Brew Haven Café & Bar is a warm, relaxed café on Broadway in the heart of Matamata, founded by two best friends with a shared love of hospitality and bringing people together. The idea was simple: create a welcoming place where anyone can walk through the doors, feel comfortable, and enjoy good food and coffee with the people who matter most.
The menu leans on locally sourced ingredients, with hearty meals and a cabinet of bakes made fresh daily. Coffee is a clear point of pride — exceptional specialty coffee, expertly crafted and poured just the way you like it.
Hours run early to late: doors open at 7:30am daily. Monday to Thursday service wraps up at 2:30pm, Friday and Saturday stretch to 10:00pm for relaxed evenings, and Sunday runs until 3:00pm. Walk-ins are always warmly welcomed, with bookings recommended for weekend catch-ups and larger groups. Gift vouchers are available — a handy local present for friends and family.
On Broadway, in the middle of Matamata, Brew Haven Café & Bar lives up to its name. This is a haven in the truest sense: a warm, relaxed and welcoming space built around expertly crafted coffee, honest food and the simple pleasure of spending time with the people who matter most. Whether you are a local settling in for your morning coffee or a visitor passing through town, the ambition is the same — you should feel at home the moment you walk through the door.
Brew Haven began with a simple idea between two best friends who share a love of hospitality and bringing people together. Rather than chase trends, the pair wanted to create something they felt Matamata needed: a genuine gathering place in the heart of town where people could walk in, feel comfortable, and enjoy good food and coffee in each other's company. That founding spirit still shapes everything, from the welcome at the counter to a menu built on generosity rather than fussiness. It is hospitality in its most straightforward form — good things, made properly, shared warmly.
The kitchen keeps things honest and grounded. The menu is filled with locally sourced ingredients and leans towards hearty meals — the kind of plates that satisfy rather than show off. Alongside them sits one of the café's quiet drawcards: a cabinet of bakes made fresh daily, ready to pair with a coffee or settle a mid-morning craving.
Coffee gets equal billing. Brew Haven takes specialty coffee seriously, with drinks poured expertly and exactly the way you like it. Between the espresso machine, the cabinet and the kitchen, the café covers the whole arc of a day out: something for the early-morning crowd, something substantial for lunch, and something sweet for in between.
The name says café and bar, and the opening hours tell the story. Brew Haven opens early — 7:30am, every day of the week. Monday through Thursday it keeps classic café hours, serving until 2:30pm; perfect for coffee catch-ups, casual work meetings and long lunches. On Friday and Saturday the rhythm changes and the doors stay open right through to 10:00pm, giving Matamata a relaxed evening option for end-of-week dinners and lingering catch-ups. Sunday runs its own gentler schedule, from 7:30am until 3:00pm — made for an unhurried start to the day.
Walk-ins are always warmly welcomed — that is part of the place's charm. But the team offers one clear piece of advice: for weekend catch-ups or larger groups, book ahead. A reservation secures your table before the room fills, particularly on Friday and Saturday evenings when the later hours draw a crowd. The message is simple: turn up spontaneously by all means, but if the occasion matters, claim your seat in advance.
Not everyone can make it in person straight away, and Brew Haven has an answer for that too: gift vouchers. Treat someone special to great coffee, fresh food and a warm atmosphere — the team calls them the perfect local present for friends and family, and in a town like Matamata, where a coffee together is how friendships are maintained, it is hard to disagree. A voucher is really an invitation to slow down, catch up and linger.
You will find Brew Haven Café & Bar at 50 Broadway, Matamata 3400, right on the town's main street. Hours are Monday to Thursday 7:30am–2:30pm, Friday and Saturday 7:30am–10:00pm, and Sunday 7:30am–3:00pm. To ask a question, arrange a booking or organise a gift voucher, phone +64 7 880 9168 or email info@brewhaven.co.nz, and keep up with what is happening via the café's Facebook and Instagram pages. However long you stay — a quick coffee or a whole evening — the intention behind the place is the same: a local haven, done properly.