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.
From the UK’s first Green Party MP, to the many cycle lanes and eco warriors based in Brighton, we’re a city dedicated to sustainability. However, that’s not always been the case in the coffee industry, as we throw away hundreds of thousands of disposable cups each year.
The BYO Coffee Cup scheme has helped curve attitudes but one shop that is trying to force the issue is the recently-opened Baker Street Coffee, situated on (you guessed it!) Baker Street, just off London Road. Their pledge to help end single-use coffee cups has seen them become the first shop in the city to ban takeaway cups altogether, subsiding their reusable cups to make it an affordable concept for many.
As you approach, the calming navy blue exterior is a welcoming presence, and once inside you’re surrounded by wood on all sides; from the floorboards to the seating and shelves to the wall decor. The drinks menu is minimal, with the regular milky offering (Flat White, Latte, Cappuccino and Mocha) alongside their espresso, black coffee and tea options.
Their beans come from Coffee at 33 and our espresso produced hazelnut and dark chocolate flavours on first taste before cooling to give off caramel and lemon zest notes. They also provide water with your drink which is always a nice touch.
Much like Coffee at 33, the aesthetic is very stripped back, with old beer barrels as seating, plain white walls, a minimalist plant selection as well as a limited offering of cakes and pastries. Unlike 33, though, music is audible. Yet, it tends to lean on the calmer, more ambient side, taking you away from the hustle and bustle of The Level and London Road directly outside.
Their milk options are simple: dairy or Oatly. With no alternative milk tax either, this new spot is already a leading light in Brighton when it comes to sustainability.
Much like the Genesis album of 1978, the new Pelicano on Queens Road has a different feel to what’s come before from their back catalogue. The Sydney Street shop, and first Pelicano to open, is renowned for its wide selection of cakes and treats, while their second shop, opened in February of this year, offers the opportunity to grab a takeaway caffeine fix or sip fine coffee while hanging out at The Level.
However, the new Pelicano on Queens Road, in the same premises as the former Taylor St Baristas, has taken all the best bits from their previous coffee shops and made a total coffee shop in every sense.
As you enter you can’t miss the strikingly swank Synesso Cyncra espresso machine, restored specifically for the shop by The Coffee Doctor. Once inside, wooden floorboards run the length of the room, with exposed brickwork visible on their feature walls, as well as many plants keeping the shop feeling fresh and balanced.
Out back, the garden is a sun-trap and, with hand-made benches from wall to wall, there is plenty of seating to soak up the sun and chat away the hours with friends.
On the coffee front, Pelicano offer their classic Smokey Bird blend on their Synesso, which creates notes of dark chocolate with a coating mouthfeel before giving way to stone fruits and vanilla flavours as it cools. They also offer a range of single origin beans on their brew bar, which faces onto Queens Road, providing the perfect example of speciality coffee to the busy streets of Brighton.
Although it may have taken them five years to open a second shop, it has only taken them five months to open their third, and with this latest opening, they have got it spot on.
Espresso Machine: Synesso Cyncra Roaster: Pelicano House Roastery Grinder: Victoria Arduino Mythos 1, Mahlkonig EK43 Founded: 2019
Getting to grips with: Latte Art
Although not the be all and end all, a good sign of a competent barista is their latte art. Brighton is home to some incredible baristas, and through the various latte art competitions that take place over the year, they are able to meet up and show what they’ve got.
The upcoming Brighton Coffee Festival, taking place on 11th August at The Open Market, features The Latte Art Champions Throwdown, showcasing the best that Brighton has to offer.
Latte art is something relatively easy to learn, but hard to master. Like most things, in high pressure situations, such as a competition or busy Saturday service, maintaining a consistently high quality of texture, temperature, and a steady hand is deceptively difficult. Add in the fact that you’re probably on your nth coffee of the day, drawing on a liquid canvas, and things can get very wobbly very fast.
The popularisation of latte art is widely credited to David Schomer, the co-founder of Espresso Vivace, whose early focus on quality coffee led to latte art becoming more mainstream.
Bad latte art doesn’t necessarily equate to a bad coffee, but good latte art shows that the milk has been textured correctly. We here at The Independent Brighton & Hove Coffee Guide are firm believers in the idea that the enjoyment of a cup of coffee isn’t solely down to the taste of the drink, but the experience as a whole; the environment, the atmosphere, the barista serving you, and of course the latte art, all play a part in your enjoyment of a coffee.
If you work in coffee, some of the of the most common questions you’ll be asked are about how to store coffee. How long does it last? Should I put it in the fridge? Can I freeze it? How should I store it? As with most subjects related to coffee, there are many different schools of thought around the issue, so we thought we’d try and explain what affects coffee when it’s stored, and hopefully answer any questions in the process.
How long will my coffee last? This is probably the most common question and the answer has many variables. The most obvious one being if the coffee has been ground or not. There is no convenient “best before” date on a bag of coffee, and it doesn’t really go off like other perishables. It is much preferable to keep your coffee as beans, ideally in an airtight container in a cool dark cupboard, and then grind enough for a single cup when you need it.
As beans, the optimal time to be drinking is about 4-7 days after the roast date, then after about two weeks the taste will flatten a little, but will by no means be bad or go off. I’ve drunk coffee that has tasted fine over a month after roasting. If the coffee has been ground, that is a different question altogether, and leads nicely on to the next question.
Should I put my coffee in the fridge? Can I freeze it? You’ll have probably been told to never put your ground coffee in the fridge, and that is correct to a certain extent. The reason you shouldn’t keep your coffee in the fridge is because ground coffee is hygroscopic, which is just a fancy way to say that coffee absorbs moisture from the air.
It’s what means coffee can dissolve into water and become a drink, and also means that almost as soon as you grind your coffee it begins to lose its flavour. If left out in the open, ground coffee will oxidise and go stale. If you put it in the fridge, the coffee will absorb all the moisture it can and start to go bad.
Hygroscopic substances absorb odors and, when it comes to coffee, that affects the taste. If you have a bag of coffee in your fridge as well as an onion, for example, your coffee would taste more and more like onion the longer it is in there. On the other hand, if your fridge smells you can put some coffee in there to neutralise the odor!
If your ground coffee is in a completely airtight container, there is no reason why you can’t store your coffee in the fridge or freezer. If you choose to do this, I’d recommend splitting up the coffee into smaller portions, as each time you take it out and open it up, you’ll expose the coffee to a large amount of moisture.
So how should I store it? So we’ve mentioned two of the things that majorly affect coffee – moisture and oxygen. There are two more factors that are equally important – sunlight and heat. Heat is an obvious one, if you leave food or drink out at room temperature, it goes off quicker that if it’s cold. Molecules move faster the hotter they are, therefore deteriorate quicker.
Sunlight, or light in general, causes something calledphotodegradation. It is the same process that causes the colour of something to fade when left in sunlight. In coffee, the light causes compounds within the coffee to degrade, which affects the taste. Put simply, it makes the coffee go stale.
The science is all well and good, but you haven’t answered the question: How should I store my coffee? Store your coffee as whole beans if you can, in an airtight, opaque container, and put it in a cool dark place. If it’s ground, you can follow the same rules. Freezing it will keep it fresher for longer, but portion it into small amounts to avoid contamination.
The month of August in the Brighton calendar is filled with festival activity, endless days on the beach and celebrations galore. From the fun of Brighton Pride to the beaches packed with those tanning in the summer sun, to the tourist attractions buzzing with visitors looking to soak up the spirit of Brighton; the city is alive. However, 2019 will see the inclusion of another stimulating event in the diary as the first Brighton Coffee Festival takes place at The Open Market on Sunday 11th August.
The one-day event will bring together the very best roasters, speciality coffee shops, artisan food spots, machine manufacturers and industry leaders, along with DJ’s, competitions and much, much more for this coffee extravaganza.
How To Get Involved The very first Brighton Coffee Festival is taking place this summer at Brighton’s Open Market on London Road, with three sessions taking place throughout the day, which runs from 10.30am-4.30pm.
You can buy tickets now from www.brightoncoffeefest.com with the option to choose your selected sessions or opt for the All Day pass if you feel two hours of coffee drinking just will not suffice.
What To Watch
Roasters Sussex is one of the most fruitful locations when it comes to high-end coffee roasters in the UK and luckily for us, many of them will be appearing at BCF 2019. From local giants Small Batch Coffee Roasters to the Hove-based speciality roasters (who open one day a week as a coffee shop) Pharmacie Coffee Roasters, to Henfield’s very own Craft House Coffee, the list is long and extremely exciting.
On the day you’ll be able to try coffees from all of these magnificent roasters and plenty more, as well as having the chance to chat to the team behind these amazing coffees and even buy a bag to take home.
Informative Talks You’ve seen the company names for years, but now it’s time to take a look behind the curtain and hear from those making Brighton’s coffee scene truly great.
Already announced to participate at BCF are Pharmacie’s Tash Murphy, as she discusses equality in hospitality, Sussex University’s Dr Jonathan Newsome, who’ll be delving into the details of the coffee industry and its long-term sustainability, and Laura Lumsden from Small Batch Coffee Roasters, who’ll be explaining how best to go from working as a barista to owning your own coffee shop.
With plenty of other informative talks still to be announced, keep your eyes peeled for the chance to sign up and ensure your place these limited-ticket talks.
Out of Towners As well as the very best from Brighton and Sussex, there’ll be plenty of exhibitors from outside of the county walls looking to make an impression on Brighton’s renowned coffee scene.
These include the world famous Victoria Arduino, who are one of the planet’s finest manufacturers of coffee machines, while Origin Coffee Roasters will also be in attendance showing off their fantastic selection of responsibly sourced coffee. The middle of August will certainly require refreshing drinks and Lost Coast Food Co. will also be on hand to provide some of the best iced tea around.
Latte Art Championship Taking place throughout the day on the BCF Main Stage, a champion will be crowned as Brighton’s best baristas battle it out in the Latte Art Champions Throwdown.
We’ve seen some incredible throwdowns taking place in the city already this year and with such a high level of expertise on show, this is bound to be a fascinating watch. We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for who can hold their nerve throughout.
Entertainment Whether or not coffee is your cup of java there’s plenty to keep everyone happy at this celebration of everything coffee and Brighton. With a DJ spinning tunes throughout the day there’ll be vibes galore, while the wide-ranging selection of artisan food traders will give everyone the option of dipping their toe in the world of high-end speciality food and drink.
Local tea specialists Bird & Blend will also be on hand showcasing their excellent selection of loose leaf teas so, if coffee doesn’t get your buzz going, there’s still plenty to be experienced throughout the day.
For more information or to book your tickets to the 2019 Brighton Coffee Festival today, just head to www.brightoncoffeefest.com
From the food to the design, The Plant Room is a celebration of all things plant-based. We wanted to find out the inspiration behind this, so talked to the owners, managers, and chefs across the many stores in order to delve a little deeper into The Plant Room’s philosophy.
The link between a cafe and its food is clear, with the menu on offer often reflecting the tastes of the surrounding area. With Brighton being home to a much higher number of vegetarians and vegans than the national average, many establishments offer meat and dairy free alternatives.
The Plant Room, though, is head and shoulders above the competition with its plant-based offerings. Nearly every single item on the menu is vegan, with the few that aren’t being vegetarian.
The relationship between the name, the food they serve, and the plants adorning the walls is an obvious one, but it shows a clear philosophy behind the decision making process. The design of the stores is both cooly minimalist and inviting. We spoke to owner Alexx, and he said:
“Design has always been key to what we do at TPR, and when approaching the decor we were keen to avoid the ‘industrial, shabby chic’ stereotype of so many speciality shops. I’m strongly influenced by the clean yet organic forms found in Danish design.”
Established in 2016(?), The Plant Room now has multiple stores across Brighton and Hove, with a new focus on food coinciding with the opening of The Plant Room Deli on London Road. The food has gone from strength to strength over the last year, and really become the star of the show.
From the new additions of a warming homemade soup of the day and deliciously comforting Celeriac Mac and Cheese, to the range of cakes and brownies, everything tastes great. The food isn’t just great for vegan food, it’s just great food. “The Plant Room opened as a vegetarian coffee shop which is something we’ve always stuck to…but if we can make something vegan without affecting the taste we will do.”
The original store, at Brighton Square, has undergone radical transformations since its original opening in 2016(?). “ The first Plant Room grew out of, and eventually took over from, our homeware shop. After becoming the star of the show at Brighton Square we decided to pivot further into the coffee world and within a year we’d grown popular enough to open a second location on Boundary Road, with the Deli following soon after that.”
The most recent change is the introduction of a fully working kitchen to coincide with a fresh new seasonal menu. Their Head Chef said: “We like to move with the seasons and whatever veg is in the limelight at that time. As for coming up with a menu it’s really all about what we love eating and passion for new dishes.”
This new menu will be available in each location, with the specific stores having their own specials. The Plant Room have also branched outside of their own venues, offering a private catering service to events and parties, as well as supplying their food to other establishments.
We’re excited to see what the future holds for The Plant Room and their new direction. “With kitchens at the Deli and Brighton square, and soon at Boundary Road Hove too, we believe we offer something unique and special that showcases the best of Brighton food and drink in a calming and cool environment. Because of this we see our future filled with even more fantastic espresso, tasty and ethical food and who knows, maybe another location or two?” Whatever the future holds, it’s clear that the combination of great food and coffee at The Plant Room is here to stay.
Anyone who’s walked down the busy Kensington Gardens street in the North Laine will know that sometimes you just need a small respite from the crowds. Luckily, Jolliffes offers this.
If you decide to duck inside, you’ll be greeted by a surprisingly spacious location. Set out over two floors, Joliffees brings Scandinavian sensibilities to mind but not the sleek functionality of modern IKEA furniture, but a warmer feeling. Classic wooden furniture and boarding, chalet styled, with woollen decorations. The walls are also adorned with art for sale. It reminds of Tove Jansson’s Moomins, or Bergen in Norway if you’re lucky enough to have been.
Fortunately, Scandinavia and coffee go hand in hand. Jolliffes serve Red Roaster, a smooth offering that works well as a black coffee. The cakes available are what will catch the eye, with a number of fantastic options available. A coffee and a cake from Jolliffes is the perfect cure when those weekend crowds prove too much.
This time last year we wrote about the lack of speciality coffee on offer in the Aldrington area of Hove and now, 12 months on, we couldn’t be more pleased to see the area is becoming one of the locations in Brighton and Hove to get your specialty fix.
The Flour Pot Bakery opened just over two weeks ago and has seen a continuous flow of customers ever since. In classic Flour Pot style, once you step inside the building, checkerboard tiles line the floor beneath your feet while fresh bread, pastries other baked goods take control of your sense of smell.
The layout offers plenty of seating and the white walls, blue counters, marble tops and copper piping are further trademarks of the local bakery.
On brighter days this spot is soaked in sun whether you’re inside or out and, with expansive windows that can open fully stretching the front and side of the building, this shop is bright and breezy when the weather permits.
We tried an espresso and an iced latte using The Flour Pot’s house blend, made up of Colombian, Brazilian and Rwandan beans. The espresso offered notes of hazelnut and cocoa, before blooming as it cooled to produced dried fruit flavours on the palette.
With the established independent shop 44 Poets just around the corner, this area of Hove is quickly becoming a community for coffee lovers.
Machine: La Marzocco Linea Roaster: The Flour Pot Grinder: La Marzocco Vulcano Founded: 2019
Coffee sustainability: Sussex Uni to host interactive event
Brighton is, pound for pound, the biggest coffee-drinking city in England. As coffee lovers we demand the best from the little bean but, in a city as green as ours, is there enough of a focus on the sustainability of the industry?
While it has been widely accepted that the business of coffee is not sustainable as it stands in the long-term, certain forward-thinking companies are beginning to work out ways to change the face of coffee and the future for many involved in its production.
While speaking to Perfect Daily Grind last year, the president of the Committee on Sustainability Assessment (COSA), Daniele Giovannucci, said, “The key has been a declining income and more aggressive production systems requiring greater investment and risks. In real-dollar prices, farmers earn less than they did decades ago.
“Without an economic foundation, it is difficult to conceive of thriving farming communities that can be the basis for a diversified and growing industry. There are visionary leaders who believe that sustainability is the basis of long-term profit and are running their firms that way. Yet, some of the large firms in coffee lack any vision except for the uninspiring one of maximising their short-term profit.”
Taking a step to help tackle the issue and raise awareness, The Sussex Sustainability Research Programme at the University of Sussex have announced they will be running an interactive event on Monday 20 May at the One Church, Brighton.
The event will explore these issues with some of the most well-respected experts in their field in the UK. These include Konrad Brits (Falcon Coffees), Cat Fletcher (Freegle), Emma Keller (WWF), Dr Jonathan Newman (University of Sussex), Fi O’Brien (Girls Who Grind Coffee), Al Tomlins (Small Batch Coffee Roasters) and Ben Szobody (Pro Baristas).
The talks will last for around five minutes each before those in attendance are able to contribute their thoughts, with the SSRP hoping to create a manifesto that can help coffee shops, roasters and more in the future.
The evening starts at 6pm and will run until 8pm and, to book your spot at the event, click on the image below and follow the sign-up link.
