Salt and Butter Cafe

Salt and Butter Cafe sits right on the Parramatta River at Ermington, at 1/48-56 Bundarra Street, and the combination that keeps locals coming back is simple: Campos coffee, a busy brunch kitchen, and outdoor tables on the foreshore where dogs are welcome. It is a favourite turn-around point for dog walkers, joggers and cyclists working the river path.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome at the outdoor tables, a spacious partly covered area right on the waterfront, and puppacinos appear for regulars. Bring your own water bowl to be sure on a warm day. The riverside position means a dog settles in sight of the water, and most of the crowd arrives on foot along the foreshore path anyway.

The menu and the vibe

The signature is the salt and butter latte, a salted drink that reviewers either seek out or rave about, alongside matcha and mochas on the Campos beans. The kitchen leans hearty brunch: the Big Hash, the Snowing Avocado, a shakshuka and burgers with chips, plus rotating specials that get creative with yuzu and ricotta. Homemade muffins fill the cabinet. The river view is rated as highly as the food, and the crowd skews families, with a kids area on site. Open 7:30am to 3pm daily, with the kitchen winding up around 2:30pm.

Getting there and parking

The cafe sits at the end of the residential precinct on the water. Free street parking is available in surrounding streets but fills on fine weekends, so arriving on foot from the parklands is often easier. Weekend mornings are the peak; a weekday mid-morning visit gets a table without the queue.

Make a day of it

The Ermington riverside path runs straight past for a pre or post brunch walk, and George Kendall Riverside Park Fenced Dog Park is a short trip along the river, with two fenced sections for calm and playful dogs per City of Parramatta. Cowell's Lane Reserve is another green space nearby.

More of the river stretch is on the New South Wales cafe guide and the Ermington page, with Big Tree House Cafe just up at Rydalmere.