Towards the end of last year, I was invited to be a keynote speaker at a cancer conference in Abu Dhabi and upon having the hotel booking confirmed by the organizers I knew had two other pertinent tasks to fulfil – ask my fellow coffee nerd, Naveed where to get good specialty coffee and pray that it was near the hotel. You’ll be happy to know, at least for me, that these two tasks were delightfully met as Naveed recommended Hermosoand my hotel was located about 8 minutes away by taxi.
So, on the last day before we headed back to Dubai, I popped over to Hermoso coffee roasters.
It was a bit quiet when I visited on a Sunday morning but I think that’s normal for a city Iike Abu Dhabi, which seems to come alive in the late afternoon/night. Another challenge I discovered with this city is that it is very spread out, unlike Dubai. In Dubai you can almost get to any good coffee spot or restaurant within a 15 minutes’ drive, so whilst Hermoso is located near to the Cornice area and some top hotels, many other spots were like about 30 minutes away, so not close at all to my hotel.
Pick one
Upon entering through the side of the café, you are met with a cove of coffee to choose from including merchandise, as you move further into the coffee shop towards your left, you will see their brew bar decked with a La Marzocco Strada for their espresso machine and a brew bar with lots of Hario V60s as well as other gadgets like their cold drip system.
I popped upstairs briefly to see their soon to be finished coffee brewing school, where they plan to host events in the future. I learnt too that they partner with coffee supremo Costas of Sweden who mentors them on their coffee roasting style and visits them occasionally to ensure quality – great. Their roastery section is in full display in the main area of the café, where they use American made Loring – I liked the idea of using the coffee tasting wheel as décor just above the roastery.
I was greeted by a bunch of friendly staff and a barista, Rico, hailing from Burma. After a few questions around their coffee offerings, he offered that I try one of their unique espresso blends for my flat white.
Flat white at Hermoso
After enjoying this, I walked around and took some shots and a video for my Instagram reel, see below
Rico kindly offered me, not one but two different cups of their cold brews to try.
I was of course tempted to buy coffee and opted for a Yemeni Hajjah Anaerobic coffee for filter brewing at home and one of their espresso blends, which I enjoyed later upon my return to Dubai.
So, if you visit AD and happen to stay near the Cornice area, where the tallest hotel in Abu Dhabi is, the Conrad, or the Grand Hyatt of the famous Mandarin Oriental Emirates Palace, as well as the Edition, which is next door, I encourage you to visit Hermoso for your specialty coffee fix, pick a few bags and have breakfast, lunch or dinner if you are hungry too.
Hermoso are located at 57 al Quffal Street in al Bateen.
It seems like just when you had seen it all in the Dubai coffee scene, you get introduced to a new concept but this time it involves German cars and of course coffee… so welcome or should I say wilkommen (German for welcome) to AMG Kaffee described as the summit of luxury for coffee connoisseurs, foodies and the ultimate Mercedes AMG lover. Located at Dubai Design District (D3) a stone throw from downtown you will notice as you drive into D3 a grey looking building on your right-hand side with the huge Mercedes Benz emblem decked with G-wagon cars parked at what looks like a 45-degree angle defying gravity.
As you enter the building you will be greeted by a customer service assistant that asks you how they can help. On the righthand side you will see rows of classic books, then chocolate, pasties before you notice a La Marzocco GB5 espresso machine – aha! I have arrived at a coffee shop, or is it?
La marzocco GB5
If you look straight in front of you, you’ll notice a massive show room full of Mercedes cars and if you veer to the left , you may even see some classic ones too.
Classic Benz
So, am I in a Mercedes car show room or a café.
It’s BOTH.
Going back to the front of this massive retail space, you’ll notice inviting chairs and that’s the main reason I visited twice last month with friends.
For the coffee, apparently, they have it roasted for them with their own label, and I was pleased to see Hart – formerly of Typica, as the lead barista – now I was relaxed because I knew that my coffee would be well prepared. On my first trip I had a cappuccino, which was served with a biscuit – classic undertones of chocolate and nuts and my guess would be that is has Brazil in it.
On my second visit I opted for a cortado with the same beans. However, you’d be pleased to know that they have an extensive food and drinks menu and offer filter coffee too.
Cortado at AMG Kaffeehaus
One of my friends opted for breakfast – poached eggs on avocado spread toast.
Yummy
There’s seating outside and the atmosphere is California cool, even with Japanese manga art.
We walked around and took pictures and visited the souvenir shop too. Is the Flash trying to catch a MayBach?
The Flash and Maybach
At the back they have a section for reselling cars too and have a prayer room.
All in all, the onus is to re-invent the retail space even for cars. A place where you could literally hang out for hours, walk around, talk about cars, enquire about your dream driving machine, have lunch, dessert and coffee and hang outside (before summer approaches) and enjoy some peace and quiet. To top it off, on formula one race days they have screens where you can watch the race and they are also using their space for events. So, they really want you to hang out.
Try and visit before it gets too hot and if you prefer, they are open in the evenings too.
Wow! wow! wow! I don’t even know where to start… BUT here we go.
First of all what is a munchie espresso?
It’s a Colombian Anaberoic honey processed, castillo varietal coffee, grown at 1,700m and produced by Andrés Quiceno and Julio Madrid on La Riviera Farm in Risaralda, Colombia, with a taste profile of…. wait for it…..
Pineapple . Coconut. New York Cheesecake. Hazelnut and Butter
Roasted by Pirates of Coffee in Toronto, Canada, part of their Loco (Spanish for crazy as in mad) series.
Now for the coffee geek part….
“The Honey Culturing, Anaerobic process involves using fermentation starters and the unique natural flavours that come from fruits and aromatic plants, allowing for new sensory profiles to be developed by mixed fermentations between the starters and traditional coffee fermentation processes.” source: Pirates of Coffee website
So, what anaerobic processing in coffee?
Anaerobic fermentation is a coffee processing method where coffee is fermented in pressurized sealed tanks deprived of oxygen. This lack of oxygen produces distinct acids, lactic acids for example, that create a different and distinct flavor profile for the coffee. (source: JBC roasters).
In short, every coffee goes through some sort of fermentation as soon as it is picked before it is dried “naturally” in the sun or “washed”. If a coffee is anaerobic natural, it is fermented in barrels with its skin on, but if it is washed, it is fermented in barrels without its skin on. Honey process has some skin on during the fermentation process. This means that the anaerobic method “affects” the natural process of fermentation by throwing the beans straight into a barrel without air for hours and sometimes days.
You may have seen “72 hour anaerobic process”. Now, sometimes these barrels may have dried fruit in them, which means the coffee absorbs those enzymes and taste profiles, which can be preserved and roasted delicately by an expert coffee roaster to enhance the taste.
sounds confusing ?
Yes it is a bit, BUT this type of method means that you can get some crazy types of coffee. So in short when this coffee was prepared it was not entirely unusual to get coconut, pineapple, etc coming through.
So, did I taste these ?
Yes! that’s why I’m writing about it. I never thought that it was possible, but in short, I definitely tasted coconut with milk based coffee like a flat white or cappuccino and picked up pineapple acidity too. There was a buttery mouthfeel which I guess resembles NY Cheesecake but I wouldn’t say that I picked up the vanilla and lemon zest notes typical of a classic chessecake.
Nevertheless, I won’t be forgetting this coffee anytime soon.
I first encountered it at the World of Coffee Dubai (see last post) when I was offered a piccolo at the Toga Coffee stand and even before I tasted it, the smell of coconut blew me away. I then knew that I had to buy this coffee and to my pleasant surprise I met the head roaster, Abbas, who guided me through their website , where I bought the last one – I’m truly blessed.
I brewed this coffee every day till it ran out and shared it with my wife and a friend so that they too could enjoy my experience – after all good things in life should be shared.
Well done to the coffee farmers, the coffee roaster for selecting and roasting this coffee like this and to all those involved in letting me enjoying this wonderful coffee.
YUMMY MUNCHIE.
If you live in the UAE, their coffees are offered at Toga in Sharjah and if you are in North America, definitely visit their website and order this and lots of wonderfully funky coffee they offer.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from the third edition of the World of Coffee Dubai, which took place from 21-23 January in Dubai, under the auspices of the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). Sure. I’d been to the previous two and this year promised more excitement with a slightly bigger offering. Featuring much as before, with experts, coffee roasters, gadgets, coffee farmers, espresso machine and coffee roasting manufacturers and more, I thought I’d go, meet fellow coffee nerds, drink lots of coffee and attend a few lectures. Well, I did most of that and more, but sadly wasn’t able to attend any of the lectures, BUT, all was not lost, as I learnt a lot on the one day that I attended. So, here’s a quick summary;
First stop was at Harvest Belt, where I learnt about the Link small batch coffee roasting machine that you can programme to roast espresso, filter, etc and even fine tune it for different coffee processes like natural, washed, etc. If I was going to start roasting, I think I’d get this machine.
Just next to them was one of my fave Dubai roasters, Grandmother (I still don’t know where that name comes from ), but their head roaster, Freddie, offered me a delectable Ethiopian anaebroic espresso – it really filled my lips – yum.
Then I was now on the hunt for my first milk based coffee of the day and when I saw Uber Milk, I thought what better place to stop than here. I had already witnessed their ultra automated machine when I visited Rosslyn Coffee in London in January 2023 and just wanted to enquire about their business in the GCC, as most cafe are not as busy as a typical central London coffee shop. Sure enough one cafe in Dubai has it but they have a few of them in Saudi already.
In conversation, I noticed this guy pouring beautiful latte art and they said, that’s the head of coffee at WatchHouse – startled, I walked over and placed an order for a cortado – incidentally, it was Ethiopian beans again.
Cortado by Flavius
Never one to miss out on an opportunity to learn from an expert, I chatted with Flavius for about 20 minutes and this is what I learnt;
➡️Brew Ethiopian beans at a higher temperature for both filter and espresso – so much so that for espresso, try 97C – the reason Ethiopian beans have a a higher density.
➡️Store your coffee beans in the freezer in dose batches – so store 18g of beans for your espresso, etc, as opposed to just storing the whole bag to avoid moisture.
➡️WatchHouse shop at Hanover Square (which I wrote about a few months back) is their flagship store for experimentation, so much so that the head barista won a recent competition.
➡️In 2020, the UK Brewers champion was Matteo D’Ottavio and he was head barista at their spitalfields branch and WatchHouse use his winning recipe, which for using 15g of coffee and 250ml water is;
50ml, wait 30 seconds, bloom
50ml, wait 30 seconds, pour
50ml, wait 30 seconds, pour
50ml, wait 30 seconds, pour
50ml, wait 30 seconds, pour
Walking around I saw the famous Dritan Asela – of instagram fame – had a brief chat with his wife.
I noticed that he was at a stand, Toga Coffee of Sharjah that were offering this delicious coconut balls wrapped around white chocolate and fresh raspberries – I boldly asked for 3 and the owner was so kind and hospitable he duly obliged. However, I noticed their strange description of coffee beans with hints of coconut and asked for a piccolo.
Coconut piccolo
wow! even before I drank the coffee I could smell the coconut (one of my fave fruits). I met the roaster, Pirates of Coffee, all the way from Canada and asked where I could buy a bag – he said here and he only had one bag left – destined for me I guess, praise God.
After lunch, I saw the that the Nordic Approach were hosting a coffee tasting session, so off I went.
There were lots of exciting coffees and I must confess I can’t remember which one stood out – was it the Panama Geisha or the Kenyan ? In any case, Nordic Approach are famous for their lighter roots and the tables were set top across continents, Africa, the Americas and Asia.
Photo: courtesy of Liana
Still up for more tasting, I passed by quickly to Janson Farms – another famous coffee farm from Panama – saw they were brewing their coffees on a Hario V60 and thought why not – during my experience I bumped into the Indonesian barista champion.
Where to next?
I had heard that my new coffee friend, Antonio Orria, whom I had met in Dubai airport in September, had just joined Victoria Arduino in Dubai and was showcasing their latest espresso machine, the Black Eagle Maverick, so off I went. Lucky for me, he was by himself and I got a quick demo about the machine, which in essence brews both espresso and wait for it….. filter coffee on their Pure Brew system. To quote them,
“PureBrew technology is a revolutionary, three phase, extraction method that uses pulsating frequencies of water pressure to release the purest flavour from your coffee bean according to its freshness, region and type.”
Victoria Arduino Black Eagle Maverick
In essence they have a different basket for filter, with a cone shape and for which Antonio kindly brewed for me using 12g of coffee – I can see the advantage for playing around with different brew recipes and of course reducing the time for a barista in a busy coffee shop. It can also brew tea. I’m looking forward to visiting their newly opened outlet to learn more.
I was already having an Ethiopia coffee bean filled day, so why not go over to Boon Coffee, headed by the friendly Orit Mohammed. She got her head baristi to brew me an espresso, using Ethiopian beans of course and very kindly gave me a bag of their premium blend to try at home.
Boon coffee: espresso
No more coffee!
Well, not quite. I stopped over at Three Coffee, one of my fave Dubai coffee roasters and couldn’t say no, when they offered me an espresso using Yemeni coffee beans.
Yemeni espresso
Then I bumped into my fellow coffee geek friend Shehzeen and she roped me into a latte art competition, which she won with some help but which one do you think was the best?
Guess mine?⬅️
Incidentally the UAE BARISTA CHAMPIONSHIP was won by Michaela of Typica coffee (one of my faves) again for the fourth time I think
Photo courtesy of Lyndon, her husband
Before I left I popped over to the SCA stand and bumped into an old acquaintance, Stephen Morrissey, Deputy Chief Commercial and Community Experience Officer (plus WBC 2008) like I did last year, had a brief chat about the state of coffee in the UK and perhaps globally – in short, he shared my concern that many coffee roasters tend to roast quite light these days. Don’t get me wrong I like medium light roasting for filter based coffees but for espresso…. NO!
I still reminisce about espresso coffee from like 10 years ago. It was such that whether you had an espresso or flat white the body wrapped around your tongue with chocolate and dark berries, caramel and nuts and the taste lingered for an hour – not to mention the latte art contrast with milk that was delectable to look at, but nowadays, I think espresso is too bright and in milk, it is almost like flavoured milk. I’m not sure what your thoughts are, but when I launched my coffee brand two years ago, I tried to bring that back.
Also, we felt that the customer experience is beginning to diminish. Again, I recall when I was in London recently, not naming any cafes, I felt like the baristi were not that approachable like the ones in Dubai. I recall trying to film a barista pouring latte art and she abruptly told me to stop. I know that as specialty coffee has grown, you will loose the essence of that coffee nerdy experience, when I used to got to a cafe and just chat with the baristi about the coffee and the art of coffee making, but I miss those days and with so many companies investing in specialty coffee now, perhaps those days may never come back.
Photo: courtesy of Naveed
But you know what, I still dream about having another cafe in the future and perhaps I will be able to make a difference in bringing that back as after all this is…
I cannot finish 2023, without mentioning one of the most exciting coffee experiences in a coffee shop I had this year – the opening of Colonna and Smalls on Leather Lane in London. In fact this trip was made even more exciting for me, as they opened the day after I arrived in London for a trip and I visited on my birthday too – what a wonderful coffee experience for a birthday.
Owned by Maxwell Colonna-Dashwood, a former UK barista champion several years ago, Maxwell has always been one to push the boundaries on all things coffee. When I first visited his first cafe in Bath I had the opportunity to meet with him and quiz him about his coffee philosophy. After all, not only was he UK barista champion twice, but he has won several awards like best UK cappuccino and more. It was also at his cafe back in 2017 that I saw the Mod Bar for the first time. He also grinds all his coffee beans whether for espresso or filter, on a Mahlkonig EK43. His London shop is no exception.
Ready to brew
I digress a bit for the techies, but the debate advocated by Maxwell is that by using the EK43 (not built for grinding for espresso but ideally for spices and perhaps for filter coffee) you not only minimise waste because you grind per cup but that the EK43 grinds very evenly with little differentiation in grind size – this means that you can even lower the amount of coffee you use – they use about 16.5g as opposed to the industry average of 18-20g.
His London branch is his second shop and I must confess I was curious as to why he opened another coffee shop – this time on probably London’ most famous coffee street for the best coffee – Prufrock is a few shops down, as well as the Attendant.
Espresso brew bar
Upon entering the narrow shop, the brew bar is on the right hand side and display of coffee and merchandise to sell is on your left. The menu for both espresso base and filter coffee are on a placard on the exposed brick wall, with the filter options ready to be used. If you walk further back, there’s more sitting. I noticed that most people there were keen coffee drinkers, asking all sorts of coffee nerdy questions.
Aeropress brew bar
However, they have another specific menu for rare filter coffees too. As it was my birthday, I opted for a Panama Geisha from the famous coffee estate, Hacienda Esmeralda. Indeed it was sublime, tea like with hints of jasmine. I gave my wife a taste and she retorted, this taste like tea. I recall that the first time I had this very special coffee was way back in 2011 when I had my cafe in Cape Town – my roaster gave me a small bag, which I brewed on an aeropress.
As its was my birthday I didn’t just have one coffee. In fact I started with a flat white, using Peruvian coffee beans, brewed on their Two Group La Marzocco espresso machine by the head baristi.
Flat white
Prior to my trip I had contacted Maxwell on LinkedIn and mentioned that I would be visiting but upon entering the shop he wasn’t there. However, to my pleasant surprise, I recognised his voice during my first cup of coffee and went over to chat for about 20 minutes about coffee and more. One lesson I got from him this time was about water quality and how it mattered more for filter than espresso – I took notes and will investigate how to manage this at home in Dubai. However, before we left, I spotted Maxwell brewing an espresso for a flat white and captured this on film, asking him if he still had it in him to pour great latte art – of course he did, as I’m sure his DNA is labelled with coffee.
Maxwell pouring latte art
I highly recommend when you visit London that you visit Colonna and Smalls on 96A Leather Lane, Clerkenwell – closest tube station is Chancery Lane.
Here’s wishing you a blessed 2024 and lots of wonderful coffee adventures.
On reading the title of this post, you could be confused as to whether you jumped onto a site advertising a flower shop or some sort of botanical gardens in the city, BUT, all is forgiven, because this unique coffee shop marries the cafe owner’s love for flowers and of course, coffee. – I present you Urban Botanica Coffee Shop. Recommend by my daughter as a way to get me to satisfy my coffee craving near her home, I was in for a pleasant surprise.
Upon entering, you will be greeted with lots of pot plants, especially on your left and you may be wondering, “am I in a flower shop?”. However, after a few steps in, you will notice that the brew bar has been designed to kind of blend in with the happy plant space, as there’s lots of pink, including the eclectic and super espresso machine, the Kees Van der WestenSpirit – custom made with pink undertones – a machine for serious coffee nerds, no doubt.
Owned by Stephen, formerly of Horsham Coffee roasters, Stephen literally fell in love with his espresso machine, which he owned before even opening his coffee shop – sounds like something I’d do. After a few months of looking, he finally found this spot in Kennington, south east London. If I recall, the pot plants and flowers are in collaboration with a local florist and they have decorated the shop profoundly.
Plants galore
As you walk through the narrow shop, there’s more seating on the right hand-side, just before you enter the garden. With London enjoying the hottest September on record, we naturally sat outside and waited to be served.
When Stephen finally moved with his machine, he naturally went for Horsham Coffee as his choice of roaster. With a range of coffees, I opted for a Colombian coffee as a Flat White. As he made our coffees, I asked him few questions not to interrupt his flow – you could see the passion in his eyes and in the way he prepared our coffees. I filmed him as he made mine and I was already excited to taste it.
Delightfully made, I could sip the love of the coffee, which was one of the best I had during this trip. My wife and daughter and other friends had milk based coffees and a HarioV60 with a Rwandan coffee.
More coffee
Before I left, I bought Brazilian coffee beans to make home to Dubai for my espresso cravings.
To be honest, Kennighton is not really a place you will visit in London for any famous sites, as it is quite a neighbourly place, but it is not very far on the Underground northern line from the city nor Charing Cross (full of tourist attractions). So if you are nearby, I encourage you to hop on the tube and stop by here for a delightful coffee experience.
Urban Bontanica is located at 30 Windmill Road, off Kennington Road.
Everyone knows Oxford for their famous university and quaint English town vibe. It is full of lots of tourists in the summer with its classic buildings and historical sights, not to mention an abundance of English language schools, which attract a lot of people from all over the World to study during the summer.
Early last month we went over to Oxford to attend our sons’ graduation and what a joyous occasion it was, especially as our son had said he didn’t want to go to university many years back. But as you know, whenever I visit any new city, I’m literally sniffing around for specialty coffee. When I brought our son over three years ago to help him settle in, I searched and found two, so I wasn’t too worried about finding good coffee this time.
Colombia Coffee Roasters
Best cafe in Oxford
After having the graduation lunch, I was in need of good coffee, so off we went just across the road from the posh Ivy restaurant and into the covered market, where I found Colombia Coffee Roasters – hailed as the best coffee in Oxford, located at the Covered Market.
Yummy
It looks like a typical British coffee shop with lots of buns, pastries and gadgets including coffee bags all over the place. As it was late afternoon on an unusually hot and rather sunny and warm day for Oxford, I knew I had to have black coffee, and so I opted for an Americano as it was almost time for them to close.
My family soon found me and ordered coffee, cappuccino and more.
The two female baristi were pleasant, helpful, patient and knowledgeable as my family quizzed them about the cakes and other sweet treats – this was after we had already had dessert – smile.
I bought a bag of their Oxford Espresso Blend to take back to Dubai, sat down and enjoyed my cuppa coffee.
Society café
Get your coffee here
The next day, just before we left, we were in the city centre again (every English city has one except London which is far too big) and I recall another coffee shop that I visited when I first brought our son here three years ago to start university and so off we went to Society Café on St Michaels Street.
Latte Art
A trendy spot that gives vibes of those in the know, know that this is where the best coffee is at. At the height of the pandemic in 2020, I stopped here for my specialty coffee fix and the coffee was good. This time, it seemed better perhaps because people, were more relaxed. As I hadn’t had milk-based espresso for a few days. I opted for a flat white, which was well prepared with good latte art too using their La Marzocco KB90.
Flat White
They had an array of British specialty coffee roasters like Assembly, Origins, Kiss the Hippo and Obadiah.
Coffee galore
After my delectable coffee, I chatted with the barista, who had just graduated from our son’s university too from the same business school. I bought a Kenyan bag of coffee from Assembly – and my mum kindly bought me the Guatemala natural from Obadiah (Scottish coffee roasters). We hung out for a while and then went off to catch the coach back to London.
Coffeesmiths
Another coffee shop worth noting is Coffeesmiths at 14-15 Golden Cross, which I visited in 2020 but I didn’t get the change to try their coffee this time on their beautiful La Marzocco KB90 (popular in Oxford I guess) but I recommend them too.
Earlier this month I was in London and of course the opportunity to check out new cafes was top of my list. I must confess, that I prayed that the weather would be warm, coming form 40C Dubai, but you’ll be glad to know that my prayers were answered, as this September went down as one of the warmest on record, with temperatures hovering over 30C on a few days. However, I’m not sure if it is because of Brexit, I was saddened to see that most coffee shops, even in central London, close between 3:30 and 4pm. For me, this was a travesty, as I love drinking coffee after every meal, even at night, which you won’t find anymore in London – sigh! Nevertheless, I only found one exception and for that, you’ll have to read on.
CUPS 1 AND 2 (Colonna & Smalls 96a Leather Lane, City of London)
Famously run by Maxwell Colonna-Dashwood, former UK barista champion, a few years back but not one that’s shy to push the boundaries on all things coffee – he wrote a book about how water affects your coffee and is about to launch one on the coffee business. His famous coffee shop is in Bath – read here when I visited. But, imagine my delight when I heard that he was opening an outlet in London. So, on the occasion of my birthday, I went here with my wife to try out the newly opened coffee shop and by default my first specialty coffee of my trip. I failed to contain my excitement, opted for a flat white to start, poured by the pleasant barista.
Flat white colonna and smalls
Whilst I was drinking my coffee, I noticed Maxwell had entered and of course we chatted coffee for like 30 minutes from water, and more, naturally. I then ordered a special filter coffee from their menu…. wait for it….
A Panama geisha from the famous coffee estate, Hacienda Esmeralda. Indeed it was sublime, tea like with hints of jasmine. I gave my wife a taste and she retorted, this taste like tea.
The last time I had this priced coffee was when I had a my coffee shop in Cape Town back in 2011 – yes it was tasted like a blue pearl earl grey. So having spoilt myself and spent more money drinking coffee than I ever have in a London coffee shop, it was time to leave after two cups of coffee.
CUP 3 (21 Grams, 155 Northcote road)
As usual, we stayed with my brother in the Clapham area and he told me that there was new coffee shop nearby, so whilst I waited for my wife to get ready, I went exploring to find this new coffee shop. The little chairs outside gave the cafe away and inside it is easy to get confused about where to order from as the barista space is open. In fact, when I went with my wife a second time, she went next to the espresso machine. As it was morning, I opted for another flat white.
Flat white at 21 grams
I noticed they were using Gentlemen Barista coffee, which features an espresso blend that contains Brazil of course. I guessed that the baristi were speaking Portuguese and I was right, they hailed from Brazil. Also on offer are pastries and cakes.
CUPS 4 AND 5 (Watch House, 2-3 Medici Courtyard, Hanover Square/Bond Street)
Now, having walked around London in 30C, looking for coffee after 4pm, I was pleasantly surprised to find that this newish (to me) Watch House was opened. Yes! I practically rushed in and “said gimme coffee” BUT as you know I don’t have an American accent, LOL! So, rewind, I walked in took in the wonderful architecture (after all the founder of Watch House is an architect) – which I have to say reminded me of some of the lavish cafe interiors I’m used to in Dubai and calmly asked for a batch brew – a kind of filter coffee prepared beforehand.
I was pleasantly surprised upon siping this coffee to detect hints of spearmint. I read the card and saw Nestor Lasso. So intrigued I was with this usual cup, that I asked the barista if I could buy a bag because I didn’t see it on their shelf. He went to the back of the cafe and said that I was in luck but they could only sell me 200g (packed in 100g bags each), so I bought it. Upon my return to Dubai, my coffee geek friend told me that Nestor Lasso is a famous coffee producer and has won awards for his coffee, so it was a great buy then.
Two flat whites at watch house
A few days later I met a friend and we had two flat whites. I was intrigued to see a long queue pouring out of the cafe – something I haven’t seen in London for a long time.
CUP 6 (Bobo and Wild, 18 Clapham Common south side)
Back to the neighbourhood. If you don’t know now, then I should let you know that my fave meal of the day is breakfast and what better to go with this tan good coffee too. So, gate crashing my brothers brunch tradition, my wife and I went to Bobo and Wild. A popular spot for brunch, run as far as I know by some Australians. I went for a flat white as I was in Aussie land prior to my amazing truffle eggs aka folded eggs. If you know me, then you’d know that I hardly use the word “amazing” unless I really mean it.
Delicious
I mean wow. Posh eggs, folded on top of sourdough bread and mushrooms topped with Parmesan cloud (okay, shavings). Back to the coffee.
My flat white was their Bobo Blend, a Brazil/Guatemala origin, medium-dark roast, with notes of chocolate, hazelnut and black currant, brewed on a La Marzocco linea. A good choice but I have to admit the egg was the star here.
CUP 7 (The Shed, Clapham South Tube Station)
This shop is second to none if you live in the Clapham South area and need that jolt of specialty coffee caffeine before you head to work. They use Caravan Coffee, brewed on a La Marzocco linea and also stocks pastries and cakes and if needed you can buy coffee bags too.
I went for a flat white – perhaps I should have called this post 7 flat whites (smile). A well prepared coffee with good frothed mil and coffee balance poured by a peasant barista.
CUP 8 (The Hagen Project, 30a Pimlico Road, Chelsea)
On our way from the airport to Clapham, we passed Chelsea and I noticed this little cafe with a Kees Van der Westen machine in the window and thought one day I’ll check this place out. A short history about Chelsea – it’s where the posh and very rich of London live – the end. In any case, I grabbed my opportunity when spending some time with my mum and headed here for my daily dose of specialty coffee and wow! was it special. Initially I wanted one of their coffees as an espressos based drink but then I opted for coffee from Prolog – a famous coffee roastery based in Copenhagen , visited by a one of the most famous chefs in the World, René Redzepi. Upon looking at the bag, Los Hermanos from the La Union municipality of Nariño, Colombia with a name like La Indonesia, I was sold.
Special coffee at Hagen
What splendid cup of coffee prepared by two very young female baristi on the Hario V60 and served in such a delectable manner, wine glass to highlight the notes with a stone covering the glass carafe. The taste was sublime, with hints of aged berries, subtle acidity and just a good cup of coffee. I think the way it was served added to the suspense and when I went to pay – the bill of GBP10 ($13) took me by surprise but I guess it was worth it.
CUP 9 (Urban Botanica, 30 Windmill Road, off Kennington Road)
In late June, our daughter moved to London toe start law school and after the aches and pains of looking for a property, she found one in Kennington. After scanning the area, she was like “I’ve found a good coffee shop for you to try when you visit”. And she was right. As we entered Urban Botanica, I spotted, yes, wait for it Kees Van der Westen machine – custom made with pink undertones.
So, having missed the opportunity at Hagen, I was presented here with the opportunity to have milk based drink on this famous machine and I opted for a flat white.
Beautifully made, suing Horsham Coffee, where the owner, Stephen used to work before, I highly recommend this place if you are nearby. I promise a longer post on this.
CUP 10 (The Shot, 104 Wigmore Street)
Walking behind Oxford Street with my daughter, I noticed this coffee shop across the road and was intrigued by a branding on the shop front as well as a nearby delivery van, so I thought , why not. So, have you ever been to a coffee shop that has a maitre d – someone who takes your reservation and guides you to your seat – very common for posh restaurants? Well, the Shot has that. Upon entering, the interior is quite dark but the gold encrusted Hario V60 breaks that monotone. The image at the top of this post is from their coffee shop.
I watched over as the baristi, who looked a bit intimidating with their waistcoats and well coiffed beards. We were handed a menu, which featured expensive coffees like Jamaica Blue Mountain, so l ordered a standard espresso
Espresso at the Shot
Easy to drink. As far as I can tell this is a new concept and they have another one in Mayfair – of course – another expensive residential community in London, not far from the Kings palace.
I recall a few years back, pre-pandemic, when I read that there were a few restaurants opening in Dubai on a weekly or perhaps a monthly basis. It seems the coffee shop entrepreneurs or what I like to call the coffeepreneurs didn’t want to be left behind…. Enter a new coffee concept, Q-LAB, located in Jumeriah.
Now to be honest, Q-Lab is not a new coffee shop as such but more a new concept born out of the company DXB Blends (DXB is the acronym for Dubai airport, just like you have LHR for London Heathrow Airport). In short, DXB blends have been around in Dubai for a few years, and I first heard of them when I moved to Dubai 3 years ago. I must confess, although I had only been once, I was never tempted to visit any of their shops until now, when I saw another Dubai coffee nerd duo post about them. Intrigued, I arranged for my friends and I to have our regular Saturday morning coffee meet up there.
The Q Lab seating area
In short, Q-Lab will be the new hub of DXB Blends, where their roastery will roast coffee and prepare blends for their other outlets, with a stronger focus on quality, so the coffee on offer at Q-Lab will be a higher specialty coffee offering. As you enter the coffee hub, there are lots of chairs, with the roastery on the right-hand side.
The roasters
As you walk further in, you will be greeted by a friendly Barista, Ace (I told him that with a name like that, he will have to ace it every time he brews coffee…pressure) – we chatted coffee for several minutes as I got there ahead of my friends. Ace has been working in coffee for over 5 years and hails from the Philippines, but he shared with me his desire to keep learning about coffee so that he can compete for the national barista championships and perhaps more. He even has a tattoo on his hand with the Hario V60 and coffee beans.
I love coffee tattoos
Pleased to see the Mod Bar, I opted for the espresso blend for my cortado as the description hinted of Brazil.
The Mod Bar
My friend, Naveed opted for an Ethiopian and got a beautifully poured unicorn latte art… hmmmm! I thought because this was Ace fave coffee.
Walking around, you will see their coffee on display in different sizes of the standard 250g and a smaller version at 100g. I think they do this because they have some expensive lots, and it might be easier on your pocket to try a 100g coffee. As I walked around, a Yemeni Lot 22100 with notes of cacao nibs, dried figs and vanilla caught my attention.
Yemeni coffee
So, after downing my cortado, followed with some conversation, I knew that I had to try this special coffee brewed on a Hario V60, who wouldn’t?
Delicious
I shared it with Naveed and it was definitely worth AED55 ($15) – their normal price for filter brews are AED30. I picked up dried fruits, hints of light cacao and vanilla spice, yum.
As we were leaving, the staff gave me a complementary 100g bag of a Colombian Anaerobic Java coffee, so kind.
Q Lab are located at 118 Al Hadiqa Rd – Al Safa – Al Safa 1 – Dubai.
I plan to revisit as they will soon be offering breakfast and lunch too.
And no, that isn’t a typo. Three Coffee Roasters are a Dubai based specialty coffee roasting coffee company, who tend to specialise in “funky” coffee and by that I mean that they push the boundaries in sourcing anaerobic, macerated, 90+ and rare coffees and then roasting them that make you say wow! once you sip them.
So, it came as a I surprise to me when I was scrolling through my instagram feed that I saw Drew – their New Zealander Co-Founder and General Manager talking about their espresso coffees. Upon further inspection on their website I was pleasantly surprised to see that they offered non-funky single estate and blends. I confess, although I don’t mind pushing my taste buds to the limit – always up for the challenge – with some things like espresso and espresso with milk, for me, its a no! no!. I don’t mind something unusual in my milk based espresso like macadamia , dark berries, vanilla, cinnamon, with hints of dark chocolate, caramel, etc BUT I don’t really want high acidity, peach, grapefruit and strawberries with milk.
So, when I came across Colombia La Esperanza Washed – Made for Milk, Ethiopia Hambela and Lazy Daze, all for espresso and milk based – I was excited and placed an order.
Before I describe my taste bud experience, a detour.
A few things I noticed about Three Coffee espresso offerings;
*The aroma – wow!
*The long lasting taste – admirable
*Ease of puling shots – stressless, except the Ethiopia Hambela (more on that later).
My first brew was the Colombia La Esperanza – made for milk. Upon opening the bag, wow! the aroma and yes it smelt of milk chocolate. It was great with milk and probably my fave of the batch.
I savoured it a little longer but trying the others before finishing this.
Next up, the Lazy Daze – a mix of “A mix of washed, natural and anaerobic coffees from Brazil, Indonesia, Rwanda, Guatemala and Colombia”, so expect something unusual.
Another aromatic experience that lasted right to the end of the bag and the long lasting taste after every brew stopped me from eating anything it afterwards for at least an hour to savour the taste, yum.
Now, Hambela.. Ethiopia, Ethiopia. where do I start? In fact when I tired to brew this first as an espresso, it was a disaster – nothing came out, so I thought perhaps I bought the wrong roast type – filter instead of espresso and so I actually brewed it on the Hario V60 and on the Aeropress
BUT then I thought let me go back to Drew on instagram. He shared rather helpfully that the beans are lot more denser, so I need to grind a lot more coarser than the other beans, which I did.
When I tried it as a milk based espresso drink – I must confess the first experience was wow, wow, wow! yes three times of wow! BUT after the first brew I didn’t get that easily.
Perhaps because of the plus 40C temperature in Dubai the brewing experience was temperamental and when rushing out in the morning, I couldn’t afford to keep wasting shots, so I settled on a 18g, 30g out – more hints of dark berries and dark chocolate.
If you are excited by what you read, then visit http://Three Coffee to place an order and I’m not getting any commission.
From Coffee With Love 