Neighbourhood Coffee Roasters, a charming cafe in Bardon, brings together a romantic nostalgia for the past with a pragmatic reverence for healthy food.

Husband-and-wife owners Alex and Steph Ridgway have transformed an old general store, retaining vintage signs and recycling building materials. And, as a final loving touch, they added a nurturing, global-inspired menu.

Their turmeric latte, for example, is based on a chai that Alex used to love when he lived in Dharamshala, in the mountains of India. They make their own shiitake kimchi that turns up in a toasted cheddar sandwich, a pork floss rounding off the savoury complexity. The couple also uses eggplants from the cafe’s garden in a tasty salad with tomato chutney and handmade avocado oil.

Alex began roasting coffee in 2009, but he has a long history on the service side of the hospitality industry, having worked in noted establishments such as Urbane and Esquire.

The cafe offers two excellent coffee blends, cold-brews and pour-over styles. Not surprisingly, it has a loyal following, with many regulars taking home a bag of beans. And there are plenty of other options for those who don’t want coffee. Perhaps you’d prefer a matcha tea or a date and almond milkshake? Or a cold- pressed juice or a fizzy sarsaparilla soda.

Sampling one of the old school sodas, I became engrossed in elements like the sash windows, antique bibelots and old school waxed-paper dispenser, and the sensitive way the couple have reanimated the interior.

Multiple seating options exist and there are plans to extend the kitchen, dining spaces and the garden. Clearly, this is an establishment to keep an eye on as it enters its second year.

Neighbourhood Coffee Roasters, 58 Rainworth Rd, Bardon, QLD, (07) 3367 8501, neighbourhoodcoffee.com