Secret Buddha Café

Secret Buddha Cafe sits inside the Plants Plus nursery at 63 West Park Grove on Burnie's fringes, and it leans into the garden setting for dogs: leashed dogs are welcome across the outdoor seating areas, where nursery greenery provides natural shade. It runs 8:30am to 3pm, seven days, which makes it an easy late-morning stop on a north-west coast drive.

The dog setup

Dogs stay on lead and well behaved, and you come in through the main nursery entrance. Water bowls are frequently out for visiting dogs, though staff cannot guarantee one every visit, so carry a backup. This is one of the few Tasmanian cafes that actually caters to dogs as well as owners: the cafe's own blog lists puppachinos and Cafe Canine dog chews on offer, so it is worth asking at the counter.

The menu

The kitchen does modern Australian breakfast, brunch and lunch built around local Tasmanian produce: burgers, gourmet pies and sandwiches, plus sliders like the Texan pork with wasabi coleslaw that keeps coming up in reviews. There is a solid run of vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options, and the drinks list goes beyond coffee to turmeric lattes, tea, wine and beer.

Getting there and parking

The cafe is inside the nursery grounds on West Park Grove, with ample free parking on site. Access has been affected by driveway works at times, so if you are making a dedicated trip, check the cafe's Facebook page for the current entrance arrangement before you set out.

Close by with the dogs

Burnie's dog map is generous. The fenced run at View Road Reserve in Montello is about five minutes away, with a double-gated 100 by 100 metre enclosure, agility tunnels and a dog drinking station. For beach time, South Burnie Dog Beach allows off-lead dogs on the sand east of the boat ramp, and Cooee Creek Dog Beach permits off-lead play below the seawall. Infuse Coffee Roasters is the other reliable dog-friendly coffee stop in the area.

More of the region's options are on the Burnie destination page, and the full state list lives in the Tasmania cafes index.