The Wired Owl Coffee Co

The Wired Owl Coffee Co is a casual local cafe at 227 Rainbow Street in Sandgate, a flat and easy walk from the foreshore. It opens 6am to 2pm every day of the week and has quietly become the regular haunt of the suburb's dog walkers and cycling crews.

The dog setup

The picket-fenced side courtyard is the spot for dogs, with some kerb-side seating out front as an alternative; indoors stays for people. Water bowls are usually out and the team is genuinely accommodating, which is why leashes queue up on weekend mornings. The courtyard keeps dogs safely contained, so you can relax without standing on the lead.

Worth knowing

The coffee is well regarded around the 4017, with a casual menu of brunch plates, sandwiches and cabinet sweets; the butterscotch muffin gets its own fan club, and the hot chocolate runs savoury-sweet for anyone who orders it. A nice touch: the cafe runs a 10c can recycling scheme supporting a local greyhound adoption group, so dogs are very much part of the furniture here. Reviews note the occasional wait when the neighbourhood descends at once.

Getting there and parking

Rainbow Street sits a few blocks back from the water in Sandgate, roughly 25 minutes north of the Brisbane CBD. Street parking is easy on Rainbow Street and the side streets, and Sandgate station on the Shorncliffe line is walkable. From the cafe, the foreshore is a short flat stroll.

Close by with the dogs

Walk it off along the water at the Sandgate foreshore dog off-leash area, or head for Shorncliffe Pier for an on-lead stroll. The Curlew Park fenced dog park suits a full off-lead run, and Capulet & Co is the other strong dog-friendly option in the suburb.

More options are on the Queensland dog friendly cafes guide and the Sandgate destination page.