If you pass by Little West on a given day, you might spot an elderly Italian man standing at the front window’s brass counter, sipping espresso on the footpath. Meanwhile, inside the cafe might be someone at their laptop, perched on a bentwood stool, drinking pour-over.

In a way, the new Haberfield cafe is representative of the shift in neighbourhood demographics that’s happening in communities all over Sydney.

“It’s really interesting how people have been interacting with the space,” says menu consultant Amanda Chebatte. “Haberfield has the older generation, and there are also a lot of young families.”

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Business partners Joshua Harrison and Sebastian Shearman opened Little West in August. It’s on one of the heritage suburb’s pretty residential streets, blocks away from the bustling bakeries and delis of Ramsay Street. The quaint six-seater (with a handful of outdoor tables, too) is part of a movement of new venues in the suburb, including American-style diner Happyfield, adding outstanding coffee and food options to the traditional, cherished Italian-dining scene.

The cafe serves a rotating roster of Market Lane single origins. Espresso and milk coffee are currently made with Marimbus, a Brazilian single origin with toasty chocolate and hazelnut flavour notes, that’s grown on a third-generation family farm. Pour-overs are made with a fruity single origin from La Llama, a farm operated by a father-daughter team in Bolivia.

“We chose Market Lane because of their fantastic flavour, and because there’s full transparency, from seed to cup. The farms are ethical, sustainable, and we love that family-run farms around the world are serving families in Haberfield,” Chebatte tells Broadsheet.

Chebatte’s menu features unexpected versions of cafe classics and dishes that acknowledge the suburb’s Italian heritage, often incorporating native Australian ingredients.

“People love their cheese and charcuterie here,” she says. “Our muffuletta includes leg ham, hot salami, provolone, Italian pickles and olives, creating a flavour-intensive sandwich. It takes two days to make. We hollow out a Sonoma miche loaf, layer the ingredients and press it for 24 hours so the flavours marry overnight.”

Smoked brisket sausage rolled in all-butter puff pastry is another popular dish. It’s served with bush tomato sauce, made from small native tomatoes that are dried to enhance their umami flavour. The chocolate and golden syrup damper is a refined version of the primary school classic.

“We didn’t want it to be like the doughy damper you got at school,” says Chebatte. “Chunks of chocolate are incorporated in the dough, spiked with wattleseed, drizzled with golden syrup and served warm with cultured butter. People love it, and often come share one together while they have a coffee.

When Harrison and Shearman found the shopfront, it had been vacant for almost two decades, its windows plastered with mid-aughts movie posters. It was gutted and faithfully restored according to the council’s stringent heritage conditions, right down to the rich red exterior tiles and recessed doorway.
It’s not just the respectful heritage redesign that has Little West fitting so well into the neighbourhood.

“Josh and Seb appeal to Haberfield because they offer an old-world hospitality: welcoming, sincere and attentive to customer needs. It’s something people from all generations really appreciate.”

Little West
53–55 Waratah Street, Haberfield

Hours:
Tue to Sun 7am–2.30pm

@littlewesthaberfield