June 2025 update: For the third year in a row, Axil Coffee's barista Jack Simpson has just been crowned the Australian Barista Champion at one of the nation's fiercest espresso-fuelled competitions: the ASCA National Coffee Championships. Simpson will now go on to represent Australia at the World Barista Championship in Milan, Italy, in October. Fingers crossed!
The priority at Axil Coffee Roasters is high-quality, ethical coffee. When Axil's Anthony Douglas took out the number one spot at the 2022 World Barista Championship, it helped solidify the business as one of the pre-eminent coffee purveyors in a city that takes its caffeine awfully seriously. As per the update at the top of this piece, three years on Axil still stands out with legend Jack Simpson carrying the torch.
Axil is recognised all over Melbourne for more reasons than just its award-winning baristas. Axil once helped rejuvenate the city by handing out 25,000 free coffee cards across the CBD. Each day, the team postes clues on social media for where the team would be handing out free coffee cards at landmark locations.
Axil's environmentally and socially friendly beans are labelled Direct Trade, which means they must meet certain criteria. For example, Axil has guaranteed to pay 25 per cent more than the fair trade price to develop stronger, long-term relationships with the producers.
The Axil empire has continued to expand, with stores popping up across all corners of Melbourne, from Flinders Lane and Bourke Street to Melbourne University, Melbourne Airport, Wesley Place and all the way to Chadstone.
The staff at Axil are always happy to talk shop – where the coffee comes from, how it’s made – but it’ll be a short lesson, as the stores are inevitably busy with regulars and passers-by looking for a cold drip or a batch brew. With crispy pastries, solid sangas and tasty brunch and lunch options available at various stores, Axil is as good a place to grab a takeaway coffee and an almond croissant, as it is to settle in for a morning of reading the paper over rocky road waffles.