We're so lucky to have the variety that there is in London and I quite often find myself on a coffee pilgrimmage of a weekend. This has been made much easier since lovely T bought me a beautiful book, 'The Independent Coffee Book' (London edition). This fantastic little book has info on over thirty of London's independent coffee shops, helpfully divided into London regions with maps included too. What's more they also tell you the type of coffee machine each place uses and whether the company roasts their own beans or not. You don't get much better than that. It's also perfectly handbag sized so I've made a habit of taking it with me of a day when I'm out and about. Keep an eye out for it as it's well worth the purchase. T even wrote little notes in mine giving reasons why we need to go and visit them, which is just amazing. Folks, take note - the book is an excellent gift for the coffee lover in your life - added notes make it so much more personal. I'm hoping that they're able to release an updated version very soon as it seems that there are many cafes that have opened since its publication that could definitely be featured.
Recently, a particularly hungover Sunday called for a bike ride and some fresh air. Then it started to rain. As everyone in the country knows, it hasn't stopped since. It's rained all April and we're STILL in drought apparently, how can this be?! Anyway, as one not in the know about the ins and outs of our ground water levels, my mantra of 'we need the rain, we need the rain, we need the rain.' is beginning to wear thin.
So it was that shelter was needed and nourishment, well, a bonus as it was the perfect opportunity to visit Shoreditch Grind. Though not featured in the aforementioned book, it's a great little coffee shop just off Old Street roundabout, perfect to dip into if you're waiting for a friend at the maze that is Old Street station. It's housed in a old building, apparently called The Roundhouse and I really like their old cinema style sign in front, I think they change the message every so often too which is nifty. I'm pretty sure it used to house some kind of mobile phone store before being empty for some time and the cool coffee joint took over in timely fashion because it's slim pickings for decent coffee around there as far as I'm aware.
Promoting themselves as East London's favourite coffee shop, I had to investigate this bold claim, and if the expansion plans mentioned on their website (into the courtyard at the rear of the building) are pulled off, then they may well clinch it. They don't roast beans themselves but have them roasted to their own specifications and they have a beautiful La Marzocco coffee machine for those who know how this can make a world of difference between coffees.
The coffee was really great and well-crafted as expected and the service was very friendly. They are clearly enthusiastic about quality coffee AND pastries. A vital mix! My only (minor) issue was the weird stools by the window. Not comfy! They look cool and are an obvious design feature but what happened to nice squishy seats in which to sink and hide from the downpour outside? The decor is spartan but that does work with the whole feel of the place and the 'normal' chairs probably do better on your behind but are still lacking in desired squish factor. I think it's a trait of East London coffee shops to not have sofas... but correct me if I'm wrong. That said, it's worth perching on those ridiculous stools for some of the best coffee in the area. The desire for squish was likely stemming from my hungover state after all. Shoreditch Grind is definitely well placed to serve a wide crowd from Shoreditch hipsters to the local office types and long may they continue to do so, it's definitely earned a place on my mental map.
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