First Look: Fieldwork’s New Fitzroy North Coffee Shop Has a Less-Is-More Philosophy

Fieldwork Coffee relocated its micro-roastery and cafe from Abbotsford to Fitzroy North last month.

“We don’t serve tea, or hot chocolate, or have five different blends. We want to focus our energy into sourcing the best beans and serving the best coffee we can,” co-founder Tim Williams tells Broadsheet.

The coffee menu is divided into three sections. Classic offers your standard black and white coffees. Filter features brews made to order using a zero-bypass brewer from Australian brand Tricolate. And the Modern section highlights extraction methods, including the Japanese-style iced coffee (where hot drip coffee is brewed directly onto ice), and other coffee drinking including a cardamom and rose water coffee spritz.

A small selection of pastries such as croissants and morning buns from All Are Welcome are on offer, but usually sell out during the morning rush.

The less-is-more mentality is reflected in the space designed by architect Ying-Lan Dan, with seamless integration between the roastery and the cafe to reflect Fieldwork’s focus on transparency around sourcing. A floating bar serves as the small shop’s central focal point, and visitors can see the team using the Probat drum roaster at the back of the cafe.

Williams started making coffee at the Bratwurst Shop in the Queen Vic Market in 2001, to pay rent during university. But when Mark Dundon, – a Melbourne coffee scene legend – offered him a job at Ray’s Cafe in Brunswick, he went for it and hasn’t looked back since.

He worked for Youtube coffee authority James Hoffmann in London; Intelligentsia Coffee in Los Angeles; and boutique shop Cafe Kitsune in Paris. When Williams returned to Melbourne in 2015, he launched coffee incubator Bureaux Collective, and founded Fieldwork Coffee in April 2022.

Fieldwork Coffee
336 St. Georges Road, Fitzroy North

Hours:
Mon to Fri 7am–2pm
Sat 8am–2pm

@fieldworkcoffee
fieldworkcoffee.com.au