Bohäus Cafe(Alexandria)

Bohaus Cafe sits at 218 Lawrence Street in a quiet residential pocket of Alexandria, and unlike most of the suburb's warehouse-scale venues it is a small, warm neighbourhood room that welcomes dogs inside as well as at the footpath tables out front. That makes it a reliable stop whatever the Sydney weather is doing. Hours run 6am to 3pm weekdays, from 6:30am Saturday and 7am Sunday.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome inside and out. The indoor space is compact, so a settled, leashed dog that is comfortable in close quarters with other guests suits it best. Water bowls are put out at the front, and the residential streets around Lawrence Street make an easy lap before or after coffee.

Worth knowing

The coffee is the headline and the brunch list backs it up: salmon bagels, avocado toast, pastries, Portuguese tarts, banana bread and mini cupcakes, plus sticky chai for the cooler mornings. Staff are genuinely part of the appeal, and regulars treat it as their local rather than a destination queue. Free street parking is usually about but fills during weekend brunch, so weekday mornings are the easier run, and the small room fills quickly on weekends. Anyone crossing inner Sydney on the way to the airport run or the parklands will find it a calmer alternative to the big nearby cafe precincts.

Loop the suburb's dog-friendly cafe strip while you are out: The Copper Mill on Mitchell Road does street-side tables and treats, The Dose on Ralph Street is another regulars' coffee stop, and Harry Noble Reserve at Erskineville is close for a run around first. More are on the Alexandria destination page and in the NSW cafes index.

Pepsi: dogs are allowed inside, so on a rainy Sydney morning this is the cafe that does not turn you away.