Axil Coffee Roasters Expands Its Empire With a New Outpost at Melbourne Airport

Axil Coffee Roasters is the latest addition to Melbourne Airport’s growing fleet of food and drink operators, which is good news for anyone seeking one final Melbourne coffee hit before setting off overseas.

The new Axil outpost – there are now nine of varying size across the city – joins Salvatore Malatesta’s St Ali, which landed in August, in the airport’s Terminal 2.

It’s part of the deliberate elevation of the airport’s culinary offering across its domestic and international terminals, which will eventually house an outpost of chef Scott Pickett’s Queen Vic Market-based Pickett’s Deli & Rotisserie, a new venue from chef Shane Delia called Moors, and a Stomping Ground Brewing Co bar scheduled to open this month.

Axil was started eight years ago by husband-and-wife team Dave and Zoe Makin, who both have serious coffee nous. Its flagship roasting facility and cafe in Hawthorn provides beans for the company’s large brunch-devoted Glenferrie and Chadstone cafes, and slick smaller espresso bars in the city centre.

The airport spot – which will be open from 5am to 10pm, 365 days a year – is more like an old-school sandwich bar than its counterparts, but shares the same simple, assured coffee menu, with a seasonal espresso blend for milk-based coffees and a daily rotating single origin for black-coffee drinkers, plus batch brews for filter fans.

Happily, it’s also landside, meaning you don’t have to pass through airport security to access the long cabinet of sandwiches, rolls and wraps, and cheese-y jaffles – all of which are made on-site.

Options include a New York City-style pastrami melt with swiss cheddar, mustard and sauerkraut; a vegan falafel, hummus and rocket sanga; chicken-schnitzel ciabattas and wraps; and an egg-and-bacon jaffle.

There are also salads – such as a poached chicken, pesto and bocconcini salad, and a Mexican-style mixed bean salad – plus a selection of granola, fruit and yoghurt pots.

A large-scale mural by Melbourne street artist Adnate (known for his striking portraits of women) covers one wall, and its pink and green hues inform the sharp terrazzo and metal-heavy fit-out.

Axil Melbourne Airport is co-owned by venue manager Nicole Rhind, who oversees day-to-day operations, and is located between the Virgin Terminal and international terminal, directly opposite the Macca’s.

Axil Coffee Roasters Melbourne Airport
Terminal 2, Melbourne Airport
No phone

Hours:
Daily 5am–10pm

axilcoffee.com.au