Fresco

It's hard to believe that almost two months have passed since the last "official" Coffee Crawl.  I'd like to thank Leanne again for hosting the Crawlers at her home in mid-May when Liz, Jeff, Chris and I returned from the U.S.  We had a great time, Leanne, and the food was wonderful!

After our road trip to Cape Town Chris went back to the States.  Later that week Jeff, Liz and I had a quick cup of coffee with the Crawlers at the Donkin Reserve Green Leaf Cafe.  Quite a crowd "pitched" (my new favorite South Africanism) and we got to catch up with everyone before we set out for a two week trip to Namibia and Botswana.  The trip was fantastic and, despite one harrowing incident with two very angry black rhinos, a good time was had by all.

Last week, just before Jeff and Liz left for the U.S., they joined the Crawlers at Fresco for Coffee Crawl #63.  Fresco, located at The Acres, 20 Nile Road in Perridgevale, opened its doors for business on May 7.  The shop was recommended to me by an anonymous PE Coffee Crawl blog reader via a comment on the Starburst post.  Fresco's owner Tanya Erasmus told the Crawlers that she had been considering opening a coffee shop for some time so when the opportunity presented itself she went for it.  Well, word about this new shop must have spread around PE quickly as was evidenced by the steady stream of customers there this past Thursday morning.

Meet the Owner
Tanya Erasmus

Desperately in need of a caffeine fix, Jeff, Liz and I arrived at Fresco early on Crawl day.  We settled into a table upstairs because, when given an option, I will always choose loft or second level seating.  I imagine there is some psychology behind that.... feel free to enlighten me if you are so inclined.  Anyway, as we waited for the rest of the Crawlers to arrive we had a chance to admire Fresco's interesting decor.  Tanya has a real knack for interior design.  She has taken a mixed-bag (vintage, modern, distressed) of second-hand tables, chairs, and curios, and accented it with hand crocheted hanging light shades of varying sizes and a unique collection of clocks.  The awesome color scheme, along with the very cool Fresco Fresh Daily logo, ties everything together.  Tanya, your shop is beautiful.... my favorite decor of all the shops we've visited!

Fresco can accommodate 60+ patrons with upstairs, downstairs and outside seating available.  The shop's menu includes light breakfasts and lunches featuring freshly prepared baked goods and homemade jams.  The Saturday morning R38 Breakfast Special has become a favorite of customers since the shop's opening.  Fresco's hours are Mon-Fri, 7:30-4 and Sat, 8:30-1.

Meet the Barista
Addie



Meet the Fresco Staff
Di-anne, Synodia, Jane, Mandy



Enough talk about the decor and menu... let's get down to what really counts... the coffee.  Fresco is the only place in the Eastern Cape at the moment that carries Italian imported Chicco Doro coffee.  The shop's talented barista, Addie, prepared some excellent cappuccinos and Americanos for the Crawlers.  I am a real fan of the Chicco Doro/Addie combo!  It is definitely a "must try" for PE coffee lovers!

This week's Crawlers
Gail, Beryl, Nomusa, Stella, June, Fran, Liz, Jeff

So, on to the talk at the table.  Our first discussion topic on the June 21 Crawl was the Winter Solstice... "shortest day" of the year in the Sounthern Hemisphere / Summer Solstice... "longest day" of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.  Jeff and Liz found it interesting that they would be experiencing two Winter Solstices in 2012 as they will be in the States in December.  In honor of the celestial occasion, the Crawlers, June Nash, Stella and Beryl Dawson, Gail Darne, Nomusa Nkomo, Fran de Beer, and my son and daughter, Jeff and Liz, dubbed Thursday's Crawl as the "Solstice Crawl."  ....  Winter?    Summer?     It matters not.

With that out of the way we went on to discuss the funky dreams that Liz experienced as a result of taking malaria pills for too long.  The best was the one where she was being chased by a monstrous slice of pizza that had mushroom eyes and utensil appendages.  It would be fun to have a dream expert analyze that one!  The remainder of the Crawl was spent with Nomusa telling tales of her recent trip to the UK, and Jeff, Liz and I sharing stories of our trip to Namibia and Botswana.  After two months of traveling all I can say is that I need a vacaion from my vacation! 

It's good to be back in PE and Crawling again.

~Thank you to Tanya, Addie  and the Fresco staff.  Your new business is off to a great start... Best Wishes!
~Thank you yet again to Delta Airlines for getting Jeff and Liz back to the U.S. safely.
~Belated birthday wishes to:  my brother Chuck - June 17,  David - June 16,  Jackie- June 23,  and Chris -
  June 25.
~Chris, it was fun having you visit... glad you got to meet the Crawlers... they all send their regards!
~Kudos to all the June 21 Crawlers... it was the first Crawl of 2012 at which no one broke the No-Food-
  On-The-Crawl Rule!!!!!

Until next week (Ahhh.. music to my ears!),

Ellen