Lee and Me

Lee and Me runs out of a renovated 1890s terrace house at 87 Crown Street, in the middle of Wollongong's main shopping strip, and it pours some of the better-regarded coffee in the CBD. Dogs are welcome at the footpath tables, which makes it a natural coffee stop mid-walk through town.

The dog setup

Dogs join you in the outdoor seating along the Crown Street frontage; the indoor rooms of the old terrace stay for diners without dogs. Keep your dog on lead and close to the table, since the footpath gets plenty of foot traffic. Water bowls are typically available or quickly provided on request, and the staff have a good reputation with visiting dogs.

Worth knowing

The kitchen is a proper brunch operation: chilli eggs, Turkish eggs, mushrooms on toast and French toast come up most, and the chai latte has its own following. Hours are 7am to 2pm weekdays and 8am to 2pm weekends, so it is a morning-to-midday venue. It is a busy, popular corner, so expect a wait at peak weekend brunch and come early if you want an outdoor table with room for the dog.

Getting there and parking

Crown Street parking is paid and turns over fast, so most people use the CBD parking stations a block or two away. From the cafe, the mall surrounds and the foreshore paths towards the water make an easy post-coffee stroll. The nearest off-leash sand is Coniston Dog Beach, a short drive south, and Opus Coffee Brewers is the other CBD stop for a second coffee with the dog.

More of the area's dog-friendly venues are on the Wollongong destination page, with the full list in the NSW cafes index.