Good Things

Fremantle is packed with warehouses which have been fashionably reworked into edgy diners. From Moore & Moore to Bread in Common, character cafes are abundant. It's all part of Freo's charm.

And what was once a popular café just off the main cappuccino strip (formerly The Attic) now has new owners who have reopened its doors under a new name. And that's a good thing.

After being closed for six months, owners Jake Carter, Mia Gammon and Sam Harkin were keen to maintain the natural beauty of the heritage building interiors. Not much construction was needed from its previous guise. Its exposed red brickwork and vaulted ceiling have a natural character in spades. But what is new is the menu with tasty breakfast dishes that have enticed the locals back.

The Good Things team have years of hospitality experience. Their first café is the popular Mosman Park venue of the same name that recently celebrated its seventh birthday. The couple has a history with Fremantle. When they first moved from Auckland they stayed and worked here, Harkin also has businesses in Freo so they were excited to expand to the Port City.

“I’m pretty sure The Attic was the first cafe I came to when I arrived in Freo. So a funny turn of events to now be in here,” Carter said.

Gammon is responsible for most of the food, creating dishes with chef Lachie Gordon. The menu serves up a range of sweet and savoury must-tries. Bircher Muesli is silky and creamy with the perfect touch of sweet and sour brought in by pineapple and tangy passionfruit. Hotcakes are an ideal autumn treat as the colder weather kicks in. A single buttermilk pancake accompanied by yuzu and blueberry compote, milk crumb and vanilla bean mascarpone. Good Eggs, as the name suggests, will not disappoint. It’s their take on eggs benedict with poached eggs served with heirloom tomatoes, dill hollandaise and pickled onions on toasted sourdough. There's a classic smashed avo and chilli scrambled eggs spiced up with Korean sambal. "The Chilli Eggs is probably the most well-known. That's what people always mention when they say Good Things", says Carter.

Being a café open daily from 6:30am (7am on weekends), there is naturally a range of coffee to give yourself a morning kick start to the day. Or, if on the decaf train, a 'Not Coffee' section includes Chai Latte, an array of loose-leaf teas and fresh juices of apple, beetroot, carrot, ginger or strawberry, pineapple and apple.

Carter and his cohorts have embraced the Freo atmosphere and the creative new audience that comes along with it. And he is also grateful for the community's backing, who has been on Good Things recent south of the river journey. "Fremantle is an offshoot of all the hard work and local support we've received in Mosman Park. It's a really diverse clientele. The customer base has been really exciting."

And it seems it's just the beginning, with only more Good Things ahead for this hip new Fremantle café who are welcoming the Freo community back to Bannister Street.