Switchfoot Cafe Coolangatta

Switchfoot Cafe is a coffee, food and surf shop at 13 Ward Street in the Rainbow Bay corner of Coolangatta, open from 5:30am for early surfers and one of the listed dog-friendly cafes on the southern Gold Coast. The outdoor footpath seating is where dogs are welcome.

The dog setup

Dogs join you at the outdoor tables, on a short lead and tucked in close, because the seating runs tight and the footpath gets foot traffic. The cafe is friendly to visiting dogs and staff are used to the post-walk crowd. Bring your own water bowl on hot Gold Coast mornings and confirm a dog-friendly table with staff if you arrive as a group.

Coffee and the counter

The menu leans wholesome brunch with creative touches like the eggs not benny with maple bacon and an avo crumpet, plus croissants, pies, smoothies and fresh juices, and the coffee has a solid local following. Hours run 5:30am to 12:30pm Monday to Friday and 5:30am to 1pm weekends, so it is strictly a morning operation. Weekends queue up, so go early.

Beach walks and the rules

Rainbow Bay is steps away and the Point Danger Lookout to Currumbin Alley coastal route passes the door for a long on-lead walk. Note that Coolangatta's main patrolled beaches are dog prohibited, and City of Gold Coast rules keep dogs on lead outside signed zones and clear of patrol flags, so the off-lead option is a drive north to the Palm Beach dog off-leash beach. Good Garden Cafe is another dog-friendly table in the suburb.

Street parking runs along Ward Street and the surrounding blocks, filling fast on weekend mornings. More of the area is on the Coolangatta destination page, with the state list in the QLD cafes index.