Real Talk & Resilience

With Dr Ash King psychologist, writer/designer & founder of Heavy Mental.

I first met Ash almost twenty years ago, auditioning for her band when I was trying to be a glam rock drummer. It didn’t quite pan out the way I’d planned, but we became good mates, the kind of connection that sticks (drumming pun). So it was pretty special to sit down again, years later, over a coffee and talk about the thing she’s built in that time.

Ash is now Dr Ash King, founder of Heavy Mental. A psychologist and coach working with creatives, helping them navigate the messier, often unspoken side of making things and building a life around it.

“I help creative people live lives based on purpose and passion in alignment to the things that really matter to them.” 

There’s a natural ease to the space. Locals dropping in for a sandwich, others picking up cheese for a picnic, a few hanging around longer than planned. It sits right on the rhythm of the street, catching that steady flow of people moving through the north end of King Street and filtering in from the surrounding blocks.

The food leads, but it’s not the only draw. Everything feels considered. Old-school baguettes, proper panini, biscuits that have clearly been made a hundred times before and perfected along the way. It’s simple, but it’s deliberate.

And now, with the addition of a liquor licence, the space opens up even further. A glass of wine, a plate of cheese, and a spot to linger on the footpath or tucked into the corner. It feels like a natural next step, not a shift, just an extension of what was already there.

Marani fits seamlessly into the fabric of the neighbourhood. Vibrant, diverse, and always moving, but grounded in the people who make it what it is. It’s a place to drop in, to gather what you need, and more often than not, to stay a little longer than you planned.

Heavy Mental
@ashking
heavymental.com.au