21 Espresso is a Hungarian and European restaurant at 21 Knox Street, Double Bay. It has been there since 1958. The name comes from the address and the coffee — and both have a story worth knowing.
John Schiffer with his son George,
shortly after arriving in Australia
John Schiffer — affectionately known as Jancsi to his community — arrives in Sydney in the late 1950s. He notices two things immediately: the climate is extraordinary, and nobody is eating outside or drinking proper coffee. He opens a cafe at 21 Knox Street in Double Bay, set up one of the very first espresso machines in Australia, and placed tables on the terrace.
At a time when Sydney runs on tea and instant coffee, the espresso is a revelation. At a time when dining means eating indoors, the outdoor terrace is something nobody has seen before. Both ideas take hold. It would be years before the rest of the city caught up.
21 Espresso becomes widely recognised as the first alfresco cafe in Australia. The covered outdoor terrace on Knox Street is something that did not exist before John created it. The European cafe culture he brought from Budapest takes root in Double Bay and slowly spreads across Australia.
The restaurant grows. The menu expands from coffee and light meals into full Hungarian and European dining: schnitzels, goulash, matzo soup, strudel, and cabbage rolls. Dishes made with recipes carried down through generations.
After a period when the restaurant passes through other hands, In 2010, George Schiffer and his son Michael return to reclaim the family legacy — buying back the restaurant that John founded. The Schiffer family are once again the family at 21 Knox Street. The menu, the terrace, the standards — all return to where they started.
Michael later steps back from day to day involvement. His sister Cassie steps in alongside George, bringing the business into a new chapter with the same values and the same address.
21 Espresso is run today by George Schiffer and his daughter Cassie. Over 67 years since John set up those first tables on Knox Street, the restaurant is still there, still serving the same dishes, still operating from the same address.
The alfresco terrace that was radical in 1958 is now simply part of life. The espresso that was extraordinary is now expected everywhere.
He came from a country with a great food culture and looked at Sydney and saw what was missing. The coffee. The outdoor table. The dining experience.21 Espresso · Double Bay, Sydney
John set up one of the first espresso machines in Australia. The coffee has been made properly at 21 Knox Street since 1958. That has not changed.
The covered alfresco terrace that John created in 1958 still exists. Dog friendly, open seven days, facing Knox Street. The idea that changed how Sydney dines.
Hungarian and European cooking made from scratch. Schnitzel, goulash, matzo soup, strudel. Dishes that have been on this menu for over 67 years for good reason.
George Schiffer has spent much of his life connected to 21 Knox Street. When the opportunity came to bring the restaurant back into the family, he took it. Today he runs it with his daughter Cassie.
The menu George and Cassie serve is not dramatically different from the one John put together in 1958. The dishes are the same. The commitment to making them properly is the same. What has changed is the depth of experience behind the kitchen — over 67 years of knowing exactly what these dishes should taste like and refusing to let them be anything less.
Come in. Try the schnitzel. Sit on the terrace if the weather is right. Stay longer than you planned. That is exactly what the place is for.
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