About Steam Coffee Co
A cafe built on obsession. Coffee that earns your morning.
Johnny's Story
Johnny came to specialty coffee the way most people do — slowly, then all at once. It started with a single cup at a roastery in Brunswick that tasted nothing like anything he'd had before. That was it. He spent the next three years chasing that feeling.
He trained as a barista, then as a roaster. He visited farms in Ethiopia and Colombia, learning that the difference between a good cup and a great one is almost always made before the bean ever reaches a roaster. Relationships with growers. Careful selection. Honest processing.
Steam opened in 2018 at 131 Union Rd, Surrey Hills — a neighbourhood that deserved better coffee. The response from the locals was immediate. The regulars came back. The word spread. And the beans followed the cafe online.
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The Steam Coffee Company Cafe, Surrey Hills
Walk into Steam and you'll find warm timber, exposed brick, and the kind of green La Marzocco that makes a serious coffee person stop and stare. It's not a pretentious space — it's a working cafe, built for the neighbourhood.
The espresso machine sits at the heart of everything. Johnny pulls every shot to spec. The milk texturing is done by feel. There are no shortcuts here, even on a busy Saturday morning when the line runs out the door.
The roastery lives out the back. On roast days, the whole street smells like it. The community that's formed around this place — regulars, coffee nerds, families — is what Steam is actually about.
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Our Approach
Small Batch
We roast in small batches — typically 15 to 30kg — to maintain precise control over every profile. Freshness is not a marketing word here. Every bag goes out within days of roasting.
Direct Trade
We work directly with growers where we can. That means paying fair prices, visiting farms, and building multi-year relationships. Better relationships make better coffee — consistently.
Let the Bean Speak
We don't roast to hide defects — we source beans that have something worth saying. Roast profiles are developed to express what's already there, not to impose a house character on top of it.
Visit Us
131 Union Rd, Surrey Hills VIC 3127
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Address
131 Union RdSurrey Hills VIC 3127
Melbourne, Australia
Opening Hours
Saturday: 7:00am – 3:00pm
Sunday: 7:00am – 3:00pm
Get in Touch
Transport
Tram 109 — Union Rd stop
Street parking on Union Rd