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Small St Espresso

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The exterior view of Small St Espresso on a rainy December day in BristolOn a small street in Bristol, aptly named Small Street, you will find the equally aptly-named Small St Espresso. It’s part of a growing speciality coffee hub right in the heart of the city which includes Full Court Press, Playground Coffee and the newly-opened Tincan Coffee Co.

Small St Espresso itself is a suitably small space, over-flowing with love for good coffee. You can sit outside on a bench or inside on some lovely, bespoke wooden furniture. At the back is a tiled counter and a beautiful La Marzocco FB80 espresso machine with a custom paint job. I know I shouldn’t be swayed by such superficial things, but I am.

It helps, of course, that the coffee is as beautiful as everything else in Small St Espresso. It would be a real shame if, after all that care and attention to the layout and the décor, the coffee had turned out to be rubbish. But fortunately, as much love, if not more, is put into making coffee than has been put into the shop. There’s a house-blend from Clifton Coffee Roasters, with regularly-rotating guests on espresso and filter. If you’re hungry, there’s an excellent range of cakes and toasted sandwiches.

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Wellington Coffee

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The view through the door of Wellington CoffeeBlink and you might miss it could be a good description of Wellington Coffee, which has been serving excellent coffee to the good folks of Edinburgh from the corner of Hanover and George Streets since 2008. It’s located down some steps in a basement and if you didn’t know what you were looking for, you could easily walk right past, which would be a shame.

It’s not big, although it squeezes the seats in: I reckon it could hold 20 at a push, which is surprising, given its size, and there’s room for more outside. The end result is a surprisingly pleasant, intimate place, which, while not built for lingering all day, is nevertheless great for an unhurried coffee and cake. While I was there, there was a steady stream of visitors, with the vast majority sitting in rather than coming for takeaway. Clearly, the place has its charm.

Wellington really is all about the coffee though. There’s none of the accessories of your modern coffee shop: no power, no wifi, no fancy brewing methods; just an espresso machine, three grinders (for the regular, guest and decaf beans) and a limited range of excellent cake.

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Kilimanjaro

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The welcoming exterior of Kilimanjaro on Edinburgh's Nicholson StreetOne of the great things about independent coffee shops is that everyone is keen to recommend other great coffee spots to you, which is how I found out about Kilimanjaro on Nicholson Street in Edinburgh. I was pointed in its direction by Artisan Roast and since you all know what I think about Artisan Roast, a visit was obligatory.

Just as well, since I may have walked straight past Kilimanjaro without a second look. And that would have been a shame, since I’d have missed a great cup of coffee in a lovely coffee shop. To be honest, while I applaud the wave of experimental coffee shops sweeping Edinburgh (and beyond), sometimes I long for a straightforward coffee shop, serving straightforward coffee. So it was a pleasure to find Kilimanjaro, a thriving coffee shop focusing on serving excellent coffee.

Kilimanjaro is average-sized, smaller than the near-by Brew Lab, but considerably bigger than stable-mate Wellington Coffee or Artisan Roast, for example. The bulk of the seating is up front with a narrow spur leading off to the back. The contrast in terms of look and feel with Brew Lab, which I’d just come from, could not be greater.

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Brew Lab | Artisan Coffee Bar

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Detail from the menu board at Brew Lab in Edinburgh, showing one of two espresso choices, this one (a washed Guatemalan from Union) for use in drinks with milk.Brew Lab has been a fixture of Edinburgh’s speciality coffee scene on South College Street since the end of the summer in 2012, coincidentally opening roughly when the Coffee Spot started. I first visited in December 2012 and have been a semi-regular visitor ever since, watching as it’s undergone a series of slow evolutions, the biggest of which was last year’s change of ownership to Union Hand-roasted.

Throughout it all, Brew Lab has remained pretty constant, turning out excellent coffee in a fairly unique space, which manages to feel both cramped and spacious, with knocked-through walls and low ceilings. While the bare brick/concrete walls are slightly more decorated than they once were, it still feels unfinished.

Brew Lab was one of the pioneers of pour-over coffee. These days there are two options on espresso (one black, one for milk) and two on filter, one batch brew, one pour-over (Kalita Wave). One espresso and one filter are always from Union, while the others are supplied by guest roasters. There’s also decaf (from Union) on pour-over and a selection of four cold brew options (black, white, chocolate and nitro), plus a cold-brew cocktail. Finally, there are breakfast and lunches menus, plus cake all day.

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Artisan Roast, Broughton Street

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There are those who say that Artisan Roast has been at the forefront of the speciality coffee revolution sweeping Edinburgh during the last few years. I’m not sufficiently qualified to rule on that, but I do know that several of the excellent Coffee Spots which have opened in recent years will openly acknowledge their debt to Artisan Roast. I can also say, with authority, that Artisan Roast is one of my all-time favourite Coffee Spots.

It’s a small place, with just two rooms and a clear focus on the coffee. From the street, you walk into the main room, where you find the espresso machine sharing the space with a cluster of tables. At the back, you’ll find the Mooch, with its padded benches and, in the winter, log-burning stove. There are few better spaces in which to drink high-quality coffee.

Talking of the coffee, Artisan Roast, as the name implies, roasts all its own coffee, with the beans on sale on-line and in-store. There’s a mind-boggling array of ways to make and take your coffee, with all the beans on offer via all the methods. It was too much choice for my poor brain, so I just had an espresso…

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House of Coffee

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Hidden away down a little alley in the centre of Leighton Buzzard is the appropriately-named House of Coffee. Well, I say appropriately, but really, it’s not a house and it sells tea as well! However, in light of what’s to come, I shall overlook these little faux pas.

My minor quibbles aside, the House of Coffee does coffee. It’s a coffee bean roaster and retailer, with a side line in coffee-making equipment and the aforementioned tea. It’s not huge, just a small, two-roomed shop, with the coffee roaster in the first room and the coffee making gear in the back (sadly the roaster wasn’t running when I was there, but you can, if you’re lucky, catch it in action). Opposite the roaster is the House of Coffee’s eponymous range of beans.

The best thing, apart from the excellent coffee, is the owner, Nick, aka Hectic Hamster. Here is a man with a true passion for and knowledge of coffee. I had a lovely time chatting away with him, which made the visit worthwhile by itself. However, if you can’t get to Leighton Buzzard, then never fear: all The House of Coffee’s excellent wares are available on-line through the website.

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Upstairs at Anna’s

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No trip to Conwy is complete without a visit to Anna’s Tea Rooms & Coffee House. Okay, so Conwy’s got one of the best examples of King Edward I’s castles, which is a masterpiece of medieval military architecture, the most complete set of medieval walls in Britain and Plas Mawr, a fine, Elizabethan town house. But, but…, it’s also got Anna’s!

Situated above an outdoor shop on Conwy’s Castle Street, a stone’s throw from the castle itself, Anna’s is a complete gem. For a start, it serves coffee by the cafetiere, with 17 different beans to choose from. Tea drinkers are even better served, with 12 black teas, three fruit teas and nine loose-leaf teas. Then there’s the homemade cakes. And the homemade lunches. And the afternoon teas. And the ice-creams, and desserts, and, and, and…

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Boston Tea Party, Stokes Croft

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A recent addition to the successful Boston Tea Party chain can be found in Stokes Croft in Bristol. As my friend who lives there (Stokes Croft, not, contrary to rumour, the Boston Tea Party itself), aptly put it: “just what Stokes Croft needs, another café”. When it opened, there were already three excellent places within a two minute walk (and now there’s a fourth across the road), so the Boston Tea Party needs to be pretty special if it’s going to make a mark.

Don’t worry, it is.

It’s got the usual Boston Tea Party coffee, the wide range of cakes and food, but what makes it stand out is the seating. Well, the seating and the atmosphere, which sort of goes with the seating. Well, the seating, atmosphere and friendly staff. You get the picture.

It’s a got a broad patio out front which provides some protection from the breeze and the noise of the busy Cheltenham Road (I stress some) and inside there is every sort of seat you could possible want. Beyond that, it’s just a great place to hang out on your own or with friends (or, in my case, with my laptop and camera).

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Exploding Bakery

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Excellent espresso in a glass from the Exploding Bakery, ExeterExeter’s Exploding Bakery ticks so many boxes. For starters, it’s just outside Exeter Central Station, so it’s excellent when waiting for your train. As the name suggests (“Bakery”, rather than “Exploding”) it’s a bakery, so there’s always fresh, baked-on-the-premises cakes. If you’re after lunch, there’s focaccia, frittata and soup. The range isn’t huge, but the ethos is quality over quantity. Then there’s the coffee, along with tea and hot chocolate (regular and white). Best of all, it’s a real, working bakery which shares the premises with the coffee shop, so you can watch the staff baking their wonderful bread as you drink their coffee and eat their cake.

The Exploding Bakery has come a long way since I first visited it in October 2012. Back then it was definitely a bakery that served coffee, a couple of tables and an espresso machine tucked into a busy, thriving bakery, baristas and bakers sharing the space. These days, it looks and feels much more like a coffee shop, offering a house espresso from Monmouth, with regular guests on the second grinder, plus filter coffee through the V60, again using a range of guest roasters. And, of course, the bakery is still there.

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Champagne Central

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If you’re looking for somewhere to spend that odd hour while you’re waiting for your train at Glasgow Central station, then look no further than Champagne Central (although it now has competition from the likes of Riverhill Coffee Bar). Part of the recently-renovated Grand Central Hotel, Champagne Central offers you a chance to surround yourself in opulence while you wait for your train. The coffee’s okay, but frankly, who cares when you are in such wonderful surroundings and overlooking the station concourse so you can keep an eye on the departures board? Not me, at least.

Champagne Central is more than just a posh waiting room though. It serves food, afternoon tea and has a fully-stocked bar, so any time you are looking for a touch of elegance, give Champagne Central a try. And don’t worry, you don’t have to sit overlooking the station concourse if you don’t want to!

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