Krema Coffee (COVID-19 Update)

Details from the A-board outside Krema Coffee Guildford, now reopened for takeaway only.Not long after Canopy Coffee, Guildford’s multi-roaster speciality coffee shop, reopened on Saturday, 16th May, I was walking home past Krema Coffee, another of Guildford’s speciality coffee shops. Looking in the window, I saw an encouraging sign: Krema was reopening on the following Monday, 1st June. Naturally, I made sure I popped along and have been back a couple of times since.

Unlike Canopy, which has re-invented itself as a takeaway coffee shop, converting a side door into a serving hatch, Krema looks more like the coffee shop of old, although for now it is only offering a takeaway menu, with cake, having temporarily closed its kitchen. It’s still serving from the counter inside though, making use of its greater space to create an excellent one-way system, guiding customers from the door to the counter and back out again, all while keeping everyone at a safe distance from each other.

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Krema Coffee

My piccolo, made with the guest espresso, served in a classic yellow espresso cup at Krema Coffee in Guildford.Krema Coffee started life in Farnham, where the original store opened its doors three years ago. Despite its relatively closeness to Guildford, for a variety of (not very good) reasons, I’ve still not visited, so I was quite pleased when Krema decided to come to me, opening its second store in Guildford. Naturally, the actual opening, at the end of March, took place while I was out of the country, but as soon as I was able, I paid Krema a visit.

Occupying a long, low-ceilinged spot at the castle end of Tunsgate in the centre of Guildford, Krema goes a surprisingly long way back, with a basement-like space at the back. When it comes to the coffee, Krema uses Horsham Coffee Roaster, sadly absent from Guildford town centre since the closure of Bar des Arts (although still available from The Flying Coffee Bean at the station). The Workhorse seasonal blend is the mainstay on the espresso machine, where it’s joined by a single-origin guest (also from Horsham). Meanwhile, there are a couple of options on pour-over through the V60, although in reality you can try any of the beans that Krema has in stock. If you’re hungry, there are light breakfast and lunch menus, backed up with copious quantities of cake.

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Flying Coffee Bean, Guildford

The FCB Logo: the letters "FCB" in white in the centre of an orange circle, with "Artisan Espresso Bars" in white around the circumference.The Flying Coffee Bean (these days FCB Coffee) is a chain of coffee kiosks on stations in London and the South East. The Guildford one’s been a fixture for several years, but, until recently, I never gave it a second thought. I distinctly remember when, a couple of years before I started the Coffee Spot, I took my coffee (a two-shot latte) back to get an extra shot because all I could taste was milk. The barista didn’t look best pleased, explaining that this was how the customers liked it, at which point I decided to take my custom elsewhere.

Fast forward to six months ago and, for various reasons, I revisited the Flying Coffee Bean. Expecting disappointment, I was pleasantly surprised. Not only could I taste the coffee, it was really nice-tasting coffee too! 12-second extractions were a thing of the past and the milk was steamed so it held decent latte-art.

Consider me converted!

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Birthday Coffee Tasting

The set-up at my Birthday Coffee Tasting at Bar des ArtsI celebrated my birthday last weekend by inviting a group of friends down to the closest thing I have to a local, Guildford’s Bar des Arts, for a coffee tasting. I’d originally been given the idea by Lee Hall of Matthew Algie when he did a similar demo at the Caffé Culture Show. There he put two different coffees through a pour-over filter and a Chemex and I was astounded by how different they tasted.

So, when thinking about how I wanted to celebrate my birthday, I could think of nothing better than surrounding myself with some friends and replicating this experiment. I approached Bradley of Horsham Coffee Roaster, who supplies Bar des Arts, and he provided three very different coffees for us to try. Meanwhile, I brought along my trusty Aeropress (and one of the guests, Richard, brought his down) to go with Bar des Arts pour-over filters and cafetiere.

So, the scene was set for an afternoon of good company, coffee tasting and cake (although, very disappointingly, I seem to have taken exactly no pictures of the cake!).

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Bar des Arts

A quiet, relaxed coffee spot by day and a lively, often packed bar at night, I’ve been going to the Bar des Arts since it first opened a couple of years ago. It’s my favourite coffee spot in my home town of Guildford and the one place I’ll make a point of going to just for the sheer pleasure of it. The coffee is very good (and has recently got a lot better), the pastries are excellent and the lunches never fail to delight.

As the name suggests, Bar des Arts has more in common with a European café than your standard coffee shop, which is probably what attracted me to it in the first place. A name such as “Bar des Arts” can be a double-edged sword: it sets a certain level of expectation which, if not met, can be very disappointing, but Bar des Arts has never failed to exceed my expectations, which is why I keep coming back.

The website describes itself as “an oasis of calm” which it most certainly is. A couple of minutes’ walk off the beaten track, Bar des Arts is certainly worth the (very small) extra effort.

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