Life’s good at Good Ways Deli. Found on Redfern’s Cooper Street, the sunny corner shop has been slinging fresh sangas, retro treats and nostalgic drinks since it first opened back in 2021 – and we have gobbled them up on many occasions.
Owners Jordan McKenzie (ex Cornersmith, Cho Cho San) and Tom Pye (ex Coffee Supreme) created the shop with a vision to respectfully explore Australian food and create simple and timeless sandwiches and treats from your childhood. The team bakes sourdough ciabatta using organic flour each morning, all pastries are made in house, and sangas are made fresh to order. So good.
At Good Ways, McKenzie and Pye have kept the menu succinct and considered, focusing on doing less – but the best. You can go the rainbow salad sandwich with house-made mushroom pate, beetroot, carrot, sprouts, cheese, rocket and mayo. Or, head for the chicken number with poached bird, cheese, rocket and tarragon mayo.
If you haven’t heard about Good Ways Deli’s famous kangaroo mortadella sanga, what rock have you been under? A mighty bite, the sandwich is loaded with Whole Beast Butchery kangaroo mortadella, LP’s Quality Meats salami cotto, ham, provolone cheese, pickles, white onion, iceberg lettuce and a special sauce, and we reckon it is truly one of Sydney's finest sandwiches.
Be sure to keep room for a treat. From lamingtons to Anzac biscuits and vanilla slices, Good Ways’ sweets will transport you back to your primary school days. To drink, you’ll find coffee by Coffee Supreme, housemade sodas, oat malt iced mochas, hot choccies, tea, and chai. Plus, shelves are stocked with deli goods and fun green merch.
In more good news, the duo opened up a sibling to the OG, called Good Ways Buckland, in November 2022. Found in a heritage-listed corner shop in Alexandria, Good Ways Buckland sells all of the deli’s much-loved favourites, with some new hits including a curried kangaroo sausage roll.
“There are a few things I’m always looking for when I drop into a country bakery — a lamington is one, a cheesy scroll is another. The line-up at Good Ways Buckland seeks to bring that nostalgic experience a little closer to us silly city people,” says McKenzie.
