Although coffee, food or anything shouldn’t really be the reason for your life, I consider coffee to be one of the guilty pleasures that I enjoy. And living close to good coffee is definitely a delight and when you find one so close to you that you didn’t expect, that’s a bonus. Enter: King of the Castle.
Walking by, driving by, and even lingering and contemplating what this place was, it was only until recently that I found this place was actually a cafe. There is no obvious sign, and you may well be tricked by the crafty barber at the front that this place is for something else. Maybe this displays the pride (or arrogance?) of the owner that the people who will come, will find it. This seems like the theme for modern coffee places, where I’ve even heard slogans such as ‘Great things are often hard to find’. Well, I guess it is partially true, because if the coffee is good, Melbournians, and even Geelongians (?) DO go out of their way to visit. As you step in past the entry, you are welcomed in by the empty yet bright warehouse with a waft of coffee scent.
There aren’t many tables and seats available considering the size of the place, but enough for couples, families and friends to sit down for a coffee and a meal. When I discovered this place, I had tried their coffee already, which was marvelous, and hence this time, I came along with guests.
They do serve all day breakfasts, but it’s the coffee that is worth coming here. We sat down, studying the menu, and made our selections. I think there is a distinct Vegan theme going on in the menu, which makes many ‘healthy-eating’ people happy I guess.
They use Padre Coffee, roasted locally (Melbourne). Not only is the coffee sourced locally, but the ingredients for the food as well as the dessert (Pana Chocolate) and ice cream (Dolce House) is sourced from local traders.
Feeling a bit boring, I just wanted some eggs. My guests on the other hand ordered the Kings Breakfast and the Quinoa Salad.
The food could be described closer to a ‘Paleo‘ dish, where the raw ingredients seem to burst out in their original flavour. Some may taste a little ‘raw‘ because of this, but I thoroughly enjoyed my dish as I do like my food a bit on the bland side.
They also have small stalls for some local arts and crafts, which I saw from their website that they were using the profits for a charity called ‘Feed Geelong’.
All in all a delightful place to visit, or stop by just for the coffee.
King of the Castle
24 Pakington Street, West Geelong
Mon-Sat: 6:30-15:30
Sun: 07:30-14:30
love lubullu 