Top spots for breakfast in the Hunter Valley

Are you on the hunt for a quality cup of coffee and a standout breakfast in the Hunter Valley? Look no further.

The Hunter Valley is known for its cellar door wine tastings and vineyard tours. But it’s also a great place for early risers who believe breakfast to be the most important meal of the day.

A shot of dark-roasted espresso brewed to order here, a vego breakfast board there, and a buffet that is as decadent as it is filling will help you power through your epicurean itinerary. Here’s where to have coffee and enjoy breakfast in the Hunter Valley and beyond.

Fawk Foods Kitchen & Bakery

Join the local folks lingering over their coffee and baked goods at Fawk Foods Kitchen & Bakery, which follows on from the philosophy at EXP. Restaurant next door, that is: “To deliver a menu driven by the seasons and focused on flavour”.

Boost the benefits of dining in at a café by chatting with proud Pokolbinites about what to see and do in the Hunter. Salute the glorious rise of the humble country bakery by ordering sourdough crumpets and pulled pork toasties and a loaf for later.

Join the local folks lingering over their coffee and baked goods at Fawk Foods Kitchen & Bakery.

Cafe Enzo

Do everything in your power to secure a booking at Café Enzo when you’re heading to the Hunter. It’s a cracking café for a multitude of reasons.

For starters, the romance of the region is keenly felt in the courtyard, which has a magical Midsummer Night’s Dream vibe; it’s located within the confines of the ultra-charming Peppers Creek Village; and it has the most Instagram-ready artfully presented vego breakfast board on offer.

Pamper yourself and book a stay in Enzo Cottage so you can bookend your day with a beautifully styled cheese platter.

The food at Cafe Enzo is always artfully presented and Instagram-ready.

Cru Bar + Pantry at Brokenwood Wines

The architect-designed revamped cellar door and restaurant complex at Brokenwood is a destination in its own right.

Sit under a buttery-hued umbrella in the sun-drenched courtyard of Cru Bar + Pantry for hangover-beating brekkie toasties such as the Tipple (roast sweet potato, char-grilled zucchini, haloumi, tomato relish on Turkish) and the Swill (shaved roast pork, herb salsa verde, and gruyere cheese on sourdough).

Fuel up on coffee ahead of taking a behind-the-scenes tour, the ultimate Brokenwood winery experience.

The architect-designed revamped cellar door and restaurant complex at Brokenwood is a destination in its own right.

The Breakfast Room at The Mill

Why visit Hunter Valley wine country for just one day when you can spend a few nights? You can eat and sleep at Estate Tuscany or just belly up off your own bat to The Breakfast Room at The Mill, where executive chef William Townsend has curated a menu designed to make that first meal of the day a special one.

Go the whole hog and order the Tuscan breakfast of grilled bacon, pork chipolata, wilted spinach, slow-roasted Roma tomatoes, Estate baked beans, butter-poached mushrooms, sourdough and hash brown.

Make that first meal of the day special at The Breakfast Room at The Mill.

The Deck Cafe

Locavores will love The Deck Café in Lovedale. Expect to find seasonal delicacies on the menu here alongside coffee brewed using Piazza D’oro beans.

Half the fun of a visit here in the early morning is watching the sun rake through the trees and listening for the songs being belted out by the birds that gather on the nearby dam.

The success of this café has a lot to do with chef Matt Dillow’s attention to sourcing quality ingredients. Keep it simple and order French toast with fresh strawberries and Chantilly cream and maple syrup.

Visit The Deck Cafe in the early morning and bask in the sunny views of its nearby dam.

Worn Out Wares

The Wow Flower family is behind Worn Out Wares, a café that is a colourful blend of flowers, coffee, food and a carefully curated range of bags, baskets, books, candles, chocolates, cake and beautifully bespoke bundles for everyone from bubs to blokes.

Whether you’re a budding botanist, a flower-lover, a caff-fiend or simply in need of some serious retail therapy, Worn Out Wares is the place to go to ooh and ahh.

Although the family-owned store has been a stalwart in Singleton for about 16 years, it has evolved over time to include an offering of almond milk turmeric lattes alongside crumpets with passionfruit curd.

Worn Out Wares has a colourful blend of flowers, coffee, food and a carefully curated range of bespoke bundles for everyone.

Mr O Kitchen Espresso & Grocer

Mr O is the go for coffee by Glee Coffee Roasters and an all-day breakfast menu with options such as loaded bagels with peanut butter and banana, a Hungerford ham toastie and guilt-free brekkie bowl.

You will find local creatives consorting in the café, which has played a central role in the invigoration of Cessnock’s eat street. The latte art is next level, as is the fact you can pick up some healthy organic snacks for the drive back home.

Delight in the all-day breakfast menu of Mr O Kitchen Espresso & Grocer.

The Conservatory

The joy of settling in for a long, lazy breakfast at The Conservatory at voco Kirkton Park Hunter Valley cannot be underestimated.

The light-filled dining room at this IHG hotel leans into the Australian countryside and the entire menu is typically inspired by ingredients that can be sourced within a 50-kilometre radius (many from the chef’s own kitchen garden).

The breakfast buffet here is a civilised affair: sit at a table indoors to enjoy eggs done your way while drinking in views of the rose garden and craggy Broken Back Range.

Never underestimate the joy of settling in for a long, lazy breakfast at The Conservatory.

Common Grounds

This cute little café in the main street of Morpeth is a must-stop. Located alongside the Hunter River, the café has literally got The Goods (a blend by Glee Coffee Roasters), which is served alongside daily specials such as sweet fruit-filled muffins and a knock-your-socks off breaky wrap with spicy chorizo, bacon, spinach and scrambled egg.

Weighing in on the best breakfast in the Hunter debate is fraught; but we stand by Common Grounds as a worthy addition to your list. Order a creamy latte made with beans from Glee Coffee Roasters.

This cute little café in the main street of Morpeth is a must-stop.

Muse Kitchen

The arrival in Lorn of Muse Kitchen, which has premises in Pokolbin, was one of the most talked-about foodie openings in the Hunter Valley.

What matters at this modern bistro, open for breakfast, brunch and lunch, is that the ingredients are hyper-local and seasonal and speak for themselves.

Embrace chef Josh Gregory’s keep-it-simple philosophy with a croque monsieur or avocado and green pea smash with haloumi and preserved lemon and poached eggs alongside a perfect piccolo using beans from Darks Coffee Roasters.

The ingredients used at Muse Kitchen in Lorn are hyper-local and seasonal and speak for themselves.

Wholefoods Market & Cafe

Balance out all those hedonistic Hunter experiences with breakfast at The Wholefoods Market & Café in Maitland, which has been a beacon for devotees of organic produce since it was established in 1997.

There are endless diversions on offer here, from the fermentation classes at the Inner Health Centre to the display cabinet filled with biodynamic Urban Mill baked goods. Stay focused on your baked egg shakshuka and then fill your eco bag with organic produce and artisan goods.

The Wholefoods Market & Cafe in Maitland has been a beacon for devotees of organic produce since it was established in 1997.