Paperboy Espresso

Paperboy Espresso pours coffee from 6am on Dudley's heritage main street, 122 Ocean Street on the Lake Macquarie side of Newcastle. The outdoor tables out front take dogs, which makes the day's first coffee run a two-dog-inclusive affair in a suburb where everyone seems to walk. Open seven days, 6am to 2pm, so early is not a stretch.

The dog setup

Dogs join you at the outdoor seating out front of the shop. Staff have a warm reputation with visiting pups, though there is no dedicated dog menu and water bowls are not guaranteed, so pack a travel bowl. The entrance and seating are wheelchair accessible, and free street parking runs along Ocean Street.

The menu

The cafe started with a strongly plant-based menu and still leans that way, though it is no longer strictly vegan. The bacon and egg toastie stacks streaky bacon, double egg and house BBQ sauce on sourdough, with a vegetarian version beside it. Maqui bowls, gluten-free banana bread, smoothies such as The Locale with passionfruit, raspberry and mango sorbet, and a rotating shake list round it out. Beans come from Newcastle roaster Lords.

Where to run the dog first

Dudley itself has no off-leash area, so plan the circuit. The quickest option is the Lake Macquarie off-leash zone beside the Charlestown netball courts on Dudley Road, leash-free at all times except when games are on. For sand, the 700 metre stretch of Redhead Beach south of Second Creek is off lead around the clock, reached from the Cain Street carpark via the bush track. Note that dogs are banned from the sand at Dudley Beach itself.

Close by with the dogs

The Redhead dog beach entrance pairs naturally with this stop, and the Charlestown Dog Exercise Area and Merewether Dog Off-Leash Area cover the fenced and timed options. Surge Espresso and Co makes a second coffee stop down that way.

The NSW cafes index and the Dudley destination page list the rest of the local options.