Ristretto & Co

Ristretto & Co pours Campos coffee from a relaxed spot on Northumberland Street in the middle of Liverpool, and it is one of the CBD's more comfortable dog-friendly stops. The venue has publicly confirmed it welcomes dogs, so there is no guesswork at the door, and the covered courtyard gives you more shelter than a bare footpath table.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome in the outdoor courtyard and seating areas, settled beside you on a lead. Staff have a habit of putting out water bowls and offering treats to canine guests, so you can arrive without your own kit, though a travel bowl is never wasted. The cover overhead means a light shower does not end the visit, which matters on a longer sit.

Max: the courtyard fills at brunch time on weekends. For a lazy second coffee with the dog stretched out, aim for mid-morning on a weekday.

Worth knowing

The kitchen runs all-day breakfast and lunch, wrapping around 2:30pm daily with earlier doors on weekdays from 6am. Eggs benedict and corn fritters are the regular orders, the acai bowl covers the sweet tooth, and the coffee programme runs batch brew and cold brew alongside the usual espresso work.

Getting there and parking

The cafe sits at Shop 2, 158 Northumberland Street, a short walk from Liverpool Station. Street parking runs along Northumberland and the nearby residential streets, with several public parking stations within a few minutes' walk.

While you're out there

Bigge Park is close by for a pre- or post-coffee stretch on lead. For dessert on the same strip, Purple Parrot Acai takes dogs at its footpath tables, Bigge Espresso is the other CBD coffee option, and Oliver Brown is just out at Casula.

More options are on the NSW dog friendly cafes guide and the Liverpool destination page.