Beans House blend, 250g
A washed Brazil and Colombian base with a little natural Ethiopian. Built for milk, and it holds up black.
$22 Roast date on the bag
Northcote, open from 6:30
Some mornings start at three percent.
Coffee ground for every shot, breakfast cooked on a real pan, and people who remember how you take it. Seven days on Kettleford Street.
or call (03) 5550 0030
Slow Start Coffee
Start slow. Leave ready.
Kettleford Street, Northcote 3070
The board
Slow Start is a Northcote cafe built around the first hour of the day: coffee ground for every shot, breakfast cooked on a real pan, and staff who remember how you take it.
- Doors at 6:30am on weekdays, before the first rush
- No surcharge on alternative milks, ever
- Pastries and sourdough laminated and baked in our own kitchen from 4:00am
- Standing orders on the board, with no card, app or fee
Coffee
House blend ground per shot. Oat, soy and lactose free at no extra charge, on every drink.
- Espresso $5
House blend, dosed and pulled for the cup
- Macchiato $5.20
- Piccolo $5.20
- Long black $5.50
- Flat white, latte or cappuccino df $5.50
Large 6.50
- Magic $5.80
Double ristretto, 160ml, the way the staff drink it
- Batch filter ve $5.50
Whatever single origin is on this fortnight
- Pour over, single origin ve $8
Ground and brewed to order, about six minutes
- Cold brew ve $6.80
Steeped overnight, served black over ice
- Iced latte df $6.50
- Chai latte vdf $6
Loose leaf, spiced here, not a syrup
- Hot chocolate v $5.80
- Pot of tea ve $5.50
Breakfast, Earl Grey, peppermint or lemongrass
Breakfast
From open until 11:30am on weekdays and noon on weekends. Gluten free bread on any dish that comes on sourdough.
- Sourdough toast v $12
Two thick slices, cultured butter and plum jam
- House granola vdf $16
Oats, almonds and pepitas, poached fruit and yoghurt
- Bacon and egg roll $15
Milk bun, fried egg, house relish
- Eggs your way vgf $17
Two free range eggs on sourdough, cracked to order
- Avocado on sourdough vgfdf $21
Lemon, chilli, sesame, a soft poached egg
- Mushrooms on sourdough vgfdf $23
Field mushrooms in a hot pan with thyme and butter, olive oil on request
- The big plate gf $28
Two eggs, bacon, mushrooms, tomato, pork sausage and sourdough
df Dairy free availableve Vegan, or vegan on requestv Vegetariangf Gluten free available Public holidays add ten percent, which is also written on the board.
Since 2017
3,100+mornings open since 20172,400coffees a week48 kghouse blend used a week180+regulars we know by order6 to 9catering orders a week
The morning, in order
We are in the building by half past five.
Nothing here is prepared the night before except the dough, and that is the point of the whole place. This is the day, start to finish.
- 04:00 Ines laminates Dough that was folded yesterday afternoon goes into the oven, so the room smells like butter by six.
- 05:30 Maeve opens up Machine on, grinders dialled in, the first shot tasted and thrown away.
- 06:15 First bake out Croissants, the danish and the loaves. There is no second bake on a weekday.
- 06:30 Doors, weekdays Before the first train rush. A coffee usually goes out to somebody at the door before this.
- 07:00 Doors, weekends Later start, two bakes, and the room fills up between nine and eleven.
- 11:30 The board changes Breakfast comes off, lunch goes on, and nobody has to move.
- 14:30 Kitchen closes Anything left on the counter goes half price from two.
- 15:00 Doors close Then the dough gets folded for tomorrow, which is where this list started.
What we do
Eight things, and the price of all of them
- Espresso and filter coffee $5 to $8 House blend ground for every single shot, plus one rotating single origin on filter.
- Breakfast $12 to $28 Cooked breakfast from open until 11:30am, built around eggs, mushrooms and good sourdough.
- Lunch $15 to $29 A short lunch board from 11:30am, with toasted sandwiches, grain bowls and one hot special.
- Pastries and bakery $6 to $12 Croissants, danishes and sourdough laminated and baked in our own kitchen from 4:00am.
- Retail beans and home brewing $16 to $95 House blend and single origin by the bag, plus the small amount of gear we actually use.
- Group bookings and functions $35 to $65 Tables for six to fourteen during trade, or the whole room on a Sunday morning.
- Office and event catering $14 to $32 Breakfast and lunch catering delivered across Melbourne's inner north before 9:00am.
- Takeaway and morning pre-order $5 to $28 Ring ahead the night before or on the walk in, and it is on the counter when you arrive.
On the way out
Ground free to your brew method, roast date on the bag.
The shelf
- Beans
- Photo on the wayBeans
Single origin filter, 250g
Whatever is on the filter this fortnight, bagged the same week it is roasted. Lighter, and better without milk.
$28 Changes fortnightly
-
Pastry Butter croissant
Laminated from four in the morning, out of the oven by quarter past six.
$6.50 While the tray lasts
-
Pastry Seasonal fruit danish
The pastry from the film. Same laminated dough as the croissants, fruit that follows the season.
$7.50 Fruit changes with the season
-
Bakery Sourdough loaf
The loaf the kitchen cuts for breakfast. Long fermented, dark crust, open crumb.
$12 From about 8:00am
-
Pantry House granola jar, 500g
The granola off the breakfast board. Oats, almonds, pepitas and olive oil, baked in the pastry oven.
$16 500g jar
-
Gear Stoneware keep cup, 10oz
Thrown by a potter in Preston, silicone lid. Fill it here at the takeaway price for as long as it lasts.
$34 Made in Preston
- House blend, 1kg For a home machine that goes through a bag a fortnight $72
- Filter cone and 100 papers The cone we use on the batch brewer, in the smaller size $42
- Hand grinder Steel burrs, the one we take camping. The only grinder we stock $95
What people say
That is not a pit stop. That is a reset.
-
They have known my order for about two years and still ask if I want it different today. Best flat white on this end of the hill.
Danielle P., Northcote · Espresso and filter coffee · August 2026
-
Mushrooms on sourdough, cooked in a pan like an adult, not steamed in a tray. Out in about ten minutes on a Saturday, which is the surprising part.
Hamish B., Thornbury · Breakfast · July 2026
Office and event catering
Breakfast for the whole floor, before nine
Catering started with the office two doors down and now goes out most weekdays within about twelve kilometres. We do a pastry and fruit box, a hot breakfast tray, sandwich and salad platters, and urns or a coffee run for bigger rooms. Everything is quoted per head in writing before we start, and we deliver in compostable boxes so nobody has to return a platter.
- Pastry and fruit boxes, hot breakfast trays, sandwich and salad platters
- Dietaries labelled on the box lid, not guessed at
- Compostable boxes, nothing to return
- Delivery within 12 km, before 9:00am if you need it
Thanks, that is everything we need
Demonstration only. Nothing was sent and nothing was stored. On a live site this would reach hello@slowstartcoffee.com.au and a booking would be confirmed by phone.