On December 19^th, 2015, Liverpool got an early Christmas present in the shape of Root Coffee. In speciality coffee shop terms, Root is huge, with a generous outdoor seating area, and a spacious, uncluttered interior. The fun doesn’t stop there, with much of the furniture made by the owner, Dennis, using recycled pallets (for the bench seating and coffee tables) and naturally-weathered, reclaimed wood from the docks (wall cladding, counter and table-tops).

The coffee, however, is anything but recycled, and this includes the equipment, which features a state-of-the-art three-group Black Eagle espresso machine and a Mythos 1 grinder, while there’s an EK43 for filter and decaf. The coffee itself comes from a rotating cast of roasters, Dennis’ aim being to champion some of the less well-known roasters, raising their brand awareness in Liverpool.

While I was there, Root had gone all West Country, with Bristol’s Extract Coffee Roasters on espresso and Bath’s Round Hill Roastery on filter, with local roasters, Neighbourhood Coffee, providing the decaf. There’s a wide selection of loose-leaf teas, and, in a further West Country link, the cakes are from Bristol’s Cakesmiths. There’s also a toast-based menu (now upgraded to a full brunch menu) for those who want something a little more savoury.

July 2020: Root Coffee has reopened following the enforced closure due to COVID-19. The kitchen has also been upgraded since my initial visit. You can see what I made of it when I visited in early September.

You can read more of my thoughts after the gallery.

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Despite the address, which puts Root Coffee on Hanover Street, it is, in fact, located on the broad, pedestrianised western end of Seel Street. Much larger than near-neighbours Filter + Fox and Bold Street Coffee, Root even puts the relatively-spacious 92 Degrees Coffee in the shade. The sense of size continues with the high ceilings, further aided by a store front that is almost entirely floor-to-ceiling glass.

From the outside, Root is clearly two units, each with its own set of glass double doors. However, stepping inside through the left-hand set of doors, you’re greeted with one, unified interior. The sense of space is helped by its relatively uncluttered nature and open layout. Although clever use has been made of partitioning to divide Root into a number of distinct areas, you can still see from one end of the store to the other.

There’s a clear path from the doors to the counter, which faces you on the back wall of Root. Long and uncluttered, it runs nearly the full width of the store (and Root is about twice as wide as it is deep), with a small kitchen area to the right, screened off from the rest of the space. The seating is split into two areas, with a small, cosy lounge area to the left, consisting of two sofas, two armchairs and a coffee table made of old pallets.

However, the majority of the seating’s to the right, although to get there you have to go up to the counter and around, giving it a secluded feel. There’s an L-shaped, padded bench-seat with a couple of tables here, just to the right of the door, but facing into the seating area. A long window-bar blocks off the second set of doors, while, against the right-hand wall, there are more padded bench-seats. Finally, several tables occupy the space in the middle.

During my visit, Extract’s Cast Iron blend was on espresso, while the filter option was a Panamanian coffee from Round Hill, which I had through the V60. My coffee arrived in a carafe, cup on the side, all beautifully presented on a tray. Unusually, Root doesn’t pre-warm either the cup or the carafe, the idea being to quickly cool the coffee to drinking temperature, which, as Dennis explained to me, brings out the flavours (it’s the same principle as Japanese coffee being brewed over ice). While this approach might be heresy in some circles, all I can say is that it works. The first thing that I noticed was that my coffee was exactly at drinking temperature, allowing the subtle, delicate, fruity notes to come to the fore immediately, a process which only improved as it cooled.

I paired this with some toast, receiving a very generous four slices. This comes with a choice of two toppings, so I went for wild blackberry jam and, having failed to understand the (simple) instructions, I went for wild blackberry jam for my second choice too… Oh well, it was late on a Friday afternoon…

I followed this up with a flat white made using a decaf Colombian from Neighbourhood. This went very well in milk, more than holding its own, flavour-wise. The milk, meanwhile, was beautifully-steamed, holding the pattern of the latte art right to the bottom of the glass.

Liked this Coffee Spot? Then check out the rest of Liverpool’s speciality coffee scene with the Coffee Spot Guide to Liverpool.

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