I do love a good, strong cup of coffee in the morning and pretty much anytime of the day. Flat white is my drink of choice. What’s yours?
If you’re looking for a caffeine fix and want to try somewhere in the city, here are my top 5 favourites:
Escape Caffé
Tucked away and inconspicuous. A favourite haunt of students from the advertising school upstairs and definitely worth the visit if only to say you met Lameen, owner and Nobel Peace Prize winner.
The coffee beans come from carefully selected sources and there are a few interesting options when it comes to ordering your coffee, such as Sleep Suicide (a French press with a shot of espresso) or Aussie Magic (a triple latté). The cheesecake is also definitely worth a try!
Dear Me
The better known TjingTjing bar upstairs is where it happens at night but Dear Me downstairs is the place to go not only for fine coffee made by the friendliest baristas, but also great lunches loaded with healthy goodness.
The coffee beans come from Espresso Lab and if you’re lucky, you might get a tasting lesson which is great considering you get to drink more coffee! A biscuit always goes well with a good cup so make sure you pick up one of the amazing over-sized cookies that are freshly baked daily.
Red Sofa Café
New kid on the Vredehoek block and a comfortable spot to grab a bite to eat and a cup of coffee. A big red couch in the corner beckons and that relaxing feeling of just sitting back and enjoying your coffee while watching the world buzz by, is high on the list at Red Sofa Café. With the usual options and a tasty looking menu, you can’t go wrong.
Jason Bakery
A firm favourite of most Bree Street workers if the lunch time queues are anything to go by. They must be doing something right. With a chalkboard of delicious lunch options as well as freshly baked treats, it’s hard to leave Jason unhappy. They even have an innovative ‘Token’ plan where you buy tokens which can be exchanged at a later stage for coffee- minus the queues and the need for fishing out cash. Beans come from Deluxe Coffeeworks and if you like your coffee strong then Jason is the place to get it.
Haas
If you want the honour of having the most expensive cup of coffee money can buy, Haas is the place to find it. Kopi Luwak is not for the faint-hearted – according to their site. You have been warned! If you want a more cost effective hit, feel free to try some of the single origin or blended beans that are on offer under the Haas label. A good, well-rounded cup of coffee coupled with the seclusion of the inside courtyard (if you’re lucky to find it empty), make for a great coffee spot.
The team here at Food24 have a few of their own favourites too – TRUTH Coffee Cult, Bean There, Deluxe Coffeeworks, Vida e Caffé, Woolworths Café, Seattle Coffee Company and On Heels Café. There’s definitely no shortage in Cape Town!
The wild card – coffee on the beach
The coolest coffee on the beach would be Detour Espresso Bar. Surfer dude Marck Barter has opened a cool ‘coffee wagon’, he’s serving up a hot cuppa that’s ready to go from 7am on the Llandudno to Camps Bay road. So go and grab one and enjoy it whilst you look at the ocean. How is that for cool?
Where is your favourite place to grab a cup o’ Joe? And what place totally grinds your beans with its poor coffee?! Tell us in the comments section below. We want to know!