By Ryahn Rahme
Ready to replenish those hard-working brain cells? Feel like you’ve been settling for nearest snack?
This is for you.
TAFE Media recommends some tested food vendors to try near Ultimo campus:
No.1: Fork & Grind – Google maps
The coffee lover go-to. Don’t let its convenient location be a reason to dismiss its high customer traffic, its 4.7-star rating off 368 Google reviews is no accident.
Their tasty coffee is accompanied by a wide selection of sandwiches, wraps, bagels, salads, café meals and sweet treats.
Complimented by an energetic staff who’ll start to wake you up before your coffee does.
No.2: Cozy Corner Ultimo – Google maps
Management of the Cozy Corner Ultimo café is approaching the eatery’s one-year anniversary. Popular among students, this café’s human-centric approach has developed a loyal customer base.
Check out Robert Hentschel’s article about the café and Indonesian couple Suli and Henry who run it.
Comments about good customer service are followed by the good value. Simple, consistent and attentive café food, this might become a staple.
No.3: Coop & Cart – Google maps
Sandwich lover, this treat is worth the walk across the ABC building to Thomas Street.
These sandwiches melt in your mouth and somehow make life feel simpler. A slightly pricier option, you’re paying for that well-balanced foodie distraction from to-do lists and life admin.
Coffee, service speed and friendliness are also highly rated.
No.4: Knights Coffee & Tea Co – Google maps
Located at the end of the pedestrian tunnel from Central Station, customer traffic is high and so are its reviews. A 4.8-star rating off 219 reviews, there are a lot of good things to mention.
The coffee standards are high, service memorable, consistency maintained and value competitive. It has a diverse and loyal customer base, with many reviewers commenting it’s worth the wait.
No.5: Auvers Dining Darling Square – Google maps
Holding a decent 4.3-star rating off 1895 reviews, this Asian fusion café is a treat any day of the week. Referencing Vincent Van-Gogh’s hometown Auvers-sur-Oise, the artful presentation of their food is a key part of their dining experience. A little further away from campus, this might be a “treat myself” occasion.
Their popular range of special lattes features matcha, hojicha, taro, black sesame, chai and sticky chai.
Other popular menu items include: matcha pancakes, wagyu noodles, wagyu and duck fried rice, wagyu burger, ikura rise and katsu sando.
No.6: Quikstop
A slightly cheaper, greater-variety option to TAFE vending machines. If you find your sugar crashing in the afternoons and have developed a daily sweet treat habit (guilty), those savings add up over the semester.
Located on Jones Street across the street in UTS Building 10, the short walk also helps to shake out the day’s final-hour blues.
Featured image: TAFE students eat Ultimo. Graphic: Ryahn Rahme
Note: Ai was used in this article to summarise venue Google reviews. All recommendations were tried, tested and recommended by TAFE staff and students.