Toowoomba has a lively café scene with funky little coffee shops and hidden laneways to explore throughout the CBD. Our beautiful city is also home to an evolving outdoor exhibition of stunning contemporary street art with many of the large scale installations made possible by the First Coat Intl’ Art Festival. Grab your camera or phone and get ready to take some of the coolest holiday snaps ever as we take you on an art and caffeine adventure…!
8:00am – Ground Up Espresso Bar 501 Ruthven St Toowoomba
Ground Up Espresso Bar is a hip inner city cafe nestled down a laneway decorated with vibrant street art. Start the day here and download the www.firstcoat.com.au app over breakfast and a perfectly brewed coffee! This app will help you navigate your street art tour of the city. You can create your own arty adventure or follow our easy trail.
9:30am
Head off on foot to uncover the resplendent beauty of Toowoomba’s street art culture! Here are some of our favourites to get you started. When you leave Ground Up head firstly to Duggan Lane where you will find a stunning piece by high profile street artist RONE.
- Grand Central Shopping Centre’s ‘Duggan Lane’ (Artist – RONE)
- 28 & 30 Duggan Street (Artist – Meks Tues Reals & Alex Lehours respectively)
- 6 & 12 Little Street (Artist – Katie Noller & Rick Hayward respectively)
- Gallery Lane (Artist - Elysha Rei)
- 488 Ruthven Street (Artist – Fintan Magee)
10:30am - The Bungalow & Basket 400 Ruthven St Toowoomba
Now that you are back on Ruthven St why not pop into the Bungalow and Basket, a coastal inspired cafe and home wares haven hidden amongst the bustling CBD streets. Grab a coffee and a tasty morsel from their decadent cabinet of house made sweets!
11:00am – More street art inspiration…
- Bank Lane (Artist – Brett Piva)
- 1 Schofield Street (Artist – Shani White)
- Wilcox Lane (Artist - Gene Falknau)
- Cnr Keefe & Russell Street (Artist – Frank & Mimi)
- Keefe Street (Artists – Claire Foxton, Georgia Hill & Thomas Jackson and Tristan Kerr)
- Mark Lane (Artists – Col McElwaine & Heather Smith and Buttons)
12:30pm – The Finch Café 469 Ruthven St Toowoomba
A hearty lunch is a must after all of that walking! Time to stop at the Finch Cafe for lunch and a review of your photo’s so far. Our tip – try a Fonzie Abbott Espresso and one of their famous Banh Mi rolls or a tasty seasonal salad. Yum!
1:30pm – Where to next….
- Club Lane (Artists – Sirmano and Mysterious Al)
- 2 Chronicle Lane (Artist - Gimicks Born and Spencer Harrison)
- Neil Street Bus Station (Artist – Lauren Hom)
- Jessie Street (Artist – Sophie Mary-Mac)
- 49 Neil Street (Artist – Adnate) ** this one is one of our personal favs!
- 163 Hume Street (Artist – Beastman)
3:30pm – Bunker Records 229 Margaret St Toowoomba
Pop in to Bunker Records, a cool inner city café & retro record store that does a delicious cold brew coffee! Browse through their collection of vinyls or grab a seat outside to rest your legs awhile and watch the world go by in the main St of Toowoomba!
4.00pm – Last leg of the tour
- 1 & 2 Station Street (Artists – Gimicks Born and Hitness respectively)
- 86 Russell Street (Artist – Drapl & Treas )
- 1 Snell Street (Artists – Fuzeillear and Drapl & Treas)
- Beech Lane (Artist – Lee Harnden)
5:00pm – Walton Stores 476 Ruthven St Toowoomba
After a long day exploring the streets and laneways of Toowoomba wander back down Ruthven St to Walton Stores where you will find an array of modern outdoor dining options. From Asian inspired delicacies to a dedicated dessert bar you can settle in for a delicious dinner and a glass of wine while you choose the perfect Social Media snap to upload!
(*Please note the artwork installations are subject to change. The above are correct at time of printing)