The Three Monkeys Coffee & Tea House

Pretty poor form. $ 8 for a slice of cake which was about 2 cm thick and tasted similar to the cheesecake from Coles.
We got takeaway — 2 slices of cake, and one of the pieces wasn’t the right order. Called them when we got home and they made no attempt to correct it.
Was an awesome joint a few years ago — but seriously gone down hill since :(sad to see a west end classic go down this road.
Won’t be back.

Stopped in for a take away latte. Could not see the cups or the beans on offer but became aware when I was handed a Vittoria cup. Tasted as one would expect from a mass produced bean. Vittoria is at best average, made a little better or a lot worse by a (in)competent Barista. My latte was dry and average.
I did not have food. The establishment looks interesting and the desserts in the fridge looked good. Not worth writing off just for an average coffee experience yet.

Very nice atmosphere, cosy and fancy somehow. They have great coffee, chocolate as well as cheese cakes. It’s one of my favourite destination in Westend.

It is much MUCH bigger than it looks!
Upon first walking in, you’re greeted with a small room with a single table and the counter. After ordering proceed to the back, it’s HUGE. There was plenty indoor and outdoor seating. Indoor seating was very intimate, darker lighting and chill. Outdoor was covered so the rain/​sun won’t blast on you. Enough lighting outdoor to do work.
Unfortunately didn’t try any of the tea/​coffee they had. Got an Iced Tea and it ended up being a Lipton tea :(. I did try their breakfast croissant which was filled with ham and cheese. Pretty standard fare though, nothing amazing.
A great place to catch a small break from the urban city life and chat with friends.

Perhaps it’s nostalgia creating bias in my review but I’ve been going here now for over 10 years and I still rate it as one of the nicest coffee experiences. What’s good? Décor, selection of cakes, the coffee, the chai is a bit weak but I’m used to the chai van from a chai man and the back area is great for 6+ seating. What’s sad? Can be overcrowded, you can lose track of time, dark inside, too much oogleing of people walking past. To end on a positive note, if you’ve not been here and your a more of a coffee club type, go here and see what’s great about a home grown coffee place.

I love this place. It’s got such a cool vibe and it’s peaceful and chill. The decos are amazing and exotic.
I had the caramel roulade and at first I liked it but in the end, I felt there was too much mock-​like cream and not enough sponge to balance it out. Some caramel was on the top of the slice and this was a saving grace because it cut through the ickiness of cream. But there wasn’t enough of it :(
But I won’t let that deter me at all from going back. Ive always liked this place. The service is great too.

Pretty much love this place. One of the first places I take my friends to when we’re going to West End for some coffee. I love the chai lattes and the honey!

We got here late so we couldn’t sit down but they gave us takeaway. The cheesecake is delicious!

Coming to Brisbane from a country where cafes often close after midnight, I’ve struggled with the café culture here (read: apparently after 3:00 or so Brisbaners no longer need caffeine and switch over to beer). Enter the Three Monkeys. Open late. Lots of good coffee. Large desert menu. Large casual food menu (decent nachos, good enchilada, tasty toasties).
The atmosphere is exactly what it should be: busy but laid-​back, a bit grungy but friendly: very casual. The outdoor shaded patio is great in almost all Brisbane weather, and except when they’re super-​busy they don’t mind a person taking a small back table and reading a book for hours, or writing letters – the kinds of activities cafes are made for. And although I do drink, I also like the option of going out with friends or alone and not drinking sometimes.

The poor old Three Monkeys is getting a bit tired these days. Even the nachos are not what they used to be, and how hard is it to do nachos? Most of their mains are fairing the same, though you can still get a good lasagne or toasted sandwich.
The cakes are still amazing (though probably supplied by an excellent external company), the juices and frappes are great, and there’s not a lot of other places in Brisbane where you can get a bowl of coffee.
The prices may seem high to some but are pretty standard for West End. This is not a cheap area to eat and hasn’t been for at least the last 10 years, though it’s multitude of student share houses and proximity to UQ and other tertiary education areas may suggest otherwise.
The death of the tree just outside in recent years has made dining outside in the front area less pleasant than it used to be. However the backyard area is still nice and tropical, though sometimes the older air conditioning units inside the shop struggle with the climbing Brisbane temperatures.
The Three Monkeys is mostly a piece of Brisbane nostalgia which I am happy to keep visiting as long as they care to stay, though I completely understand people who don’t have the same sentimental feelings about it.

Used to LOVE LOVE LOVE Three Monkeys but I haven’t been back to Australia in a few years and finally went back to Three Monkeys and wasn’t completely impressed.
I love the backyard and the reason anyone goes there is because of the atmosphere.
The chai was lacking. I wasn’t impressed.

Pleasant little coffee shop near the edge of west end. Pretty solid coffee and good pastries with some very funky décor. A little dark for my tastes, the interior could do with a little better mood lighting, but I’ve always found the tables outside good for studying on sunny days.
It’s a pleasant little shop and definitely worth a brunch visit on a sunny morning when the patio out back will shine.

I have frequented The Three Monkeys Coffee & Tea-​house in West End, since I moved here to the big smoke of Brisbane a little over a decade ago. It is a Brisbane institution and a must-​visit. A décor that reflects Mediterranean and East-​Asian influences. Lots of decorative pieces inside add to the character, as well as Memorabilia from its famous visitors. How many can you identify?
You are spoilt for choice as to where to place yourself, inside the many nooks and intimate crannies or, outside the tropical courtyard. Perfect for dates, and catch-​ups with old friends. The Three monkeys are famous for their choice of cakes, teas & light snacks. For a quick indulgence, I recommend a nut roll (It’s amazing) and went well with my Jasmine tea.
Sign the guestbook & leave a piece of your heart behind.

My friend that I’m staying with said she thought Three Monkeys had the best coffee, so I had to try their latte. After battling with a communication barrier when ordering it half-​caff (and explaining what that means and still getting a weird look), I did enjoy a delicious latte. The desserts looked amazing as well, but I did not partake. Maybe next time.

I’ve been here twice, and I’ll admit, the moussaka was ok… one could even call it good. But the side salad had not been washed and a mouthful of grit is not a good accompaniment to good moussaka. The second time, I ordered the ‘chicken enchilada’. Why, I ordered mexican food at a greek-​inspired restaurant, I honestly do not know. I’m relatively sure it was leftover chicken from a previous night which had been cooked with some green peppers, smothered in a cheesy tortilla, and popped into a microwave of all cooking contraptions. And you guessed it… served with a gritty side salad. I think this may be a better establishment for a coffee and a desert, rather than a meal so I would not mind going back to try one of their delicious looking cakes instead.

This place has some of the best wood fired pizza in brisbane! The dips aren’t bad either.
I don’t particularly love the atmosphere inside as I find the tea-​house smell overwhelming, but the court yard out back is beautiful.
To top it all off, its BYO!
A wonderfully cheap night out, we spent about $ 15 a head and ate until stuffed.

The first time I was in Brisbane Three Monkeys I was surprised with how small is the place because I’ve been in other three monkeys where has big space.
When my friend and I arrived there, we had some difficulty to choose lunch meal for the menu because there is no paper menu where we can choose while sitting, instead we all stand in front of the counter and reading the menu from the board wall on the top of the counter. It didn’t happen to us only because we were standing there for a while reading the menu with some other people as well. I think that is one of the major set back of this café.
I had grilled halloumi cheese with Greek salad and pita bread. It’s a descent price I think and it tasted good. I had a chocolate mouse cake and my friend had a baked brownie cheese cake for dessert. I’m pretty happy with the meal so far. My friends and I spent 6 hours talking and talking while eating in three monkeys. It is cozy and comfy place to catch up and chill with friends. I would recommend people to try this place if they go to west end. :)
Waitress are very friendly too.

Three Monkeys in West End is so often buzzed about that we decided to give this place another try after having just a latte here at the beginning of last year. Famous for their chai lattes, we decided that this was the place to go to satisfy our chai craving. Also known for being one of the more «atmospheric» cafes in town, this café gives off an ethnic, hippie vibe, with tapestries and memorabilia lining its walls. I’m not quite sure why this café is ‘iconic,’ but maybe this is why…
I was rather curious about their chai latte being served in a bowl, but we both ended up ordering the chai latte (4.5) that came with Kraft honey (err, really?), and an almond biscotti cake to share. The chai latte was less than great, as it tasted like a watered down bowl of milk with some spices. The flavor of cloves was there, but I couldn’t really taste any anise, cinnamon, and the usual spices in a chai latte, and found it quite interesting they would choose to serve such a large portion and compromise the thickness. I also found the Kraft honey a bit tasteless, as most cafes will serve their honey with a cute wooden honey dipper. The bowl was also unideal, as it was initially too hot to hold, and by the time it cooled off, my chai also cooled off. Someone please explain to me why their chai is so popular even with Banneton and The Burrow just down the street? Maybe their is more authentic, or just less sweet, like some like it, but I definitely would not recommend this to anyone, especially since it’s quite filling!
After spending a good five minutes in front of the cake shelf, we decided on the Almond Biscotti cake, which was actually ok, but not what I had expected. It tasted like tiramisu, for one, so if you don’t like tiramisu, this isn’t a good choice. Secondly, I didn’t really taste any almond, and there was one piece of almond biscotti, while the rest of the cake just didn’t have any texture to it. Again, it tasted fine, but not worth the $ 8 and calories. What a disappointment! I was hoping that this place would redeem itself from the mediocre latte I had last year. The funniest part of this was that a table of Taiwanese sitting next to us were bantering about whether our bowl of chai was actually soup…

Before you go here read the reviews. Unlike my partner and I who sat down after making our order, and then read the reviews *palmface*.
Average. Below average, even. Service was nothing great. It’s cute, but almost as if they don’t know it. Like they hate how it looks and try to hide it. Or maybe they haven’t properly decided what look they’re going for. I don’t know, not sure how to describe it.
My partner and I both got a focaccia’s to share. About $ 12 each. And it really is just focaccia. Just a sandwich. $ 12 for a sandwich. Two bean sprouts and some paprika as garnish. Yawn.
As far as I’m concerned, if all this place has going for it is the late night coffee, you know who else does that? McDonald’s. Plus (for me, at least) it’s a lot closer to home.
I shouldn’t be too negative. It really wasn’t that bad. I didn’t complain, or anything. Nothing was advertised any differently to what I got. It just wasn’t good. That’s all.

Any Brisbanite who really embraces the moniker knows Three Monkeys. The venue is a cavernous wooden space, draped with tapestries and memories, complemented by a jungle garden courtyard out the back.
While Three Monkeys is still a place you can count on for a late night cup of coffee and a bit of ambience, that’s about all that it has left going for it (in my opinion). The food’s never been amazing, the coffee’s now poor by the more recent Brisbane standards. Three Monkeys is held up by memories, long may they be made.