Milk and Daisy Co

Milk and Daisy Co works out of a small shop on Church St in Bundanoon, the Southern Highlands village built around its bike trails. Hours are 8am to 2pm Wednesday through Sunday, closed Monday and Tuesday, which shapes it as a morning-tea-and-lunch stop rather than an all-day cafe. Dogs are welcome in the outdoor seating area, a policy both the Google listing and a Southern Highlands food guide report.

The counter is bagel-led: an avo bagel, toasties, fruit toast and house sourdough make up the backbone, and the staff pick up steady mentions for friendliness. The house sourdough sells through early on weekends, another reason morning arrivals do better. It is a small, quick-turn venue rather than a sit-down brunch room, so the play is coffee and a bagel at the outdoor tables before heading for the tracks, and the pace suits anyone winding down after a long walk. If you arrive at 1:45pm you will be watching the doors close.

The dog setup

Bundanoon suits dogs better than most Highlands towns. The village has its own fenced off-leash park, the back streets are quiet, and Morton National Park sits at the edge of town, though national park tracks mean leash on. The cafe's outdoor tables are right for a pre-walk coffee; there is not much to manage, just take the corner table and keep water in the car for after.

Make a day of it

Start with the Bundanoon fenced off-leash dog park, then coffee here, then a leash-on walk out to Jordans Crossing on the town's edge. For another sit-down option, Potter's Pantry Bundanoon is the town's other dog-friendly counter. Our Bundanoon guide and the NSW cafe list cover the wider area.