Rubie's Place Dwellingup

Rubie's Place is a retro-style cafe and gelato shop at 57 McLarty Street in Dwellingup, the small WA timber town that has become a mountain-biking and bushwalking base an hour south of Perth. It trades Wednesday to Sunday, closed Monday and Tuesday, with evening hours on weekend nights per its Facebook page, so check current hours before a special trip. For dog owners it is the easy sweet stop on the main street: the outdoor deck takes dogs, and the gelato cabinet does the rest.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome on the outdoor verandah and deck, which you step straight into from McLarty Street, so you can hold a lead comfortably while ordering. Staff are friendly towards canine visitors, but water is not guaranteed on the deck, so bring your own travel bowl. It suits a quick stop with a settled dog rather than a long sit-down meal, and a gelato-and-rest break between trail runs is exactly the rhythm the place is built for.

Worth knowing

The draw is the ice cream and gelato: a rotating line-up of roughly 90 flavours from a local WA maker in Bunbury, including dairy-free sorbets and vegan and gluten-free options. The retro milk-bar menu runs to hot toasties, burgers, hot chips with gravy, thick shakes, slushies and an old-school lolly corner, and reviewers single out the scones, vanilla slice and the owners' friendly welcome. Free street parking runs along McLarty Street, and the town's trails and visitor centre are within an easy walk.

While you're out there

Dwellingup is a dog-keen town but the rules matter: Lane Poole Reserve has no off-leash areas, and dogs must stay leashed and within designated recreation zones because the reserve runs 1080 fox baiting that is lethal to dogs. For a proper off-leash session use Dwellingup Dog Park in town, and Blue Wren Cafe on the same street is the other dog-friendly sit-down option. More choices are under WA dog friendly cafes and the Dwellingup guide.