Walter Cafe

Walter Cafe sits at Regatta Point on Barrine Drive in Parkes, looking straight across Lake Burley Griffin to the National Carillon. It is a polished, modern-Australian cafe with indoor and outdoor seating, and dogs are welcome in the outdoor dining area on the balcony and patio.

The dog setup

Bring your dog to the outdoor tables on the balcony and patio, not inside, which is the usual ACT arrangement for enclosed dining rooms. The outside seats get the view anyway. Staff are welcoming to dogs, but water bowls are not always out, so pack your own bowl and keep the lead on around the tables and the waterside path.

Worth knowing

The draw is the panoramic lake and Carillon outlook, backed by a modern menu that runs from scones and devonshire tea to crab omelette and prawn linguine. It leans more restaurant than quick coffee stop, which makes it a longer sit rather than a grab-and-go. Hours run 8am to 4pm daily.

Getting there

The cafe is at Regatta Point, on the edge of Commonwealth Park, a few minutes' drive from Civic. Free parking sits in the Regatta Point car park and is generally easy on weekends, and the lakeside walking paths run right to the door if you are coming on foot from the city side.

Pair it with

The Lake Burley Griffin loop passes the door, so you can walk an arc of the lake before claiming a table. Commonwealth Park sits alongside for a pre- or post-coffee stroll on-lead. If the dog needs a proper run, Yarralumla Dog Park is across the water and Kingston View Drive Fenced Dog Park is on the southern shore.

For another coffee in the same pocket, Margot Espresso Bar is nearby in Parkes, with more options on the ACT cafe guide and the Parkes destination page.

Max: mid-morning before the brunch rush is the slot. Carillon views, a lap of the lake first, and the dog settles straight away.

Good for a longer sit-down when you want the view as much as the walk; less so for anyone after a fast weekday caffeine hit.