Holy Toast

Holy Toast is a coffee-and-toastie shop at 4 Station Road in Cheltenham, a minute's walk from Cheltenham Station, with a 5-star reputation built on creative gourmet toasties and genuinely friendly service. It is also one of the most openly dog-proud cafes in Bayside.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome at the front seating and in the leafy, brick-walled courtyard out the back, which is the quieter pick if your dog prefers calm corners over footpath traffic. Indoors is service animals only. The house party trick is the dog wall: a gallery of Polaroid-style photos of canine regulars, and the staff will happily snap your dog and add it to the collection.

Pepsi: A shaded courtyard and a dog photo wall? Sign me up. Pick the courtyard if your dog likes a calmer corner away from the footpath traffic.

Worth knowing

The menu rotates around gourmet toasties made on locally sourced flour breads with house-made sauces and pasture-raised meats, and they cook with no seed oils. The egg and bacon toastie is the classic order, the Greek Freak is the rotating crowd-pleaser, and there are heavier hitters like the cheesy meatball toastie and Holy fried chicken, plus banana bread for the sweet-toothed. Coffee is reliable, with matcha, turmeric and chai on the drinks list. Hours are 6.30am to 2.30pm Monday to Friday, 7.30am to 2pm Saturday, closed Sunday.

Getting there and parking

Street parking is available on Station Road and the surrounding streets, but the easiest arrival is on foot from Cheltenham Station, which suits a dog walk that finishes with toastie rather than starts with one.

Close by with the dogs

The Derring Lane Reserve Dog Off Leash Area on Eagland Road is close by, with open grass, native plantings for sniffing and a water tap for dogs. The Cheltenham Park Dog Off Leash Area is another easy option for an off-lead run before brunch.