A
good café that has a good vibe and does good coffee is often as deserving of an
Oscar as Meryl Streep was after starring in The Iron Lady.
So
with a quickening step and a vaulting leap up a couple flights of stairs I entered Moana Coffee’s light and breezy space.
In
some ways Moana Coffee (618 Hay Street) is so much like other places in Perth in
that it incorporates
Moana
Café makes great use of the space and turns it into a relaxing, peaceful but
elegant venue.
The
Coffee was great and staff nice. Enjoying my Long Mac and good book on their balcony
that looks out above the hustle and bustle of a busy shopping mall, I could
have lingered for hours. 
But
one of my criticisms is that the space is possibly under used. Maybe because the
management want to see how it goes before developing it further but I would love to see it turn from a café during
the day to a small bar in the late afternoons.
It
would be so cool to enjoy a glass of wine while the fine melodies of a jazz
trio punctuate the great conversations that you are having with your date or
group of friends.
It
is also great that they are making use of the rest of the floor and turning it
into an exhibition space and celebrating Perth’s older building instead of
leaving them to disintegrate.
My
final concern is its opening hours and mid afternoon close. While this criticism
isn’t just aimed at Moana in particular (because so many cafés in Perth seem to
shut mid afternoon) forgetting that people don't suddenly stop needing coffee at 1600.
Maybe Perth wouldn't seem so dead after business hours if there were places to
linger and enjoy before heading home.
