Wood Street Coffee, Walthamstow, E17

Some photos taken by Andrew Moore this summer, shared extraordinarily late I'm afraid. But will help us all remember what a lovely summer we had!

Dates for your diary...

Every Sunday

11:00-16:00

Wood Street Indoor Market, 98-100 Wood Street, London, E17 3HX

Saturday 30 November

12:00-18:00

St Mary's Welcome Centre, E17 9RJ

Saturday 7, 14, 21 December

10:00-18:00

Little Masher's popstop xmas market, 39 Orford Road, Walthamstow, E17 9NL

Montreal coffee shops

Today is less of a blog, more of a reblog. A late one at that. I went to Montreal at the beginning of October with work and was lucky enough to get a few days to explore the city. With time being of the essence, I was very lucky to be able to rely on Brian (of Brian's Coffee Spot fame) for some recommendations. His excellent and detailed blog post and personal tips on Twitter saved the day, letting me enjoy some of the best coffee the city has to offer even on my tight schedule.

Pikolo Espresso Bar

3418B Parc Avenue, Montreal, QC, H2X 2H5

With tables full of students tapping furiously away on their laptops, my friend and I felt a little out of place chatting in this tiny espresso bar. Cleverly installed seating alongside the narrow, galley-like counter and a mezzanine level gives some extra seating but at 11am on a weekday we were hard pressed to find a seat! Ordering a flat white and eponymous piccolo, we soon realised why the place is in such demand. 

The coffee was smooth, expertly poured and came with free wifi and a soundtrack which incorporated two of my favourite artists (Lykke Li and First Aid Kit) in the short time were were there. Result. Would definitely suggest you give this a try if ever in the area. pikoloespresso.com

Le Conteau (The Knife)
4627 Rue St Denis, Montreal, QC, H2J 2LA

We sought this place out for a well earned rest after a morning 'stroll' up to the top of Parc du Mont-Royal. We were hungry, thirsty and tired, and the laid back aesthetic of Le Conteau turned out to be the perfect tonic for our fatigue. Self-described as an artisan cafe, we were greeted by friendly service, amazing (gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free) brownies and B-E-A-UTIFUL coffee with beans from 49th Parallel. I went for a piccolo latte (which was basically a flat white) and enjoyed it so much I bought a bag of beans to bring home with me!

It's a fair way up Rue St Denis, but definitely worth the walk and there's some other great restaurants and shops around the top end of St Laurent Boulevard and Mount Royal Avenue. lecouteau.ca

Humble Lion
904 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montreal, QC H3A 1G3

Another student haunt, Humble Lion is directly opposite McGill University. Lovely and spacious with plenty of free seats and homely touches like bookshelves and school desks, the place feels like a labour of love. We went mid morning on a Saturday so it wasn't too busy with the students mostly off-campus.

I went for a latte, which was well poured with silky smooth milk but a little over-extracted which meant I was looking around for the sugar bowl. My friends had hot chocolates and, clearly,  someone was in the mood for showing off because they looked stunning and I am reliably informed tasted great too.

Humble Lion is close enough to town that it's easy to get to and chilled out at weekends (I imagine it gets pretty busy with students in the week) so worth a visit if you're going to take a look at the University Campus or on your way to Mont Royal. cafehumblelion.com

Wood St Coffee - a month old today

Happy birthday Wood St Coffee! You're a month old today!

The first month has gone swimmingly and we've already been asked if we're going to be open on more days of the week or do something more permanent. The answer is - we'd love to! But being practical souls, we're planning to take things one step at a time and try to grow the business organically rather than take out a giant loan or rush into something before we're ready. 

Starting something new is always scary and there's rarely reward without risk. Currently, our mantra is something like the below: 

Thank you!

So... potentially big things ahead. But really we want to say a massive THANK YOU to everyone that has supported us so far. Friends, family, regulars, one timers. Everyone that has tweeted about us, liked us on Facebook or told their friends about us. 

Your feedback is what inspires us so please continue to let us (and the world) know what you think of our coffee. We'd really love your help to get the word out so if you have a spare few minutes and want to recommend us on your favourite website, or tweet your favourite magazine please do! Introduce us to your friend that writes a blog and we'll shout you both a coffee. If you need photos or want to chat to us just let us know - you can tweet us @woodstcoffee or email woodstcoffee@gmail.com 

Clare & Gareth x

 

Wood St Coffee - week 2

So, last Sunday the weather was Hot Hot Hot and looks like this weekend will be the same. The surprising turn to summer prompted an emergency dash for another cool box and a shed load of ice so that we could rise to the occasion with some iced coffees. 

After some careful research we settled on the cold brew method to delicately extract the coffee over 12 -14 hours so that the flavour is still there (and the caffeine) but without any bitterness. We were pretty impressed with the results, and so were our customers:

"So excited about @woodstcoffee - loved my iced coffee this morning. See you next week"

"An ice coffee of champions from @woodstcoffee. Good on you @WoodStMarket"

"@woodstcoffee best ice coffee ever. Top work guys!"

Andy Murray may have stolen everyone away in the afternoon but with that winning performance we suppose we can forgive him!

We'll be serving cold brew iced coffees again tomorrow - see you for a spot in the sunshine and a some ice cold refreshment! 

Open Sundays, 11 - 4 

Wood Street Indoor Market (Marlowe Road entrance).

Wood St Coffee, Walthamstow, E17

We've arrived! 

Last week saw the first Wood St Coffee pop up at Wood Street Indoor Market E17. It went down a storm, if we do say so ourselves, with most people seeking us out after hearing about it on Twitter. It seems like there's a massive demand in the local area for good coffee and we're more than happy to oblige. Here's some of the love we received on the day:

“Happy to report it’s now possible to get a flat white (and a good flat white at that) in #woodstreet thanks to @woodstcoffee.”

"Such good coffee! Think @WoodStMarket will be regular haunt on a Sunday from now on."

"Finally, good coffee has arrived in Walthamstow! Thanks @woodstcoffee."

"@woodstcoffee @WoodStMarket Thanks for the great coffee, & even a sunny spot to enjoy it on Marlowe Rd."

With beans from Climpson’s and Sons; organic milk; and cakes made right here in Walthamstow by Norman Loves and Lucy Scott Traybakes - really, we're just a platform for East London to show off!

Furniture restorer The Chair Man has kindly extended his ‘chair testing area’ so you can settle in and enjoy your coffee whilst listening to the soulful sounds of Hypstz’ extensive record collection or opt for the outside area opposite the park on Marlowe Road.

Here's our menu in case you're thinking of popping by and some pictures from the first day. More to follow! 

Check out our profile on the Wood Street E17 website: woodstcoffee.co.uk

Wood St Coffee

Wood Street Indoor Market, 98-100 Wood Street, Walthamstow, London, E17 3HX

Having dreamt about having a cafe of my own for years and writing about other people’s for nearly as long I am VERY pleased to announce (drum roll, marching band, full guard of honour if you please…) that I am starting a coffee pop up!

It may not be a full on cafe, but it’s a start. We have the venue (Wood Street Indoor Market), the coffee machine (eBay) and are speaking to a few local suppliers at the moment about our coffee, cake and milk needs.

It’s been quite a journey – from my first cafe job back in Essex, to experiencing true cafe culture in Melbourne, to sampling the local scene in London. And I’ll continue to tell you all about it here as we get ourselves set up. So, for my first post as WoodStreet Coffee, I’ll introduce you to our host – Wood Street Indoor Market.

Find Wood St Coffee on Facebook Twitter

Photos by SipOnePurlOne

Brunch at L'entrepot

Photography @GaretReidPhoto 2013

230 Dalston Lane, London, E8 1LA

I moved house. Or flat. So that's why I haven't blogged in a while. Sorry. And, in other news, I started writing for recommendations website Twenty Something London (TSL) so have been a bit busy all in all.

The new place is in Walthamstow so I'll start visiting and reviewing places this end of town in the next few weeks. It may sound like I've grown up and moved to the 'burbs' but never fear, I'm only in zone 3 and 15 mins from Liverpool Street on the train. Phew. 

So... L'entrepot. I went for dinner and wine in the week with TSL and then got invited along to a brunch event today (perks of the job) which seemed more down my cafe-lined street. The recommendation will be going up on TSL in the next few days so check that out for the full picture. However, in terms of brunch I have to say I was suitably impressed. For what is essentially a wine bar and restaurant, man, can they do eggs. 

Chef Stefan is French so there's a definite continental twist on the menu with a fair few options it's impossible to pronounce. But the 'gypsy eggs' pulls them back from pretentious by whacking everything that's good about breakfast (eggs, bacon, tomatoes, potatoes...) into a pan and serving it up with sourdough. 

My other half tried the oeuf meurette - eggs and bacon cooked in wine. Don't let the purple hue put you off, the taste is fantastic. If you like red wine, why save it for dinner? 

Right next to Hackney Downs Station, it's an easy enough walk from Victoria Park Village or London Fields and well worth the effort. The atmosphere is laid back, the decor beautiful and staff knowledgeable. Brunch is served until 4pm at weekends so you can lie in as long as you like! 

There's freshly squeezed orange juice and coffee on offer but why not go for a bloody sherry or some Prosecco? You're in a wine bar after all. 

 L'entrepot are on Facebook and Twitter. Or check out their parent company Borough Wines. 

An introduction to Mayfield Farm

Mayfield Farm, Sheering Road, Harlow, Essex, CM17 0JP

I literally could not be happier to finally be able to post about somewhere vaguely close to my hometown of Harlow, Essex. The town could easily be described as a culinary wasteland - saturated with supermarkets, chain restaurants and cafes - with nowhere suitable for a lazy breakfast or a decent coffee.

However... I have recently been made aware of Mayfield Farm Bakery & School (& cafe). I'll let their produce do the talking...

We popped in quickly one Saturday morning and I was absolutely bowled over that this little gem has been around the corner all the time! The breads are understandably incredible (head baker Nick has been doing this for 30 years) but the amazing pastries, cakes and local produce were unexpected!

There's all your traditional loaves as well as several variations of sour dough and flavoured breads - cheese & onion, stilton & raisin and beetroot to name a few. We had about three loaves as well as some fresh croissants and I'm going to make it my mission to come back for more each time I stay at my parent's!

Compared to the same quality produce in London, the prices are REALLY competitive so there's no excuse not to fancy-up your weekend with some artisan fare.

If you want to learn how to make bread you can sign up to their Bakery School - it's a bit pricey but I'm sure the four and a half hour session is worth every penny. Class sizes are small (15 people) so you're likely to get plenty of focussed tuition.

I'm not sure why I wasn't aware of this place before. When I mentioned it to some of my friends they seemed to know about it - maybe it's one of those well kept secrets everyone wants to keep to themselves? No matter their marketing strategy, it seemed busy enough when we were in there so seems like the word is out (or it is now anyway..!).

We didn't have time to stay for a coffee and something to eat so I'll visit the cafe next time I'm home (around Easter) and do a follow up post with details of the menu etc. CAN'T WAIT!

Mayfield Farm Bakery & School have a website, they're on Facebook and Twitter.