Boté: coffee on the water in Fairlight
A takeaway café on the pontoon at Fairlight marina. Mecca coffee, Staple pastries, and boats at anchor in front of you.
← The Journal · Café · Wine bar · Balgowlah
Effie’s: the Balgowlah local that does both
Effie’s sits on Sydney Road in Balgowlah, a short walk from Bare Studio. It opens early for coffee and closes mid-afternoon. Later in the week it opens again at night as a natural wine bar with small plates. Two places in one room, and both are worth your time.
It often starts as a tip from your hosts. It often ends as somewhere guests come back to. The coffee is excellent. The front window is hard to walk past.
Coffee by day. Natural wine and small plates by night. Same room, different mood.
The coffee
Effie’s opens at 6am on weekdays and 6:30am on weekends. The morning crowd is local and regular. The café is compact and well designed, with a large front window onto Sydney Road.
Coffee is why most people come first. The food is worth ordering too, and service stays easy even when it’s busy.
The wine bar
From 3pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Effie’s changes. The café becomes a natural wine bar with small plates, and the room slows down. Happy hour runs from 3pm to 5pm. Evenings run until 9:30pm. Bookings are recommended.
The wine list leans natural and is well chosen. The food suits the glass. It’s the kind of neighbourhood wine bar many suburbs would like to have. Balgowlah has one.
Effie’s on a Thursday evening. Same room, wine bar hours.
Why Jules and Andrew go
Effie’s comes from Sam and Anya, who also run Boté at the Fairlight marina. Same sensibility, different setting and time of day. Jules and Andrew are regulars at both.
Walk in for a coffee and stay an hour. Walk in for one glass and stay for dinner. Neither feels like a mistake.
Getting there
Effie’s is at 281 Sydney Road, Balgowlah, a short walk from the studio. Walk if you can. The walk home suits an evening there.
Good to know
- Effie’s, 281 Sydney Road, Balgowlah NSW 2093
- Instagram @effies__
- Bookings recommended Thursday to Saturday evenings
- A short walk from Bare Studio, so no need to drive
- Same owners as Boté in Fairlight
Hours
Monday to Wednesday
6am to 2pm
Thursday and Friday
6am to 2pm, then 3pm to 9:30pm
Saturday
6:30am to 2pm, then 3pm to 9:30pm
Sunday
6:30am to 2pm
Happy hour Thursday to Saturday, 3pm to 5pm
Staying nearby
Bare Studio is a self-contained studio suite in Balgowlah, a short walk from Effie’s and the rest of Sydney Road.
More from the Journal
Other places Jules and Andrew recommend
Manly to Shelly Beach: the walk to do first
Twenty minutes along the coast from Manly, with a swim at Shelly Beach and coffee at The Bower on the way back.
All of this is close by
Get close to the action.
Book your local stay.
Bare Studio is a self-contained studio suite in Balgowlah. Boté and Effie’s are an easy walk away, and the coastal walk from Manly to Shelly Beach is close by. Jules and Andrew live on-site and know every place in the Journal.