‘Stellini Pasta Bar’ Review

UNSW Against Crap Coffee is happy to reveal to you guys a shock player in the coffee market on campus! Stellini Pasta Bar is seldom mentioned amongst the traditional heavy weights when it comes to ‘best coffee on campus’. That conversation usually includes the likes of ‘The Coffee Cart’ up at the library lawn, ‘Coffee on Campus’ at Robert Webster or Navitas Pasta Bar just off Anzac Parade. However Stellini certainly holds its own, and for those college kids around the village, it’s a lot closer than the former mentioned.

Stellini Pasta Bar @ the village

The Terrace block includes big chains ‘Coco Cubano’ and ‘Max Brenner’ which may appear more of an attraction to coffee hunters. However it’s the small little ‘pasta bar’ opposite that takes the cake in terms of coffee in the Terrace block. A chilled out vibe surrounds the place, playing mellow tunes of the likes of Temper Trap and Chet Faker (plus points from us!), and young employees greet you with a positive attitude and smile. Honestly, it feels like Stellini is run by students rather than an older owner concerned with profit margins. As you can tell, we like the place, and we haven’t even got to the coffee yet!

Stellini source their beans from Campos (again, plus points from us), a roaster making a real name for themselves in Sydney at the moment. The extract has a rich, intense flavour to it, one of those coffees with a unique taste to it that you won’t forget. The barista’s do a great job of composing a combination with the milk to allow the espresso to reveal it’s character without overpowering the milk and coming on to strong. For those that enjoy flavour but without too much intensity, this is the one for you.

There’s a few tables at Stellini to sit down at and enjoy your coffee, however with such a small shop space don’t be disappointed if you can’t get one. Another downside is the lack of sunlight that gets into that section of the village, which makes it a little cold in the winter months.

We’re not sure why Stellini hasn’t been put on the map yet, maybe those college kids are keeping it for themselves and not letting the secret out?! Regardless, we heavily endorse Stellini!

Coffee: 4.5/5

Staff Efficiency: 4/5

Staff friendliness: 4/5

Comfort & Vibe: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

‘The Q Lounge’ Review

The Q Lounge

The Q Lounge sits comfortably in middle campus, tucked into the Quad food court building, upstairs. At the beginning of the year, the Q Lounge had renovations to revamp the place into what looks like a trendy modern cafe. They source their coffee beans from ‘Grinders’, an Australian roaster who originated in Melbourne. The strong coffee blend, whilst not the best on campus, certainly holds its own and justifies having lunch or breakfast here.

The place has an outdoor balcony with tables, which is an awesome place (if you can find a seat) to sit and have lunch as the sun comes over in the middle of the day. In the mornings the booths are the place to be, new leather seats with coffee tables make for a really comfortable morning coffee before a 9am lecture. There’s a lovely atmosphere to the place, where tables are always filled with groups of friends catching up and enjoying their time off class.

What is really appealing about the Q Lounge is the friendliness of the staff. They’re always keen to have a chat regardless of how busy or flustered they are, an asset to their customer service that really makes a difference. They’ve found quite an efficient practice during peak times, with two staff members operating the till & espresso machine whilst another serves food and pastries.

Whilst not the best place on campus strictly speaking about coffee, the Q Lounge is a comfortable place to relax, catch up with friends over lunch, or grab a quick coffee and croissant before heading off to a dreaded lecture in the morning.

Coffee: 3/5

Staff efficiency: 3.5

Staff friendliness: 4.5

Comfort & Vibe: 4 (if you can find a spot!)

Overall: 3.5

‘Coffee on Campus’ review

 

Our very first review for UNSW Against Crap Coffee is on ‘Coffee on Campus’, a small cafe at the Robert Webster building, adjacent to the main walkway. It’s a small outlet run by a team of three, two baristas and another lady serving food and other drinks.

The coffee is great. They source their beans from Toby’s Estate, a local supplier who originated not too far away in Woolloomooloo. They use a strong blend, lovely for those who enjoy a rich taste coming through the milk. Quite uniquely, Coffee on Campus make their coffee in exotic take away cups with artwork printed on them, for those that enjoy their coffee along with the simpler things in life. They also offer an extra-large sized cup, something quite hard to find on campus as most outlets generally restrict their options to regular or large. Despite generally not having quite a lot of traffic, the team are pretty efficient in getting their orders out, yet aren’t careless in making. It’s evident the two middle aged gentleman who work the machine are experienced baristas. The only thing I could fault them on is friendliness to customers. Whilst not unfriendly, if the staff could make a bit more of an effort to interact with customers it would certainly enlighten the experience there.

There’s a seating area overlooking the main walkway which is quite relaxing, however in the early mornings there’s no sunlight due to the Scientia building’s towering presence to the east, which makes it quite cold in winter. It can also be quite noisy during peak pedestrian times on the walkway, however when it quietens down in the late morning or afternoon it’s a lovely place to relax. The chairs can get a little bit uncomfortable at times, as there’s no cushions on the seat or backrest of the metal frames.

For those quite picky on their coffee tastes, yet aren’t too interested in lining up somewhere as popular as The Coffee Cart at Upper Campus, this place is a hidden gem. It’s tucked away quite snugly at the doors to the Robert Webster building, so unless you know it’s there it can be quite easy to simply walk past without noticing this gem. 

A great place to grab a good-quality coffee on the go, though it leaves a little bit desired if you’re looking to sit down.
Coffee: 4.5/5

Staff Efficiency: 4/5

Staff Friendliness: 3/5

Comfort & vibe: 3.5/5

Overall: 4/5