Black figs carry deep meaning in Aboriginal ways of knowing. They’re associated with birthing, nourishment, and community gathering, so it seemed the right name for a café built to do exactly that.
Blak Fig opened on the Nepean Highway in Frankston in January 2025, established by First Peoples’ Health and Wellbeing as a social enterprise training café for First Nations people. The idea had been building for a couple of years. In 2023, the organisation commissioned a literature review looking at the connection between Aboriginal social enterprises and health outcomes.
“It found a strong positive link,” said CEO Karinda Taylor. “However, there are very few Aboriginal social enterprises in Victoria.”
A café made sense – hospitality offers accessible entry points into employment, practical skills that translate anywhere, and a public-facing space where community could genuinely gather. First Peoples’ Health and Wellbeing set out to build something that had never existed on the Mornington Peninsula before: an Aboriginal-led training café where mob could learn, grow and step into meaningful work in a place built for them.
Blak Fig represents a safe and deeply nurturing space where Aboriginal people can grow, learn, and thrive
The name was chosen with care. “Just as the fig fruit holds life within it, Blak Fig represents a safe and deeply nurturing space where Aboriginal people can grow, learn, and thrive,” she said.
“The gathering place symbol at the heart of the logo reinforces this, reminding us that this is not simply a café, but a place of coming together, of being welcomed and of belonging,” said Karinda.
Being culturally safe isn’t a tagline; it’s how the place runs day to day. “Blak Fig provides a workplace where people are safe to be themselves and to express and connect to their culture in a way that is respected and celebrated,” said Karinda. “From a place of safety, people are supported to address barriers to employment which may be vocational – for example skills and experience – but also non-vocational such as social and emotional barriers.”
The training program is built around the individual. Trainees pick up practical hospitality skills like customer service, food prep, and barista training, but if someone shows a particular affinity for one area, they get more time there. The coming months will see the relaunch of a formal eight-week traineeship program covering an accredited food handling certificate, barista training, customer service, food preparation, plus resume writing and interview practice.
Barista training happens in partnership with Commonfolk Coffee, the beloved Mornington Peninsula roaster whose beans are behind every cup served at Blak Fig. The relationship has grown into something more than a supplier arrangement. “Commonfolk Coffee has values that align strongly with Blak Fig’s,” said Karinda. “We’ve been fortunate to grow our relationship with Commonfolk over time from a simple shared love of coffee that tastes good and does good, to a more structured training and development opportunity for our Blak Fig trainees and staff.”
The menu includes fresh pastries, native-inspired treats, savoury bites and the now-legendary Blak Fig Toastie (chicken, brie and fig jam). Bread comes from Brasserie Bread and the retail shelves are stocked with products from other Aboriginal-owned businesses including native foods from Indigiearth and teas from Blak Brews.
Every purchase, Karinda is clear, has a purpose beyond the transaction. “We want customers to know that when they buy a coffee, lunch or arrange catering for an event they are contributing to a social enterprise that invests back into community and creates real opportunities for First Nations people to learn, grow and gain meaningful experience,” she said. “Every purchase has impact.”
Blak Fig also runs a coffee caravan for events and community gatherings alongside the bricks-and-mortar café, giving trainees the chance to build skills in different environments. “The van has been a great way to build marketing and exposure for Blak Fig, while also giving our trainees and employees more opportunities to develop and practise their skills,” said Karinda.
In March, the van was out at the Get Your Reconciliation On (GYRO) Fun Run at Frankston Foreshore, a community event run in partnership with Nairm Marr Djambana and Bunurong Land Council.
As NAIDOC Week 2026 approaches – this year marking fifty years under the theme 50 Years of Deadly – Karinda says the milestone resonates deeply with what Blak Fig is trying to do.
“This significant milestone marks five decades of NAIDOC Week as a national celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resilience, culture and community,” she said. “Blak Fig joins in honouring the activists, Elders and artists who have sustained the movement since 1976. At Blak Fig we aim to be ‘deadly’ in all we do, from our coffee to our customer service.”
Blak Fig is open Monday to Friday, 8am to 3pm, at 401 Nepean Hwy, Frankston. Walk-ins only. Follow on Instagram for daily menus and specials, and watch for updates about what they have planned for NAIDOC Week.
First published in Peninsula Essence Magazine June 2026
