The husband-wife duo behind Skittle Lane, Jodie Foster and Dean Wooding, have followed the success of their popular CBD, Bondi and Manly cafes by launching Skittle Lane number four. It comes seven years after the original Skittle Lane opened in the CBD. This time, they’ve brought the minimalist, design-forward aesthetic they’re known for to the Quay Quarter Lanes precinct, on the fringes of Circular Quay. It joins other recent arrivals to the neighbourhood, including Kobo, Londres 126 and Bouillon l’Entrecote.
Though the space is compact, with seating limited to a low wall inside and two seats out the front, Foster tells Broadsheet Skittle Lane Circular Quay encourages a more European coffee-drinking experience.
“You stand up with your coffee and just chat,” says Foster. “I love that, it’s less formal. Everyone gets to know each other, it’s really cool.”
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The Circular Quay cafe was a long time coming – Foster, who previously worked in medicine, and Wooding, a builder turned barista, signed the lease in January 2020, right before the pandemic hit.
“The timing probably could not have been worse,” says Foster. “We had to close the doors of our city store – which is our bread and butter – on and off for two years. It’s been horrible, and the opening of Circular Quay has been dragged out. We couldn’t wait any longer, we had to just open.”
Skittle Lane’s full coffee offering is available at the new location. Its signature house espresso is a “beautiful single-origin Colombian”. They don’t serve blends, instead the focus is on buying top-quality green coffee. The menu is always rotating, with other single origins for filter, batch-brew and pour-over. Iced coffee, a syrupy overnight-brewed iced latte, and cold brew are also on the menu. And there’s a chance, if you’re a regular at Skittle Lane’s other cafes, you’ll see a familiar face behind the counter.
“All our staff move around all our stores. You know that the coffee you’re going to drink will taste exactly the same, no matter which store that you go to,” says Foster. “We put a lot of effort into sourcing the right coffee.”
Food leans grab-and-go – pastries, cakes, cookies and snacks.
The new shop is a tiny triangle of just 15 square metres. It follows in the same minimalist vein as Skittle Lane’s other cafes – and has even shared materials with the Manly store, which is undergoing a revamp.
“In both locations we’ve used a lot of concrete, a lot of stainless steel, beautiful grey masonry blocks, and just kept it really natural and organic,” says Foster. Walnut and oak timber can be found throughout, and the lighting is handmade in New York by Apparatus Studio.
Skittle Lane Circular Quay
6A Loftus Lane, Sydney
Hours:
Mon to Fri 7am–4pm
skittlelane.com.au
@skittlelanecoffee
11 Oct 2022
11 Oct 2022
11 Oct 2022
11 Oct 2022
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