded from start to finish.

Since I’d taken the train all the way out here, I obviously had to buy a couple of bags of beans. The barista asked how I liked the pour-over—well, buying the beans is the best answer, right?

These days in Brisbane have been genuinely joyful. Those moments of feeling local sneak up on you—like when I tap off the bus, raise my hand, and say “thank you” to the driver, just like everyone else does. Or when I return my empty cup to the sink at the bar and the barista thanks me sincerely. Or when we joke together about how Australian coins are huge yet somehow worth less—and we all laugh out loud.

Those are the moments when you realize: you’re in it.