Billycart coffee

Billycart Coffee is a small retro-styled coffee trailer parked on the grounds of Lake Macquarie Airport at 864 Pacific Highway, Marks Point, and it has quietly become a fixture for locals and Pacific Highway passers-through. The setting is the point: open air, gravel and light aircraft on the tarmac, with a steady morning trade of dog walkers, cyclists and road-trippers.

The dog setup

Because the whole operation is outdoors, dogs fit in easily. Open-air seating spreads around the trailer, from picnic rugs and casual chairs to simple tables, and there is no indoor room to worry about. Dogs are welcome on lead. It is worth keeping them close and under control, since this is working airfield ground with occasional aircraft movements. Water bowls and treats often get put out for canine regulars, though carrying your own water is the safe bet.

What they serve

The menu is tight rather than broad: serious coffee pulled from robust roasts, with mochas built on rich Belgian chocolate a recurring local favourite, alongside lattes, cappuccinos and flat whites. Food is quick-bite territory, toasties and fresh snacks that suit a coffee stop rather than a long sit. Hours run 6am to 2:30pm weekdays and Sundays, with Saturdays stretching to 3pm, and can shorten in bad weather.

Getting there and parking

The trailer sits right on the Pacific Highway at Marks Point, between Swansea and Belmont on the lake's eastern shore. Parking is easy and free in the airport's gravel lot, a few steps from the seating.

Close by with the dogs

For an off-lead burn before coffee, the Marks Point dog exercise area at Docker Street and Haddon Crescent is a leash-free reserve minutes away, and the Swansea dog exercise area sits just south. Naru Beach on Lake Macquarie is a short drive for a shallow, leash-friendly paddle. Coffee-wise, The Trading Post Cafe in Belmont South, a minute or two up the highway, keeps a dog-friendly courtyard, and Boffee at Caves Beach covers the coast road further south. More spots are on the Marks Point destination page.