After just eight weeks, the hole-in-the-wall takeaway Chuckys Coffee House, sandwiched between Scotia and hairstylist Do above the Octagon in Stuart St, is proving popular.
"When they see the coffees coming out of the corridor, people have described it as 'cute', 'cool' and 'quaint'," Mr Lawrence (26) said yesterday.
He has no problem in the cramped space, having worked at a popular and central coffee house for five years with numerous baristas vying for counter space.
Open from 8am to 2pm, "Mainly so I can get in an afternoon surf," Mr Lawrence's coffee house now sells a steady 40 coffees a day.
He estimates the business will pay for itself by the end of the year, and sales will rise to 100 coffees a day within 10 months.
He and his partner invested about $5000 in the coffee house, including meeting all council regulations, and he still works as a projectionist in the evenings.
Given the tight space of a few square metres, future "business expansion" will be limited to putting the coffee machine on a wheeled trolley to make the most of the all-day sun on the terrace's small porch, he said.
• Disclaimer: A cup of coffee changed hands during this interview.
