After a long, hard two years of COVID, where everything now seems a blur looking back, we finally decided to bite the bullet and give the cafe the facelift it deserved! We have long been a fan of Xanthe from Studio Highfield on the Central Coast, so we reached out to chat about who we were, and where we want the business to go moving forward. The brief was simple, make it bright, inviting, colourful but also a little bit street still. Capture the beach side vibes without losing its humble beginnings.

After a few months of back and forth, we decided on a scaled back version of the original, after COVID lockdowns once again stalled us. We ended up tiling over our old counter and large tables, giving some texture and colour, aswell as getting table tops made up in a warm plywood. New chairs were added indoors, and custom shelving put up in the coffee area. A new plywood bench seat adds a fresh dining area behind the coffee bar, perfect for those cold, wet days or for a quieter area.

We wanted fresh artwork on the walls, so when Xanthe mentioned local artist Trent Whitehead, we had to agree. Trent has designed some fun & colourful new characters to adorn our white walls, with pop references and some branding thrown in.

A quick splash of paint on the floor, new lighting and some fans and we now have a fun, playful yet inviting new space for all to enjoy. Make sure to check it out next time you are in town!

Next step is rolling our our new branding, getting it onto packaging and coffee cups aswell as Bellyfish merch. Stay tuned!

Thanks to :
Xanthe from Studio Highfield
Trent & Cassandra from Always Studio
Ryan from Ebuild
Brent from Metal Elements
Grace Picot photography
Bellyfish staff for working around the chaos
Bellyfish customers for navigating the chaos