Urban Blend Coffee Shoppe

In my daily interactions with people here, if the subject of my blog comes up, a PE resident will inevitably suggest a coffee shop that I may not have visited yet.  Locals are always a great resource.  Michelle, a trainer at the gym, not only recommended a few coffee shops, but she also introduced me to her friend, Shaun Aupiais, a barista trainer and distributer of Sumatran Brand coffees here in PE.  After a few phone conversations, in which we "talked coffee," Shaun agreed to attend The Crawl as a resident coffee expert.  He chose Urban Blend Coffee Shoppe on the corner of 3rd Avenue and Hurd St. in Newton Park as the venue for an info session and coffee tasting for this week's crawlers. 

Fifteen of us, Fr. Dominic Griego, June Nash, Gail Taverner, Les Baldwin, Nomusa Nkomo, Gail Darne, Stella and Beryl Dawson, Beth Vieira, Fran and Keith de Beer, Leanne Waller, my husband, Lou, and my daughter, Liz, met at Urban Blend on Tuesday morning instead of our usual Thursday to accomodate Shaun's schedule. Initially, it appeared that parking would be an issue, but available spaces across the street and more in the back of the shop provided plenty of room for all of us along with numerous other patrons.  Shaun welcomed us all, led us to a reserved table, introduced himself, and took orders for our first round, which featured a "Single Origin Ethiopian" coffee.  Excellent choice, Shaun!  Everyone loved this round (even Nomusa, a loyal tea drinker) and I think, rather I'm sure, you just got yourself some new customers. 

Before round two, Shaun fielded coffee questions from the group.  He gave a brief explanation of different espresso beverages and brought a machiata for me to try.  Well, I've never had a machiata before, and now I'm sold...my new favorite (non-alcoholic) drink of all time...a machiata made with Single Origin Ethiopian Sodomo coffee!  So, for round two, about half the crawlers changed their original order to a machiata.  For this round, Shaun used Caffe Molinari brand and offered the crawlers the Urban Blend coffee/cake special, which a few of us couldn't resist,  Yes, I'm guilty of breaking my own No-Food-On-The-Crawl rule.  But the muffin was awesome with my Americano.  Shaun and Urban Blend's barista, Luthando, prepared both rounds of lattes, cappuccinos, machiatas, and Americanos for the group and served them in heated cups so as not to lose the 15 to 20 degree C that is lost when using cold cups. 

As round three was served by our waitress, Pinki, I had an opportunity to talk to Urban Blend's owner, Lisa Herman.  Lisa and her husband renovated a house and turned half of it into the Urban Blend Coffee Shoppe about a year ago.  They are looking to expand into the other half of the house soon.  I am a real fan of the subtle African decor of the shop with bold but tasteful colors on the walls.  There are tables and comfortable lounge areas on two levels of the shop and seating outside as well.  I love the laid back atmosphere and am sure to visit the shop again for a traditional breakfast or a gourmet sandwich for lunch.  Lisa told me that she had never been in the industry prior to opening the shop...you certainly had me fooled, Lisa...you're a natural! 

The PE Coffee Crawl is about coffee and conversation.  Well, this week, coffee was the conversation...at least for a good portion of our visit.  With my daughter, Liz, being a barista at a Starbucks in Washington, D.C., she and Shaun had much to discuss and share with the group.  At Nomusa's end of the table, a tea versus coffee debate ensued.  I was speaking to Lisa when the debate finally ended, but I'm guessing the coffee-lovers won, hands down...sorry, Nomusa.  Once the hot beverage topic was exhausted, the table talk turned to speeding fines with Lou and Liz vying for top honors.  Liz, I think your dad has you beat, but only because he is so much older.  At some point, discussion at the table split, with one end regaling the wonders of the Serengeti while the other end talked soap opera trash.  I won't tell which end I was on! 

Overall, this coffee crawl with Shaun, our special guest/barista/coffee connoisseur, was a hit with all present.  I'll be sure to keep on the lookout for more interesting "coffee people" in PE to introduce on the blog. 

A note on my son Jeff's comment on Cafe Ro-Ann: Jeff says Liz may be the favorite child since Lou came to two crawls (and counting) with her and zero with him.  He wants a vote on who is the coffee crawlers' favorite.  I think they'll all claim the Fifth, Jeff!  (For my non-American readers, the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution gives you the right to keep your mouth shut so as not to incriminate yourself).  Jeff, I'll see what I can do...I hear Keith takes bribes. 

Thank yous to:
~ Shaun, for the samples and for organizing this special crawl for us
~ Lisa and staff, keep up the awesome work!
~ This week's crawlers, who came out fot this special Tuesday crawl
~ My readers, for being patient with my late postings...I would have posted Saturday but the Surf was up at J-Bay for the Billabong competition.  Lou, Liz and I couldn't miss out on the sick barrels.  Congrats to South African surfer, Jordy Smith, who took the top prize.

One last note:  This week's coffee tasting reminded Liz of her barista colleagues working hard at the Van Ness Starbucks in Washington, D.C., while she vacations here in South Africa.  Liz sends a big HELLO! to Jack, Sam, and Stevi. 

Until next week (or whenever I get to it),

Ellen

Meet the Owner
Lisa Herman






This Week's Crawlers
Lou, Leanne, Keith, Beth, Stella, Beryl, Gail D., Nomusa, Les, Gail T., June, Liz, Fr. Dominic

 

Meet the Baristas
Luthando and Shaun

Cafe Ro-Ann

Back in high school I had a friend who made me crazy with her habit of being late for everything.  I, on the other hand, drove her nuts with my obsessive punctuality.  Well, that punctuality went down the tubes once I had my three children.  For some reason, regardless of how early I got started, I never seemed to be able to get anywhere on time.  Now, as an empty-nester, I'm back to the old "if you're not early, you're late" mindset......until this week.  My daughter, Liz, arrived in PE this past Wednesday evening and will be here visiting us for about five weeks.  I love having her here, however, Thursday morning, despite getting up earlier than usual for the coffee crawl, Liz and I ended up leaving for the crawl very late.  Heading down Main Road in Walmer I received a call from a group of crawlers who had already assembled at Cafe Ro-Ann wondering where I was.  I reassured them that I was on my way and silently resigned myself to the fact that I probably won't be on time for anything (including this posting) for the next five weeks......thank you, Liz!!!

I was very excited for this week's crawl because I'd heard so many great things about Cafe Ro-Ann ever since we moved here about a year ago.  I decided that it would be the perfect choice for Liz's first crawl.  Cafe Ro-Ann is located at 144 Villiers Road in Walmer and is open every day for breakfast and lunch.  Upon passing through the gate at Cafe Ro-Ann, patrons enter an outside garden area with numerous picnic tables along with a small play area for children.  Indoors, the shop includes three rooms, the green room, the orange room, and the smoking room, all of which have plenty of available seating.  The cafe offers free wireless internet for all patrons!!!

Our Waitress and the Owner
Alicia and Lynda Davies

Lynda Davies has owned Cafe Ro-Ann for three years.  She chatted with Liz and me after this week's crawlers departed, and introduced us to her staff.  Lynda's top priority is that she and her staff are all "doing it right" to ensure satisfied customers.  Well, Lynda, you all certainly "did it right" on Thursday morning as all of this week's crawlers, Fran and Keith de Beer, Les Baldwin, Nomusa Nkomo, Beryl and Stella Dawson, Gail Darne, June Nash, Beth Vieira, Margaret Zoetmulder, my husband, Lou, and my daughter, Liz will definitely be return customers.  As for the Ciro brand coffee, all the crawlers enjoyed their beverages prepared by barista, Melonisha Arends, and served by Alicia, but Liz especially liked her latte.  Nice job, Melonisha and Alicia!!!

This week's thirteen crawlers met in the orange room around a large table with three smaller tables pushed together to accommodate all of us.  After introducing Liz to everyone our initial conversation revolved around accents, and with South Africa having 11 official languages, there was much to discuss!  Everyone then took turns teaching my baby girl inappropriate, rated PG words and phrases in Afrikaans.  The geography of Africa then had everyone stumped but Liz came to the rescue and impressed all present by hand drawing a map of the African continent and labeling all the countries.  I cross checked it with the world map when I got home....she nailed it!  We discussed our plans for Liz's five week visit here....she's certainly looking forward to exploring South Africa.  Lastly, all the crawlers agreed that Liz must be the favorite child since Lou joined us for her first crawl but was nowhere to be found for Jeff's!  OUCH!

Thank you to Lynda and staff...I did make the perfect choice for this week's crawl...and thank you for the biscuits!!!  (sorry so late with the post)
Happy Birthday to Prudie Brown who shares her big day with Nelson Mandela on Monday, July 18.

Finally, to my high school friend, Karen.....I'm still waiting for my Christmas card!!!

Until next week (actually, later this week),

Ellen

This Week's Crawlers
Lou, Liz, Keith, Margaret, Beth, June, Stella, Fran, Gail, Beryl, Les, Nomusa

Meet the Barista
Melonisha Arends

My Husband and Daughter
Lou and Liz

live EAT. love

Happy 21st Birthday, Lizzy!!!

Not to worry, readers, I'm not planning to start every posting with a birthday wish (see June 24 post) but recently I've had a few "big ones" that I wanted to acknowledge.  In this case, my daughter (and youngest of my three children) just turned 21 on Wed., July 6.  To celebrate this momentous occasion (the fact that Liz is now legal to drink and gamble in the U.S.), my sister, Elaine, took Liz and her friends, Becca and Jenna, to Atlantic City, NJ for a few days.  The last I heard, they were on a winning streak at the blackjack tables.  That's my girl!!!  But, remember my last text msg, "know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em."  Hope you bought something nice for yourself at the outlets.

I wish I could have been there to celebrate with Liz (though I usually get owned at the casino) but I did the next best thing....and that was to meet my friends (this week's crawlers) Beth Vieira, Fran de Beer, June Nash, and Stella and Beryl Dawson at "live  EAT.  love"  for cappucinos and conversation.

I drive past  "live  EAT.  love" every day on my way home from the gym, which is just around the corner.  The shop, located on the corner of Centenary and Circular Drive in Lorraine has been open since February of this year.  Using sights, sounds, and tastes from her international travels as inspiration, owner and chef, Inge Nel renovated and redecorated this already existing coffee shop.  The fun logo, clean lines, and red-and-white decor make for a fresh atmosphere that every coffee lover in PE should experience.  Inge studied at Capsicum Culinary Studio in Cape Town for three years.  The display of cakes shows off her talent as a pastry chef... just check out the pic!  I also hear that her wedding cakes are amazing!!!  Pastry is not her 
only forte, though, as she offers a full breakfast and lunch menu, and also caters small functions both on and off site.  (I think I may organize a dinner party soon!!)  

"live  EAT.  love" is open Monday-Friday, 8-4, and Saturday 8-2 with a pensioner's coffee/cake special on Wednesdays.  Kind of makes me wish I was retired (well, I sort of am retired...unofficially...which doesn't count).  So, Inge takes care of the cake part while barista, Jocelle, is the coffee expert.  Jocelle uses Ciro brand for the filter coffees and LavAzza for the specialty beverages.  My cappuccinos were tremendous, though after drinking two of them I ended up with caffeine jitters that I had to work off at the gym later.
"live  EAT.  love" is in a small plaza on a busy intersection, and shares limited parking space with two adjacent businesses.  A visit to the shop is well worth the effort it may take to find a spot, though.  Right, Fran? 

So, in honor of Liz's birthday, this week's crawlers started off the talk at the table with our take on "Lady Luck."  Who does she smile upon?  Though no one at the table admitted to being very lucky (perhaps for fear of getting stuck with the bill!), we could all name numerous people who are... and they all seem to be related to us!  Somehow this turned into a discussion about tattoos and body piercings..... this must have been quite entertaining to Jocelle who couldn't quite hide her amusement.  Next, I posed a question that would stump even Ken Jennings.  What is the capital of South Africa?  I'd heard various answers to this question and wasn't quite sure (should have googled it).  Anyway, a debate ensued, a final decision made, and an explanation followed.  The answer in a nutshell.... South Africa has three capitals: Pretoria is the administrative capital , Cape Town is the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein is the judicial capital.  I must have looked somewhat bewildered because later in the day I received a phone call from Fran clarifying the answer for me......I googled it anyway......they were right.

And finally, I've had many talks with the crawlers over the past few months regarding South African culture.  It being such a complex topic I've just scratched the surface and have probably only learned enough to pass a "100 level" course on the subject.  We started on the "200 level" today.  Thank you, ladies, for your insight and very candid answers to all the questions I threw at you.

More thank you's:
*Thank you to Inge and Jocelle....very cool coffee shop
*Thank you to Elaine for making sure Liz had a memorable 21st birthday
*Thank you to Fran and Keith for being my "go to" source for all things South African

All these thank you's......and who said I'm not lucky?  (Right, that would be me)

Happy Birthday (July 8) to Marko, the ever-happy front desk guy at the gym...nothing beats getting thrown in a pool on a cold winter day!!!!!!

Until next week,

Ellen

This Week's Crawlers
Beth, Stella, June, Beryl, Fran

Meet the Barista
Jocelle

Meet the Owner
Inge Nel

Bocadillos Cafe

Deja vu... we've all experienced it... and when we do there's inevitably a need to make sure everyone around us knows it.  For some reason, I experienced deja vu more often when I was younger.  That seems odd since we have more experiences to "repeat"  as we age... whatever.  Anyway, Thursday morning, as I entered Bocadillos Cafe, a brief moment of deja vu swept over  me.  It quickly passed when Tristan, Bocadillos' manager, came over to greet me.  I certainly couldn't let him in on my deja vu (after all we'd just met!) so, instead, I gave him a quick rundown on the blog and he, in turn, gave me a tour of the shop.

Bocadillos has just recently relocated from 181 Main Rd. in Walmer to a much larger building and its present address at 54 6th Ave in Walmer.  This new shop has a large main dining room and a small side room leading out to a courtyard.  More seating is also available on the patio.  Now, most owners don't give much thought to the passageway that leads patrons to the rest rooms.  However, Bocadillos' owner, Kerry Repton-Smith, has stylishly decorated this area of the shop.  Along with a cute furnished space she has incorporated a curved wall covered in old sheet music.  It's a unique conversation piece.  As a matter of fact, Tristan and I "talked music " a bit when we got to this part of the tour.  It's very cool... check it out even it if you don't need to use the facilities while you're there!

Meet the Owners
Matt Repton and Kerry Repton-Smith

Now, if you're a regular reader of this blog you may recognize Kerry's surname, Repton, as also being that of VovoTelo's owner (Crawl #10, April 15 posting).  Well, it just so happens that Vovo Telo's owner, Matt Repton (who was not on site on crawl day at his shop) was at Bocadillos on Thursday visiting none other than his sister, and owner of Bocadillos!  Wow...what a great photo op!!!  Matt finally gets his pic on the blog!  So, there was something very familiar about the atmosphere of Bocadillos that I just couldn't identify... not a "deja vu familiar," but something......   Then it hit me...Bocadillos and Vovo Telo both have an energy that is palpable.  The staff at both shops is enthusiastic, fun, and all appear to totally love their jobs.  Matt and Kerry must have a family secret for how to run a successful business.  Kudos to both of you!!!

Bocadillos has an amazing bakery (I bought some croissants to take home!) and a taste-tempting menu.  Illy brand is used for all their coffee beverages.  The cappuccinos, prepared by baristas Kukie and Taba, were excellent, as were the designs in the froth!  Our waiter, Siya, and manager, Tristan, visited the table a few times to chat with this week's crawlers, Beth Vieira, Stella and Beryl Dawson, June Nash, and Fran and Keith de Beer, and to make sure we were all happy with our coffees and the service.  No complaints here!

Knowing we were meeting this week at Bocadillos, June didn't eat breakfast because she planned to break the "No Food On The Crawl" rule.  She opted for the oats with some stir-ins.... and looked like she had died and gone to heaven as she ate it!  Well, that kept her quiet as the rest of us discussed last weekend's  International Food Fest for which I made Sloppy Joes and Apple Pie.  Another topic at the table was the Grahamstown Arts Festival (June 30-July 10).  In the spirit of the festival, June, though unable to speak, busted out a ballet move that would put Barishnikov to shame!!!  June, you missed your calling!  So, after 21 "Crawls" you'd think we'd have run out of things to talk about... guess not, because recycling and how opposites attract were also discussion topics this week.  We then brainstormed names of more coffee shops to visit in the coming months.  Settle in, folks, ... believe me, we'll be doing this for a while!!!

Thank you's and special occasions:
*Thank you to Kerry Repton-Smith and Matt Repton for providing PE with two great coffee shops... BRAVO!
*Thank you to Tristan and the rest of Bocadillos' fun staff
*Happy Anniversary to Fran and Keith de Beer (July 1)
*Happy 4th of July to all my American readers...hope you have good weather for your celebrations, and enjoy the fireworks!

When I asked my daughter, Liz, what "deja vu" actually means in French she said, "already seen."  Lou, you were pretty close when you said it meant, "been there, done that."   Both work for me!

Until next week,

Ellen

This Week's Crawlers
Stella, Fran, Beth, June, Beryl, Keith

Meet the Baristas
Kukie and Taba

The Bocadillos' Staff