Why Collins Quarter at Forsyth matters.
Collins Quarter at Forsyth is an Australian-inspired café where Savannah Historic District's celebrated public landscape meets Melbourne's specialty coffee traditions, the preservation of a historic military building and a contemporary approach to Southern brunch culture.
Positioned along Drayton Street near East Park Avenue and overlooking the southern grounds of Forsyth Park, the café occupies a landscaped setting surrounded by mature live oaks, pedestrian pathways and Savannah's historic residential neighborhoods. Its low-profile building features expansive windows, contemporary finishes and a spacious outdoor terrace overlooking the park's open lawns. Inside, light-filled dining areas combine warm wood, comfortable seating and a relaxed European café aesthetic, with the coffee counter establishing an inviting focal point. Outdoor tables extend the dining room beneath the surrounding tree canopy, creating a natural gathering place for walkers, families and neighborhood residents. The result is a lively park-side café whose open-air setting and carefully prepared food connect Savannah's public garden culture with the everyday social traditions of Australian dining.
What defines Collins Quarter at Forsyth.
Collins Quarter at Forsyth is best known for restaurateur Anthony Debreceny's transformation of a historic park building into an Australian-inspired dining destination, extending a hospitality concept rooted in Melbourne's café culture. Raised in Melbourne, Debreceny developed his appreciation for specialty coffee and all-day dining through the city's established tradition of independent cafés. He brought that influence to Savannah in 2014 with the opening of The Collins Quarter on Bull Street, naming the restaurant after Melbourne's historic Collins Street. Its combination of espresso preparation, inventive brunch dishes and relaxed hospitality established a successful foundation for his expanding restaurant business. Debreceny subsequently organized Southern Cross Hospitality to develop additional concepts, including a second Collins Quarter overlooking Forsyth Park. The opportunity centered on Forsyth Fort, a municipal building constructed in 1915 as a training facility for the Savannah Volunteer Guards. Its original military purpose reflected the park's longstanding relationship with public ceremonies, organized drills and civic gatherings. The building later accommodated a café, but the space stood vacant for two years before Debreceny secured a lease from the City of Savannah in March 2019. Savannah City Council approved alcohol service that August, allowing the proposed restaurant to incorporate a complete beverage program. Debreceny committed more than $500,000 to renovating the property, adapting the historic structure for contemporary dining and improving its relationship with the surrounding park. Chef April Spain, previously executive chef at Smith Brothers Butcher Shop, joined the project to develop a menu connecting the group's Australian influences with Savannah's regional ingredients. The restaurant prepared to open in March 2020, introducing a second Collins Quarter location with a stronger emphasis on daytime dining and outdoor hospitality. Its development gave the historic building a renewed public function and expanded the café group's presence beyond Savannah's central commercial streets. The project ultimately connected Debreceny's Melbourne-inspired hospitality with the preservation and continued use of one of Savannah's most important civic landscapes.
Anthony Debreceny's interpretation of Australian café culture centers on the relationship between carefully prepared coffee, inventive daytime cooking and the relaxed social atmosphere of an all-day neighborhood gathering place. Melbourne's espresso traditions provide the foundation, with flat whites and cappuccinos emphasizing balanced extraction, finely textured milk and the natural sweetness of properly prepared coffee. The menu extends that attention to balance through breakfast preparations that combine familiar Southern ingredients with Mediterranean, Asian and contemporary Australian influences. Seasonal vegetables contribute freshness and texture, supported by fermented condiments, aromatic herbs and sauces that introduce acidity and controlled heat. Shrimp and grits demonstrate the regional dimension through creamy cornmeal, tomato-bacon gravy and pickled okra, connecting Lowcountry ingredients with a brighter contemporary presentation. Other preparations explore the relationship between eggs, toasted bread and contrasting seasonings, using components such as garlic yogurt, harissa and preserved vegetables to develop layered flavors. The kitchen's approach to sweet breakfast dishes follows the same principle, balancing rich custards and caramelized elements with fruit, cream and carefully measured sweetness. Coffee remains central throughout the day, extending beyond traditional espresso drinks into preparations incorporating chocolate, warm spices and botanical aromas. The spiced lavender mocha demonstrates this relationship through cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and lavender, creating aromatic complexity around the underlying espresso. A selection of sparkling wines, mimosas and cocktails gives the café a complementary daytime beverage program. Service accommodates both leisurely seated meals and shorter visits for coffee, reinforcing the accessible rhythm associated with Australian neighborhood cafés. The surrounding landscape completes that relationship, allowing the pace of the park to become part of the restaurant's social character. Collins Quarter at Forsyth combines specialty coffee, internationally influenced brunch cooking and open-air hospitality into a distinctive expression of Savannah's contemporary dining culture.
How Collins Quarter at Forsyth fits.
Collins Quarter at Forsyth works as the anchor for an outing connecting Savannah's nineteenth-century landscape design, the preservation of its architectural heritage and the educational institutions that illuminate the city's historic development.
Begin at Forsyth Park Fountain, the expansive cast-iron centerpiece installed in 1858 during the transformation of Savannah's principal public park. City officials selected the fountain from the Janes, Beebe & Co. catalog, choosing a design derived from French ornamental ironwork and incorporating elaborate sculptural figures. Its installation followed the appointment of Wilhelm Christian Bischoff, a German horticulturist formerly associated with the royal gardens at Nymphenburg Palace, to develop the park's landscape. The fountain became a defining feature of Savannah's north-south ceremonial axis, extending the visual composition of Bull Street into the park. Its enduring prominence reflects the nineteenth-century ambition to establish landscaped public spaces as essential features of the growing city. Continue to Georgia Historical Society, headquartered in Hodgson Hall overlooking the park's northwestern corner. Founded in 1839, the organization became one of the nation's earliest state historical societies, establishing a permanent institution devoted to preserving Georgia's documentary heritage. Architect Detlef Lienau designed Hodgson Hall in the Renaissance Revival style, and the building was dedicated in 1876 as a memorial to scholar and diplomat William Brown Hodgson. Its historic reading room preserves original walnut tables supported by cast-iron bases, reflecting the institution's longstanding commitment to historical research. The society's collections and educational programs connect Savannah's architectural preservation with the broader historical development of Georgia. Conclude at Massie Heritage Center, the former public school established through a bequest from Scottish immigrant and plantation owner Peter Massie. Architect John S. Norris designed the original Greek Revival building, which opened in 1856 as Savannah's first public school. Union forces used the building as a hospital during the Civil War, and it briefly served Black students following emancipation before returning to segregated education. Subsequent wings completed in 1872 and 1886 expanded the institution, which continued operating as a school until 1974. Its conversion into a heritage education center preserved the historic classrooms and introduced exhibitions examining Savannah's urban planning, architecture and preservation movement. The progression moves from nineteenth-century landscape design through the institutional preservation of Georgia's history and concludes with Savannah's educational heritage, revealing the civic ambitions that shaped the historic district surrounding Collins Quarter at Forsyth.
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