I love Max Brenner and I go there occasionally. The chocolate dip is soooo yummy. The hot chocolate is too sweet and sickening for me but their coffee is ok. My son loves the waffles and strawberries with chocolate dip. Presentation of the food and drinks is really good. The biggest letdown is the service. While the staff are good, it takes a long time to place an order and receive it. The last time it took 20minutes to order and another 45minutes to receive it. I was warned that there was a long wait when i ordered though. I would have given 4 stars if the wait time was better. Prices are on the higher side, but the quality of the food makes up for it. Max Brenner is my sons favourite place for dessert and he loves it so much that he licks every last bit of chocolate off the plate.

Approximate cost: $15

Goldbergs makes my favourite pasta- chicken penne pasta with balsamic roasted walnuts. I order this every time I go there. The coffee is also good and I've always had good service. Staff have always been very helpful getting me highchairs etc for my toddler.

Approximate cost: $18

I have an almost two year old little boy and an 8 year old boy that absolutely love playing at megamania. With such a large age gap between my children it is hard to find activities that amuse both children, but megamania is always a hit with both of my kids. The toddler section is amazing and has so many different activities for my son to explore. It does become a little pricey when you are paying for multiple children to play. I did recently hear of a deal where play is free when you buy a food voucher though so that is something that will interest me and I will be looking into this next time we visit. Also last time we played at megamania my coffee wasn't very hot but staff fixed it up quickly for me when I asked them to. I like that they validate my parking ticket for me.

This cafe has the best pies in Newcastle! My husband and I regularly stop here for a pie and coffee and have never been disappointed. The only thing that I would say as a negative would be that tables are not cleared very quickly and often when I go in I have to move dirty plates and wipe down the table myself (lucky I carry baby wipes with me!)

Approximate cost: $10