With its low lighting, contemporary wooden panelling, and a high percentage of  bearded baristas in t-shirts, Lowdown is ultra-modern, sleek, and unapologetically  cool. Centrally located in the Cloister arcade off Hay Street, it is the ideal place for city  workers and shoppers searching for a caffeine fix.

When I arrived with a friend early one Wednesday morning we found the area  swarming with young professional types, passing through for their morning coffee. As  the cafe itself is quite small and was full by the time we arrived, we decided to order  our drinks takeaway and sit in the adjoining atrium, which was already milling with  other customers. Interestingly, we didn’t need to line up to collect our takeaway  drinks. Instead, we sat down and they were brought to us by a nimble-footed,  converse-wearing worker, weaving skilfully between the cafe and the atrium delivering  people their drinks.

Just as the service aimed to please, so too did the coffees. Unlike many coffee shops, they don’t use coffee blends (beans sourced from a variety of places). Instead, they use Indian Single Origin beans that are supplied to them by Fiori, a Western Australian coffee roaster.

My long black was strong and flavoursome and certainly worked wonders to perk me up on a mid-week morning. My friend, an avid tea drinker was also full of compliments for her English Breakfast tea. Costing us $3.50-$4 for a regular drink, the prices were on par with other coffee shops in the area. As well as drinks there are also a range of sandwiches and muffins available for purchase.

Well, that’s the lowdown (sorry couldn’t help it!), go and try it out for yourself!

Lowdown
865 Hay Street, Shop 16A Cloisters Arcade
Perth, Western Australia
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lowdown/114725758538860