At the behest of my French friends, who moved into their beautiful Marais apartment a few months ago, I recently returned to Paris for another long weekend. My two previous visits were rainy and cold, but this time, I was treated to glorious sunshine all weekend. I also managed to visit six new-to-me specialty coffee shops — all on the Right Bank — and two favourites from previous trips. I was also interested to see that many of the shops I visited featured guest roasters from outside Paris, so I got to enjoy a mini European coffee tour that took me from Bath to Berlin and on to Copenhagen.
29 September 2017
21 September 2017
Curated Brew Reviewed
The range of speciality coffee subscription services available these days is impressive, if a little overwhelming. For some time, I’ve received regular coffee deliveries from Pact Coffee. For maximum convenience, I get usually get Pact Coffee delivered to the office, and then stock my home ‘brew bar’ with coffee beans I’ve either bought in London or picked up on my travels.
It’s hard not to experience FOMO when I see people sharing their photos of really great coffee they’ve received from other subscription services — particularly those services that offer beans from a rotating selection of coffee roasters from the UK, continental Europe and beyond. I live by myself, however, and despite my best efforts there is only so much speciality coffee one woman can drink (and afford).
But when I first read about Curated Brew, thanks to a tip from London’s Best Coffee, I thought its focus on high-quality coffee from some of Europe’s best established and up-and-coming roasters, combined with the convenience of being able to pause or cancel one’s subscription at any time would suit me well. I signed up for Curated Brew four months ago — although because I skipped one delivery while I was in Boston, I’ve received three bags of coffee beans — and thought it was time to share my experiences.
First, and most importantly, the coffee has been fantastic. I received beans from one of my favourite Swedish roasters Koppi, Berlin’s excellent Five Elephant and the wonderful Danish Coffee Collective.
It’s hard not to experience FOMO when I see people sharing their photos of really great coffee they’ve received from other subscription services — particularly those services that offer beans from a rotating selection of coffee roasters from the UK, continental Europe and beyond. I live by myself, however, and despite my best efforts there is only so much speciality coffee one woman can drink (and afford).
But when I first read about Curated Brew, thanks to a tip from London’s Best Coffee, I thought its focus on high-quality coffee from some of Europe’s best established and up-and-coming roasters, combined with the convenience of being able to pause or cancel one’s subscription at any time would suit me well. I signed up for Curated Brew four months ago — although because I skipped one delivery while I was in Boston, I’ve received three bags of coffee beans — and thought it was time to share my experiences.
First, and most importantly, the coffee has been fantastic. I received beans from one of my favourite Swedish roasters Koppi, Berlin’s excellent Five Elephant and the wonderful Danish Coffee Collective.
The Koppi beans in particular — a Finca El Porvenir coffee from Colombia — were awesome, with chocolate and berry notes when brewed through my Aeropress (first photo below), and it tasted just as good as a piccolo. Five Elephant’s Kenyan Kamwangi AA coffee, meanwhile, had lovely, light, floral notes brewed as a pourover (second photo below). Finally, Coffee Collective's Halo Yirgacheffe coffee had a delightfully complex taste, with nice peachy notes coming through. I've pulled a couple of good Halo espresso shots at home too.
Some, although not all, of the coffee packages came with a card with more information about the roaster and the coffee. I loved all three coffees, but I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get the chance to try out a new-to-me roaster. Unfortunately, the month I skipped would have given me that opportunity, as the featured coffee was from Danish roaster April. September's coffee, which I am skipping, is from Colonna, and I'm sure it will be wonderful, although again, it's a roaster I'm familiar with already. Another minor frustration for me was that some months, the identity of the month's featured roaster was only revealed several weeks after I had been billed. It’s nice to be surprised (says the woman who plans every last thing!), but knowing what the coffee will be before I pay for it would help me decide whether I might want to skip a month.
Curated Brew costs £11.95 per month, including delivery, for a 250g bag of beans, which you can have as whole-bean or ground. This isn’t particularly cheap but it is excellent value given the quality of the coffee. The customer service has been great too — whenever I have emailed with a question, I have received a swift response.
All of that being said, I am not sure that Curated Brew is the service for me — at least for now — and this is solely because it doesn't suit my coffee lifestyle. Understandably, you can only receive the coffee at one specific point in the month — generally, although not always, the last week of the month. As I travel frequently and like to bring home coffee beans, this inflexibility makes it hard to plan and means I risk having a surplus or shortage of beans. Moreover, one of the reasons I signed up was the ability to pause or skip deliveries online but there isn’t an option on my account page (other than the 'cancel' button, which feels rather final) and instead, I had to email to get my account paused. This is not a huge amount of effort, of course, but more control would be much better.
If you like receiving excellent coffee from some really great roasters and don't have the same ‘stock control’ issues as I do, I think you might get on rather well with Curated Brew. I have currently paused/cancelled my account — I will be travelling a lot over the next couple of months, but I'm not sure that I will resubscribe when I get back. However, I will certainly continue to follow Curated Brew with interest — I suspect that as they grow, there will be more flexibility. The option to just buy a single bag of beans without subscribing would be really useful, for example, so that I didn't miss out on a must-try coffee.
Curated Brew costs £11.95 per month, including delivery, for a 250g bag of beans, which you can have as whole-bean or ground. This isn’t particularly cheap but it is excellent value given the quality of the coffee. The customer service has been great too — whenever I have emailed with a question, I have received a swift response.
All of that being said, I am not sure that Curated Brew is the service for me — at least for now — and this is solely because it doesn't suit my coffee lifestyle. Understandably, you can only receive the coffee at one specific point in the month — generally, although not always, the last week of the month. As I travel frequently and like to bring home coffee beans, this inflexibility makes it hard to plan and means I risk having a surplus or shortage of beans. Moreover, one of the reasons I signed up was the ability to pause or skip deliveries online but there isn’t an option on my account page (other than the 'cancel' button, which feels rather final) and instead, I had to email to get my account paused. This is not a huge amount of effort, of course, but more control would be much better.
If you like receiving excellent coffee from some really great roasters and don't have the same ‘stock control’ issues as I do, I think you might get on rather well with Curated Brew. I have currently paused/cancelled my account — I will be travelling a lot over the next couple of months, but I'm not sure that I will resubscribe when I get back. However, I will certainly continue to follow Curated Brew with interest — I suspect that as they grow, there will be more flexibility. The option to just buy a single bag of beans without subscribing would be really useful, for example, so that I didn't miss out on a must-try coffee.
19 September 2017
The Caffeine Chronicles: Stir Coffee, Brixton
Finding myself — unusually — with plans in Clapham on Saturday, I took the opportunity to visit a new-to-me coffee shop on the way. The Black Lab, on Clapham Common's Southside, would have been the closest coffee bar but I've already been a couple of times (it's great), so I had to look a little further afield. In the end, I decided to go to Stir Coffee on Brixton Hill, which has been on my list for a while.
When I'm in Brixton, I tend to hang out in and around Brixton Market; Stir Coffee is about a half-mile south of there and the Tube. On Saturday, I had already eaten lunch closer to home at the Bermondsey Street Festival, and although Stir serves food, I was hoping to miss the brunch/lunch rush. It was still pretty busy when I arrived, with a queue soon forming behind me. Inside, it's a cosy, rustic space with bar stools at the windows, a few tables in the front and on the pavement, and more seating in the back room. The exterior suggests that the site may once have been a pub.
As there were both V60 and Aeropress (£4) options on the menu, I asked what was on offer at the brew bar, but was persuaded to try the batch-brew filter coffee (£2.40), a Kenyan Mchana AA coffee from Round Hill Roastery, which had been selling extremely well. I also ordered a piccolo (£2.40) and, from the selection of nice-looking cakes on the counter, I plumped for a brownie (£2.90).
I nabbed one of the stools by the window and before long, the piccolo and the brownie arrived. Learning from previous mistakes, I saved the latter until after I'd tried both coffees to avoid overriding my palate with its rich, chocolatey, salted-caramel deliciousness (yes, it was great!).
The piccolo was excellent too. I didn't check which of the Round Hill coffees was in the hopper, but the flavours of the espresso were very well-balanced, making for a smooth taste that paired well with my sweet treat. It was well-prepared too, the latte art prevailing right down to the bottom.
The filter coffee arrived soon afterwards and given its rave reviews, I was slightly underwhelmed as to me, it was a little on the weak side, making it hard to pull out the blackcurrant notes I might have expected. A new batch had just been brewed and I suspect I was just unlucky. I thought about trying the coffee as a V60 as well, but ran out of time.
As I said, though, the piccolo was excellent and I otherwise really enjoyed my time at Stir. It was bustling and lively on a Saturday afternoon and the service was really good — well worth the short walk from central Brixton.
Stir Coffee. 111 Brixton Hill, Brixton, London, SW2 1AA (Tube: Brixton). Website. Twitter. Instagram.
When I'm in Brixton, I tend to hang out in and around Brixton Market; Stir Coffee is about a half-mile south of there and the Tube. On Saturday, I had already eaten lunch closer to home at the Bermondsey Street Festival, and although Stir serves food, I was hoping to miss the brunch/lunch rush. It was still pretty busy when I arrived, with a queue soon forming behind me. Inside, it's a cosy, rustic space with bar stools at the windows, a few tables in the front and on the pavement, and more seating in the back room. The exterior suggests that the site may once have been a pub.
As there were both V60 and Aeropress (£4) options on the menu, I asked what was on offer at the brew bar, but was persuaded to try the batch-brew filter coffee (£2.40), a Kenyan Mchana AA coffee from Round Hill Roastery, which had been selling extremely well. I also ordered a piccolo (£2.40) and, from the selection of nice-looking cakes on the counter, I plumped for a brownie (£2.90).
I nabbed one of the stools by the window and before long, the piccolo and the brownie arrived. Learning from previous mistakes, I saved the latter until after I'd tried both coffees to avoid overriding my palate with its rich, chocolatey, salted-caramel deliciousness (yes, it was great!).
The piccolo was excellent too. I didn't check which of the Round Hill coffees was in the hopper, but the flavours of the espresso were very well-balanced, making for a smooth taste that paired well with my sweet treat. It was well-prepared too, the latte art prevailing right down to the bottom.
The filter coffee arrived soon afterwards and given its rave reviews, I was slightly underwhelmed as to me, it was a little on the weak side, making it hard to pull out the blackcurrant notes I might have expected. A new batch had just been brewed and I suspect I was just unlucky. I thought about trying the coffee as a V60 as well, but ran out of time.
As I said, though, the piccolo was excellent and I otherwise really enjoyed my time at Stir. It was bustling and lively on a Saturday afternoon and the service was really good — well worth the short walk from central Brixton.
Stir Coffee. 111 Brixton Hill, Brixton, London, SW2 1AA (Tube: Brixton). Website. Twitter. Instagram.
15 September 2017
Oslo Specialty Coffee Guide
Oslo's city centre is relatively compact but the coffee-loving Norwegian capital is home to countless coffee shops and some top-notch specialty coffee roasters. I packed in visits to quite a few during my recent trip, and I had some particularly excellent hand-brewed (håndbrygget) filter coffees while I was there.
13 September 2017
How To Spend a Long Weekend in Oslo
I love visiting the Nordic countries but they can be expensive. That's why I've been taking shorter, three- or four-day city breaks to Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Reykjavik. Next up was the Norwegian capital, Oslo, and when in April I found a good Norwegian Air deal, I snapped it up. And yes, Oslo can be eye-wateringly expensive, but I found a few ways to keep costs down and had an enjoyable long weekend.
10 September 2017
Book Review: The Burning Girl by Claire Messud
Claire Messud's début novel, The Emperor's Children, is one of my all-time favourite novels and I re-read it once a year or so. Eleven years later comes The Burning Girl, where Messud’s characters are younger and the setting more suburban but the themes remain the same. It took me a little while to get into The Burning Girl, but I was glad I stayed with it because I was rewarded with a tender, haunting and well-plotted novel.
Set in the fictional town of Royston in Essex County, Massachusetts — where I spent two weeks this summer — The Burning Girl follows childhood best friends Julia and Cassie as they enter adolescence and find that the bonds of friendship may not be quite so ironclad as they had once thought. Julia lives with her supportive, upper-middle-class parents, while Cassie's home life is more erratic, especially when her widowed mother starts dating an unsettling new man. But it's Cassie's betrayals that hurt Julia the most as Julia's former best friend falls in with the popular crowd and steals away and then discards a boy Julia liked. Julia is forced to find her own way, making new friends on the debate team, but she is haunted by the decline of her friendship with Cassie, particularly as Cassie stumbles onto a darker path.
The Burning Girl is an emotional portrait of a friendship — and a small town — in decline. Messud's prose is lilting, understated and tightly edited and although it isn't as much of page-turner as The Emperor's Children, with its mosaic of vibrant characters, The Burning Game's heroines are keenly observed and convincing. The cultural references date the setting to the early 2000s but the action could easily have unfolded during the 1980s or 1990s instead — Messud's writing has a wonderful timelessness that allows her characters to feel relevant to readers of all ages.
Disclaimer: The Burning Girl was published by Little, Brown on 7 September 2017. I received a pre-release copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Set in the fictional town of Royston in Essex County, Massachusetts — where I spent two weeks this summer — The Burning Girl follows childhood best friends Julia and Cassie as they enter adolescence and find that the bonds of friendship may not be quite so ironclad as they had once thought. Julia lives with her supportive, upper-middle-class parents, while Cassie's home life is more erratic, especially when her widowed mother starts dating an unsettling new man. But it's Cassie's betrayals that hurt Julia the most as Julia's former best friend falls in with the popular crowd and steals away and then discards a boy Julia liked. Julia is forced to find her own way, making new friends on the debate team, but she is haunted by the decline of her friendship with Cassie, particularly as Cassie stumbles onto a darker path.
The Burning Girl is an emotional portrait of a friendship — and a small town — in decline. Messud's prose is lilting, understated and tightly edited and although it isn't as much of page-turner as The Emperor's Children, with its mosaic of vibrant characters, The Burning Game's heroines are keenly observed and convincing. The cultural references date the setting to the early 2000s but the action could easily have unfolded during the 1980s or 1990s instead — Messud's writing has a wonderful timelessness that allows her characters to feel relevant to readers of all ages.
Disclaimer: The Burning Girl was published by Little, Brown on 7 September 2017. I received a pre-release copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
06 September 2017
My Favourite London Specialty Coffee Shops (Updated 2025)
I've been writing about London's first forays and then larger leaps into the specialty coffee world since I started this blog in 2007. I've written about more than 200 London coffee spots over the years — some have since closed and my tastes have changed too, especially as the city's specialty coffee scene burgeoned and boomed, spreading from Soho and Shoreditch, into other central areas and then way beyond.
I compiled my first concise London coffee guide in 2011, updating it in 2012 and 2014. An update was long overdue but I knew a top ten would barely even scratch the surface and because friends, family and others often ask for my recommendations, I needed something more in-depth.
04 September 2017
The Caffeine Chronicles: Saint Espresso, Baker Street
In the five years since I moved from Marylebone to Bermondsey, my former neighbourhood has seen only a slow influx of speciality coffee shops. Before I left, there wasn't much: the excellent Workshop Coffee (then named The Sensory Lab and located on Wigmore Street) and the Borough Barista were about the only options. Seymour Street's Daisy Green and Monocle Cafe on Chiltern Street are among the new additions, but these are both south of the dividing line that is the Marylebone Road.
Although I no longer live there, I welcomed the news that one of my favourite Islington coffee shops, Saint Espresso, had opened a branch on Baker Street. The coffee shop is on the northern section of Baker Street, next to Baker Street Tube station and just opposite Sherlock Holmes' place. It would have been so convenient for my old flat, which is just five minutes' walk away. Now, I tend to return to northern Marylebone primarily to catch the coach back to Oxford or to get my nails done at California Nail Bar (I'm a creature of habit but it's good and cheap). I was doing the latter a few Sundays ago but decided to stop by Saint Espresso first.
The Baker Street coffee bar is smaller than its Islington sibling but just as sleek. (My review of the photogenic Islington coffee bar often features in my 'popular this month' section because some of my photos therein seem to have been pinned extensively on Pinterest.) With its black tiled exterior, sexy black espresso machine and dark wood counter, it's an attractive spot. There are a couple of small tables on the pavement, although sitting there may designate you as the official tourist information officer. Inside, the remaining seats line up along the narrow table that runs the length of the shop's front window.
I was in the market for a black coffee so I asked what coffees were on offer as a pourover. They had both a natural Ethiopian Guji Hambela and a washed Kenyan Marimira AA, but the barista recommended the Kenyan for a V60, so I went for that (£3.50). The coffee menu also included the usual espresso-based drinks, and various cold and iced coffees. There was also a big selection of pastries, cakes and sandwiches available.
My coffee was very well prepared and the lovely, fruity berry notes of the Marimara came through very nicely.
As in the Angel branch, there is a great selection of coffee kit for sale, and bags of Saint Espresso coffee beans to buy; there was also a guest coffee from Round Hill Roastery near Bath. It was relatively quiet on an overcast Sunday afternoon, although I'm sure it's elbow-room only during the weekday commuter peak. Very handy for anyone travelling to or from Baker Street or Marylebone stations, Saint Espresso is a great addition to a part of Marylebone that is by no means overwhelmed with speciality coffee shops.
Saint Espresso. 214 Baker St, Marylebone, London, NW1 5RT (Tube: Baker Street). Website. Twitter. Instagram.
Although I no longer live there, I welcomed the news that one of my favourite Islington coffee shops, Saint Espresso, had opened a branch on Baker Street. The coffee shop is on the northern section of Baker Street, next to Baker Street Tube station and just opposite Sherlock Holmes' place. It would have been so convenient for my old flat, which is just five minutes' walk away. Now, I tend to return to northern Marylebone primarily to catch the coach back to Oxford or to get my nails done at California Nail Bar (I'm a creature of habit but it's good and cheap). I was doing the latter a few Sundays ago but decided to stop by Saint Espresso first.
The Baker Street coffee bar is smaller than its Islington sibling but just as sleek. (My review of the photogenic Islington coffee bar often features in my 'popular this month' section because some of my photos therein seem to have been pinned extensively on Pinterest.) With its black tiled exterior, sexy black espresso machine and dark wood counter, it's an attractive spot. There are a couple of small tables on the pavement, although sitting there may designate you as the official tourist information officer. Inside, the remaining seats line up along the narrow table that runs the length of the shop's front window.
I was in the market for a black coffee so I asked what coffees were on offer as a pourover. They had both a natural Ethiopian Guji Hambela and a washed Kenyan Marimira AA, but the barista recommended the Kenyan for a V60, so I went for that (£3.50). The coffee menu also included the usual espresso-based drinks, and various cold and iced coffees. There was also a big selection of pastries, cakes and sandwiches available.
My coffee was very well prepared and the lovely, fruity berry notes of the Marimara came through very nicely.
As in the Angel branch, there is a great selection of coffee kit for sale, and bags of Saint Espresso coffee beans to buy; there was also a guest coffee from Round Hill Roastery near Bath. It was relatively quiet on an overcast Sunday afternoon, although I'm sure it's elbow-room only during the weekday commuter peak. Very handy for anyone travelling to or from Baker Street or Marylebone stations, Saint Espresso is a great addition to a part of Marylebone that is by no means overwhelmed with speciality coffee shops.
Saint Espresso. 214 Baker St, Marylebone, London, NW1 5RT (Tube: Baker Street). Website. Twitter. Instagram.
01 September 2017
The Caffeine Chronicles: Caravan Bankside
Since Caravan opened its second site five years ago in Granary Square, a five-minute walk from my desk, I've regularly enjoyed breakfasts, lunches, dinners and especially coffee breaks there. But as I'm rarely in King's Cross at the weekend, I've never been for brunch. When Caravan opened its third branch in Bankside (a little closer to home) last year, I looked forward to righting this wrong but it took me longer than I'd hoped.
I finally took the opportunity to visit Caravan Bankside on a rare bank holiday weekend in London. The restaurant occupies a large, industrial-chic space on Great Guildford Street, just south of the Tate Modern and the Globe, and just around the corner from one of my favourite London signs.
The restaurant is beautifully designed with plenty of seating, from the tables with comfortable bench seating that traverse the main dining room, smaller tables next to the huge warehouse-style windows that let the sun stream in, and bar stools for perching (or if it's busy and you haven't booked a table). It wasn't too busy when I arrived, a little bit before peak brunch hours and I took a table in the centre. All Saints' Pure Shores was playing on the sound system and there was a fun but relaxed ambiance.
Before I got to grips with the extensive brunch menu, I asked for the coffee menu, but this in itself required quite some consideration. There were three espressos on offer (house, guest and decaf) and seven single-origin filter coffees, available brewed through the Aeropress or Kalita Wave, all roasted in Caravan's King's Cross HQ. I've been on a bit of an Ethiopian coffee kick lately (I blame the unseasonably warm weather in London, which has since dissipated) and the Deri Kochoha washed coffee sounded lovely, so I ordered it as a Kalita pourover.
The coffee didn't disappoint — Caravan coffee rarely does. The gorgeous floral and black-tea notes of the Deri Kochoha came through beautifully, particularly as the coffee cooled. The presentation was as spot-on as always too with a rather lovely ceramic cup and the usual scientific flask serving as a carafe.
After flipping and flopping among several of the brunch menu options, I eventually settled on the avocado toast with a poached egg. So far, so standard...except that my subconscious had other plans and I ended up ordering my second choice, the red quinoa and buckwheat grain bowl with sweet potato, tenderstem broccoli and soft-boiled egg in a miso-tahini dressing (£10). And my accidental order turned out to be a great success. (I'm sure the avocado toast would also have been great but even I like to diversify my brunch portfolio at times.) Combining various textures and flavours, the grain bowl was delicious and filling, keeping my hunger at bay until afternoon brunch at least. The toasts and granola/yoghurt bowls are excellent smaller dishes if your appetite is still waking up.
The service was very good too — the wait staff were all friendly, welcoming and efficient. Meanwhile, Caravan will soon open its fourth restaurant at the Bloomberg Arcade in the City. I hope it won't take me another year to check out that one!
Caravan Bankside. 30 Great Guildford Street, London, SE1 0HS (Tube: Borough). Website. Twitter. Instagram.
I finally took the opportunity to visit Caravan Bankside on a rare bank holiday weekend in London. The restaurant occupies a large, industrial-chic space on Great Guildford Street, just south of the Tate Modern and the Globe, and just around the corner from one of my favourite London signs.
The restaurant is beautifully designed with plenty of seating, from the tables with comfortable bench seating that traverse the main dining room, smaller tables next to the huge warehouse-style windows that let the sun stream in, and bar stools for perching (or if it's busy and you haven't booked a table). It wasn't too busy when I arrived, a little bit before peak brunch hours and I took a table in the centre. All Saints' Pure Shores was playing on the sound system and there was a fun but relaxed ambiance.
Before I got to grips with the extensive brunch menu, I asked for the coffee menu, but this in itself required quite some consideration. There were three espressos on offer (house, guest and decaf) and seven single-origin filter coffees, available brewed through the Aeropress or Kalita Wave, all roasted in Caravan's King's Cross HQ. I've been on a bit of an Ethiopian coffee kick lately (I blame the unseasonably warm weather in London, which has since dissipated) and the Deri Kochoha washed coffee sounded lovely, so I ordered it as a Kalita pourover.
The coffee didn't disappoint — Caravan coffee rarely does. The gorgeous floral and black-tea notes of the Deri Kochoha came through beautifully, particularly as the coffee cooled. The presentation was as spot-on as always too with a rather lovely ceramic cup and the usual scientific flask serving as a carafe.
After flipping and flopping among several of the brunch menu options, I eventually settled on the avocado toast with a poached egg. So far, so standard...except that my subconscious had other plans and I ended up ordering my second choice, the red quinoa and buckwheat grain bowl with sweet potato, tenderstem broccoli and soft-boiled egg in a miso-tahini dressing (£10). And my accidental order turned out to be a great success. (I'm sure the avocado toast would also have been great but even I like to diversify my brunch portfolio at times.) Combining various textures and flavours, the grain bowl was delicious and filling, keeping my hunger at bay until afternoon brunch at least. The toasts and granola/yoghurt bowls are excellent smaller dishes if your appetite is still waking up.
The service was very good too — the wait staff were all friendly, welcoming and efficient. Meanwhile, Caravan will soon open its fourth restaurant at the Bloomberg Arcade in the City. I hope it won't take me another year to check out that one!
Caravan Bankside. 30 Great Guildford Street, London, SE1 0HS (Tube: Borough). Website. Twitter. Instagram.