Indigo & Cloth is in the heart of Dublin’s famous Temple Bar, just south of the River Liffey. Since opening in 2007, Indigo & Cloth has offered a blend of international and local menswear, lifestyle and design products. The in-store coffee shop, which occupies the left-hand side of the ground floor of Indigo & Cloth, opened in 2014. There’s a small amount of seating, including a window-bar and table, plus a bench outside if you need it.

Originally the coffee shop was operated as a concession by Clement & Pekoe. However, at the start of this year, Indigo & Cloth brought the operation in-house. Following the same principles as the main store, the coffee shop blends local and international roasters, with Belfast’s Bailies Coffee Roasters providing a house-blend and two single-origins on filter, joined by two seasonal guest roasters, with a single-origin on espresso and two more on filter.

You can read more of my thoughts after the gallery.

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Indigo & Cloth is a short walk from the river, on the north side of the busy Essex Street East. It’s a very welcome speciality coffee outpost in the heart of Dublin, particularly after the demise of Roasted Brown/First Draft. The coffee shop is on the ground floor of Indigo & Cloth, clearly visible through the shop’s glass front, where central glass double doors are flanked by floor-to-ceiling windows.

There’s a two-person bench with an in-built coffee table on the pavement in front of the left-hand window, while inside is a two-person window-bar. Beyond this is a thin, four-person table, with a pair of stools on either side and, behind that, is the counter, which occupies the back, left-hand corner. The right-hand side of the ground floor is devoted to the lifestyle and design side of Indigo & Cloth, with a broad staircase at the back, running up the right-hand wall, which leads to the main part of the store on the upper floors. A retail counter runs parallel to the stairs, with two more stools at the back offering more seating if needed.

The counter faces the windows, with the cakes in a large display case on the left and the till on the right. The menu, meanwhile, is on the wall to the counter’s left, with retail shelves next to this, behind the cake display. The business end of things is behind the counter, with the espresso machine, a two-group La Marzocco Linea, and its grinders, against the wall on the left. Meanwhile, the Marco Systems SP9 and EK43 grinder for the pour-over are at the back on the left, with retail shelves running across the back wall.

There’s a seasonal house-blend from Bailies on espresso, which is joined by a guest single-origin. There are four options on filter, two each from Bailies and the guest roaster (Berlin’s Bonanza during my visit). These are made with a metal V60, using the SP9 automated system, with one also available as a batch brew option (made through the SP9 and kept warm in a flask).

I started with the guest espresso, which, during my visit, was the La Divina from El Salvador, roasted by Barcelona’s Nomad. Pulled commendably short in a conical, pottery cup from Kinto on a square, wooden saucer, it came with a glass of water (sparkling or still), served on a wooden tray. It was a lovely, well-rounded, well-balanced shot, the first time I’ve had Nomad’s coffee. I followed that up with a sample of a naturally-processed Ethiopian from Bailies, which was the batch brew option. This was an excellent, smooth coffee with fruity notes.

Note that the guest roasters and filter options are seasonal, so if you’re hoping to try these coffees, you’re out of luck. By the time you read this, Indigo & Cloth will have switched over to its Autumn range, with the guest espresso and filters coming from Cornwall’s Origin and Denmark’s La Cabra. All of the beans are available as retail bags.

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