Formerly Cafe Plenty, one of Brighton’s newest coffee shops, BackWood, has clearly invested in this sustainable cafe, as their decor has a touch of class, while offering plenty of seating inside and out. With painted brick walls, wooden seating and plenty of lighting – as well as their expansive windows – the shop is bright and airy, creating a feeling of sovereignty that is only increased once you delve deeper into the project itself. 

With a desire to run a zero waste cafe, BackWood source locally, reuse and minimise packaging as well as cutting out the most environmentally-damaging ingredients in their food. 

Recycled materials were used to make their tables and counters, while water bottles are not for sale and no single use takeaway cups are available. You can, however, pay a small fee to borrow a BackWood KeepCup instead, with a new initiative in Brighton that will go a long way to ensuring less landfill waste.

When it comes to the coffee, on espresso they offer a natural single origin from Brazil’s Fazenda Pico Mirante farm, roasted locally by Pharmacie Coffee Roasters, which is very bright initially with flavours of mango coming through before hazelnut and honey notes come to the fore as it cooled, offering a syrupy mouthfeel.

Their food offering is vast, with breakfast, lunch and all day options available, mostly leaning on the vegetarian and vegan side, and all sustainably sourced.

With such a grand project underway, this unique cafe has all the tools in place to open new avenues and shed light on a more sustainable way forward for coffee shops.