• Tom and Georgia have created a retro hippy hub that’s set to burst at the seams in summer. Photos by Matthew Dwyer

I DON’T think I’d be going out on a limb in predicting the pocket-sized Third Wheel cafe at the end of South Terrace will be bursting at the seams at the first sign of warmer weather.

Young entrepreneurs Tom and Georgia (who worked at the Grumpy Sailor and more recently Hush) have turned an otherwise dead space between two buildings into an eatery with the retro appeal of a ‘60s surfing joint (think a Tim Winton novel).

Raw brick floors, hessian sacking on the ceiling, colourful bunting and a Moroccan rug on rough walls set the tone, while across the road massive Moreton Bay fig trees foreground the glistening blue of the ocean at South Beach.

Nippy weather had the D’Angers huddling indoors when we dropped in for breakfast, but there’s seating on the verandah and pavement for the more intrepid.

Coffee is the focus at Third Wheel, and without a kitchen the small menu offers only simple fare, such as toasties and home-made soup, along with bircher muesli (with raspberries, apricot, almonds, pepitas, chia seeds, goji berries, raw honey and pot set yoghurt ($6.50).

Then there’s avocado on toast with rocket, lemon and balsamic ($7), or haloumi with pomegranate molasses ($6).

Soup for breakfast seemed wrong, but that didn’t stop D’Angerous Dave from tucking into a steaming (tin) dish of a spicy tomato and lentil version, topped with black cumin seed.

Hippy food and the beach are such a good mix, and served with toasted sourdough it was amazingly good value at $7.

Sun-dried tomato hummus lifted my avocado and jarlsberg toastie ($7) to delicious heights.

We’d shared a pot of earl grey tea at breakfast ($3.50), but after Tom raved about the coffee I dropped back for an afternoon brew.

He’s right, coffee is one of Third Wheel’s great strengths, and at $3.50 also great value.

Third Wheel
408 South Terrace, South Fremantle
Open week days 6.30am–3pm, weekend 7.30am, closed Tues