Four Point Grind

Four Point Grind is a small specialty coffee cafe at 545 Blackburn Road, Mount Waverley, set in a busy business strip in Melbourne's south east. It runs a weekday schedule only: open 6:30am to 3pm Monday to Friday and closed on weekends, so build the dog and coffee run into a working day rather than a Saturday morning.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome at the alfresco tables out the front along Blackburn Road, not inside the cafe. The outdoor tables are on the compact side, which suits smaller dogs or a larger dog that will settle quietly under a chair. Water is usually available but not guaranteed, so carry a portable bowl, and keep the lead short so your dog stays clear of the foot traffic between the business park and the street.

Worth knowing

The kitchen runs all day: chilli scrambled eggs, avo toast with feta and dukkah and a heavy-duty breakfast roll for mornings, then cheeseburgers, chicken bao, salt and pepper calamari and protein bowls through lunch. The bar does specialty coffee, matcha and wet chai, and there is a solid vegetarian spread. The cafe also offers free Wi-Fi, accessible seating, and catering for the surrounding offices, which explains the brisk takeaway trade before 9am.

Getting there and parking

The address is 545 Blackburn Road, Mount Waverley. Parking is tight on Blackburn Road itself at peak times, so use the surrounding business parking or side streets, and local buses run along the road if you would rather walk in with the dog. Mid-morning between the breakfast and lunch rushes is the easiest window for a street-side table.

Close by with the dogs

Damper Creek Reserve is the obvious pairing: bushland walking trails along the creek with designated off-leash exercise zones, a short drive from the cafe. Mayfield Park Dog Off Leash Area covers the same job from the other side of the suburb.

More options are on the Victoria dog friendly cafes guide and the Mount Waverley destination page.

Max: the alfresco tables are small, so a dog that tucks itself under the chair gets a much warmer welcome than one sprawled across the footpath on a long lead.