One day in April 2023 The Froth Mobile arrived, and with it Mia and Beau. They now arrive four mornings a week and park the bus in the Apex Park carpark, alongside an area of grass.

The awning comes out and mats go down, out of the hatch to the rear a table slides out, atop it a double group coffee machine.

Ingeniously the knock tube beneath acts as a leg to support the machine, while also catching the used grounds.

Mia fires up the machine and gets it warm, while bunting is strung around the awning by Beau. A rug for customers is rolled out.

Music starts to play in the background and a steady stream of swimmers, divers, fisherman, beach-goers, yoga do-ers, runners and dog walkers start to arrive.

From 7am until early afternoon the pair make and serve warm beverages, but here's the thing - no takeaways.

A potential customer seeking a quick takeaway will be met with a polite invitation to sit and enjoy their brew from a mug or cup. Even take it down the beach if you like and bring the mug back - no problem.

Beau Melrose Matthews who grew up on a farm in Ulladulla, studied environmental science at university and spent a childhood 'making stuff'.

Mia Mansour-Coppel, Melbourne-raised, moved to Malua Bay during the COVID years. The pair met while working at the Mossy Point Boat Shed.

The community at the Boat Shed really impressed them. The sense that the beverage was a vehicle for people to meet, interact and share.

Wasn't this always the way it was supposed to be? Slow down, share a brew, connect.

When in 2022 they bought a 1998 Nissan Civilian bus to serve as their home, a burgeoning business model became a reality.

"I think after working at the Boat Shed, seeing how coffee can facilitate that...slower pace, whether they are taking time for themselves or if they are with a few friends, it can create that slower pace, and also that open-mindedness," Mis said.

"So that was a large driving force of setting up the coffee, but also setting up the space."

Having already completed 12 van conversions, Mia and Beau were up for the task in hand. They sourced a second-hand coffee machine, cut a hole for the hatch in the side of the bus, sorted the solar and found the location.

Eurobodalla council was "really good", helping the pair jump through the permit hoops.

The waste from takeaway cups, during COVID restrictions in particular, was 'frustrating" and they were determined to push the boundaries of the cafe model. Thus began an eclectic gathering of crockery.

While occasionally they lose a customer because they don't provide disposable cups, this was not as often as one would think.

Beau said he loved it when customers reacted in a positive way to their stand on takeaways.

"A lot of people actually thank us, which is awesome...it's good that people are so willing for it.

"And for the people that aren't, it's not for them, it's not their moment - they'll come again if they're from around here maybe and they are prepared," Beau observed.