Just a short stroll from West End’s bustling Boundary Street strip is a striking and comfortable cafe that ups the ante when it comes to brunch and lunch atmosphere. Lokal + Co is the brainchild of two accomplished chefs, Helge Olsen and Corey Thom, who teamed up for this venture after working together at Cicada for more than seven years. The premise of Lokal + Co is simple – a cafe that blends clean Scandinavian design aesthetics with a menu of meals that incorporate a few Nordic tastes, without being intimidating to local diners. Utilising a succinct colour and materials palette, Lokal + Co is divided into two distinct halves – a spacious interior dining area with white tables, birchwood, copper fixtures and plenty of greenery, and a dog-friendly deck and outdoor area with wooden furnishings and cushy Astroturf. 

Lokal + Co’s menu features to main offerings – breakfast and lunch – and a succinct bar food menu to complement the forthcoming beverage offering. A quick browse through the menu shows off a few Nordic touches, evidenced in meals such as as house cured gravlax with rye soldiers, goats curd and pickled baby beets and the Danish open rye sandwich (the rye bread is made on site using a traditional Nordic recipe) with sardines, egg, fennel and radish. Helge and Corey have taken great care to blend these flavours with seasonal Australian produce, creating a worthwhile tasting experience that will change from month to month – great for anyone seeking something a little bit different. The breakfast menu offers light meals such as avocado on toast with spiced labne and chia seed puddings, as well as substantial dishes such as gingerbread waffles with chocolate hazelnut sauce, whipped ricotta and crumbled honeycomb. Lunch is similarly divided, with light bites such as ricotta stuffed mushrooms and Cubano sandwiches and larger meals like Tunisian-spiced half baby chicken with pearl couscous sharing menu space. Lokal + Co also serves delicious Allpress Coffee, tea from West End Tea Co. and fresh juices.

A bar offering will be unveiled in the near future with a range of wines from Australia, New Zealand and overseas, as well as tap beer from Cricketer’s Arms, Asahi, Estrella and one rotating variety – possibly a Nordic beer! For more information, head to Lokal + Co’s page in the Stumble Guide.