Category Archives: Coffee Shops

Coffee Spots with an emphasis on serving coffee

Koja Coffee

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My flat white, made with the house blend at Koja Coffee, in my blue Therma Cup.Today’s Coffee Spot is part Saturday Short, part Coffee Spot update, featuring a familiar name in unfamiliar surroundings, part of Guildford’s ever-changing speciality coffee scene. Regular readers will remember Koja Coffee, which took over from Surrey Hills Coffee on Jeffries Passage in the summer of 2020. In June this year, Koja abruptly disappeared from Jeffries Passage only to reappear inside New House, a recently-opened space for artists and creatives on Fays Passage.

Although the setting is very different, Koja occupying a counter inside the entry lobby to New House, there’s the same basic offering, with a house blend on espresso (roasted for Koja by friends in Suffolk) plus single-origins from NewGround on batch brew and pour-over through the V60. If you’re hungry, Koja has the usual array and cakes and pastries, while fans of the Scandi market which was such a favourite on Jeffries Passage will not be disappointed, since it’s survived the move. The main difference (for now) is that Koja is only serving in disposable cups, so don’t forget to bring your own.

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Marathon Coffee, Chelsea

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Details from the mural above the take away station in Marathon Coffee on 6th Avenue, local artist. Hannah Benson (@hanbenz_art) showing people drinking coffee on the street.Today’s Saturday Short is unusual on three levels. Firstly, it’s a New York City coffee shop which isn’t a coffee shop/roaster. What’s more, it’s using an out-of-state roaster, Providence’s Bolt Coffee, rather than one of the usual suspects from Brooklyn. Thirdly and finally, it has the rare distinction (for this trip) of being somewhere I found myself rather than a recommendation from Bex of Double Skinny Macchiato.

Marathon Coffee is a fairly new chain of three coffee shops and, for once, I visited the original, which is on 6th Avenue, half a block from my hotel and on my way to the office, which is how I discovered it, popping in for a flat white on my last day. “Popping in” is the correct term by the way, since Marathon is small, with just the counter and no seating.

Bolt Coffee’s Seven Hills blend is on espresso, while there are two bespoke house blends (also roasted by Bolt) on batch brew, along with a range of seasonal specials and hot teas. Marathon has breakfast tacos from Uptaco (available until they’re all gone) along with a selection of cakes and pastries. Since it’s takeaway only, don’t forget to bring your own cup.

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Patent Coffee

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The glass double doors at the entrance to Patent Coffee in the Radio Wave Building in New York City. The left one is open, beoynd which are broad stone steps descending to basement, with the counter of Patent Coffee visible at the back.In what will be a common refrain in my write-ups from this visit to New York City, today’s Coffee Spot was recommended by my friend Bex of Double Skinny Macchiato. Traditionally, I’ve stayed in Chinatown when visiting New York or commuted into the Port Authority Building on W 42nd Street. This time, it was a work trip, so I stayed in Midtown, one of Bex’ regular haunts, hence all the recommendations.

Patent Coffee, a neat little basement coffee shop in the Radio Wave Building, was just 1½ blocks from my hotel. There’s not a huge amount to it, just a simple counter at the back, along with a small, L-shaped bar at the front, which provides the only internal seating. There is, however, in the modern, COVID-19 way of things, an outside terrace on the street, alongside the pavement, which provides plenty more seating.

Not that lack of size limits Patent’s ambition, with a standard espresso-based menu joined by a single-origin on batch-brew and two more on pour-over through the Kalita Wave. There’s also a selection of seasonal drinks and, if you’re hungry, cake and pastries. Note that Patent only has disposable cups, so don’t forget to bring your own.

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Café Grumpy, Greenpoint

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The famous Café Grumpy logo on a background of wood with multiple coffee stains, taken from above the counter in the first Café Grumpy in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.I first came across Café Grumpy in 2015, the Aussie-owned coffee shop/roaster chain firmly establishing itself as one of my New York City favourites. In particular, its Lower East Side and Fashion District locations become regular stops on my various visits. Since I’m staying in Chelsea this time around, I was looking forward to returning to Café Grumpy on W 20th Street, where I had my first Café Grumpy experience. My only problem is that it recently closed, forced out by a new landlord who wouldn’t renew the lease.

Deprived of my local Café Grumpy fix, I headed across the East River to Greenpoint in Brooklyn, seeking out the original Café Grumpy on Meserole Avenue. Home to Café Grumpy since 2005, the roastery is half a block away down Diamond Street. From the outside, it looks small, tucked in on the corner, but inside it goes a long way back, making it the most spacious of the Café Grumpys (now up to 10 in New York City, with one in New Jersey and another in Miami). There’s the usual offering, with the Heartbreaker blend, a single-origin and decaf on espresso, plus batch-brew, a range of tea and a selection of cakes and pastries.

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English Bridge Coffee (Nomad Coffee Co.)

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The distinctive HuskeeCup with its ribbed sides, but only 3oz in capacity, holding my espresso at Nomad Coffee Co.For many, the COVID-19 pandemic has been a time of retrenchment or consolidation. Not so in Shrewsbury, where its small but vibrant speciality coffee scene has flourished with the opening of both The Colonel’s Son Coffee Roasters and today’s Coffee Spot, Nomad Coffee Co. Both were on my list before I made my daytrip a week ago today, but in fairness to Nomad, everyone I asked said that I must pay Raúl (the co-owner and head barista) a visit.

Located at the start of Wyle Cop on the western end of the English Bridge, Nomad is small, but around twice the size of The Colonel’s Son (which isn’t saying much!). The counter is at the back, leaving space for a bench/table down the right-hand wall and a five-person window-bar along the front. Nomad is a multi-roaster, serving single-origins on espresso, with two different roasters featuring each fortnight. Although the coffee’s the star turn, I was also entertained by conversations between Raúl and a succession of regulars who’d come as much for a chat as coffee.

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The Colonel’s Son Coffee Roasters

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Details from the wooden A-board outside The Colonel’s Son Coffee Roasters in Shrewsbury, showing stylised line drawings of a rank of soldiers on parade.The Colonel’s Son Coffee Roasters opened just after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, temporarily closed in September last year, then re-opened following a makeover in May 2022, since when it’s been going from strength to strength. On Meadow Place, a very short walk from Shrewsbury Station, there’s not a lot to The Colonel’s Son, just a small shop with a window-bar at the front, the counter in the middle and the roaster at the back. Oh, and a bench outside, in case the four seats inside are taken.

The Colonel’s Son is run by Patch, who is indeed the son of a Colonel, his father having served with the Queen’s Royal Irish Hussars. It’s very much a what-you-see-is-what-you-get sort of place, with a standard espresso-based menu (served in proper cups, I’m pleased to say) and a choice of a medium or dark roast blend. There’s a wider selection of coffee for sale in retail bags, including some lighter roasted single-origins, roasted fresh each Monday, along with a small range of cakes.

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Linea Coffee Roasting + Caffe

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A lovely cortado in my HuskeeCup, which I enjoyed sitting in the sun outside Linea Coffee Roasting + Caffe in San Francisco.Linea has two locations, Linea Caffe, in San Francisco’s Mission District, and today’s Coffee Spot, its wonderful café/roastery on Mariposa Street in Potrero Hill. This opened in January 2020, just after my last visit to Linea Caffe and just in time for the COVID-19 pandemic. Occupying Intelligentsia’s old San Francisco roastery, it’s a lovely spot, with the roastery at the back on the left and a spacious coffee bar/retail area at the front on the right.

For now, there’s no indoor seating (due to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic), but there is a stepped terrace outside on Mariposa Street as it descends to pass under I-280 on its way to San Francisco Bay. Of course, with San Francisco’s climate, outdoor seating is all you really need, although this arrangement does mean that Linea only has disposable cups, so don’t forget to bring your own (which attracts a 25% discount).

The real draw is the coffee, with a blend on espresso and a rotating single-origin on batch brew filter. There’s a much wider selection of beans to buy in retail bags, including multiple single-origins and a range of organic coffee. Meanwhile, if you’re hungry, there’s a selection of cakes and pastries.

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CoRo Coffee Room

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My espresso, the Baroida Estate, a naturally-processed coffee from Papua New Guinea, roasted and served by CoRo in its Coffee Room in Berkeley. The handleless ceramic cup is bespoke to CoRo, while the coffee is presented on a small, wooden tray with a glass of water on the side.Today’s Coffee Spot saw me venture to Berkeley for the first time (unless you count passing through on the California Zephyr enroute to Chicago in 2019) to visit the CoRo Coffee Room. Indeed, I had come to Berkeley specifically for the Coffee Room, following a recommendation by Linea Coffee Roasters on the previous day. Located in southwest Berkeley, down the hill from the famous college, the Coffee Room is near the Amtrak station, which was convenient for me since I came by train from San Jose.

I was unaware of CoRo (Bay Area CoRoasters) before my visit. Since 2016 it’s provided a shared roasting space for over 40 roasters, while the Coffee Room, which showcases the roastery’s output, opened in 2018. Occupying the front of the warehouse-like production area, it’s a wonderfully open space, with amazing high ceilings and a great view of the roasters through a window at the back. You can buy coffee from any of CoRo’s roasters, while there’s a choice of coffee to drink, including a blend, single-origin and decaf on espresso, two options on batch brew filter, another on pour-over plus there’s cold brew. Meanwhile, if you’re hungry, there’s a section of cakes and pastries.

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Five Elephant KaDeWe

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A lovely cortado, served in a glass on a large, white saucer, at Five Elephant, KaDeWe in Berlin.When I went to Berlin in May this year for work, I really wasn’t expecting much in the way of speciality coffee in the vicinity of my hotel, just south of the Zoological Garden. However, I was much mistaken. On my arrival, I made the chance discovery of The Visit, just down the street from my hotel, and then, on my first full day, I visited the original Five Elephant in Kreuzberg, where the staff told me about the newest Five Elephant, located inside the famous KaDeWe department store, a convenient short stroll from my hotel.

Five Elephant is on the top floor of KaDeWe at the back of the food hall. There’s a big, square island counter, plenty of seating and a large retail area (both beans and an extensive range of coffee equipment), all backed up by some very knowledgeable and friendly staff. There’s a very similar coffee and cake offering to the Kreuzberg coffee shop, with a single-origin and decaf on espresso, all shots pulled on a Modbar installation. For filter, there’s another single-origin on batch brew with any of the beans currently in stock available through either the AeroPress or as a pour-over through the V60.

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Sightglass Coffee, Divisadero

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The circular Sightglass logo, with the word "Sight" on top, "Glass" at the bottom and a horitonal lightning bolt separating the two.The original Sightglass Coffee Bar & Roastery on Folsom Street was a highlight of my first Coffee Spot visit to San Francisco in 2017. Back then, Sightglass just had one other coffee shop (on 20th Street in The Mission), but it’s since expanded with a shop in Los Angeles and another in San Francisco, in The Haight, on the corner of Divisadero and Page Street. This opened not long after my 2017 visit, but somehow the news had passed me by, so it was completely by chance that I spotted it on the other side of Divisadero while wandering in the neighbourhood.

A large coffee shop, although not as large as the original coffee bar & roastery (which is huge), there’s plenty of seating in the spacious interior, while you can also sit outside on one of four benches which protrude, step-like, from the left-hand side of the shop as it climbs up Page Street. The coffee features Sightglass’s ubiquitous Owl’s Howl blend plus decaf on espresso, while if you want filter, there’s a single option on batch brew along with two on pour-over through the V60. There’s also a selection of cakes and a concise lunch menu.

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