A Port Elizabeth Coffee Crawl Special Edition - Coffee Culture Barista Jam at Fresco

On Friday, April 19, the creators of the Coffee Culture App sponsored another Barista Jam, this time at Fresco on Nile Rd. in Perridgevale.  Quite a crowd showed up to watch as PE baristas attempted to outdo each other in their latte art.  A special Barista Jam short menu, to go along with the free coffees, was offered by the Fresco owner, Tanya Erasmus, and her hospitable staff.  Musical entertainment was provided by the very talented Sean Sampson.

What?....  Free coffee????

Sean Sampson

Bird's eye view of the action

Baristas in action

Meet the featured baristas
Shaun, Samora, Byron, Simpiwe, Sinethemba, Addie



Fresco's beautiful waitstaff
Alicia, Synodia, Jane



While at the Jam I had the opportunity to speak with many of the customers.  Some had been to the Jam at Friendly Stranger in March and had marked their calendars so as to be free to make it to the Fresco Jam.  Others found out about it on the Coffee Culture App "Events" icon on their smartphones.  Still others just happened upon this Barista Jam by accident.  Regardless of how they got there everyone thoroughly enjoyed the event and all are looking forward to the May Jam.

Some of the latte art from Friday night:

A snowman in SA?

The next Barista Jam will be held on Friday, May 17, 7:00- 9:30, at Como Caffe on Heugh Rd. in Walmer.  Expect to see more PE baristas in action showing off their latte art skills and demonstrating a variety of brewing methods.  If you love coffee and are looking for a fun night out come join the Como Caffe staff, the Coffee Culture App folks, the Coffee Crawlers and other coffee lovers for this upcoming Jam.  Enjoy free coffee and musical entertainment all night and become part of the new rage that has hit PE...... Coffee Culture! 

Don't find yourself out of the loop.... load the free Coffee Culture app on your smartphone for all coffee related info in PE and the surrounding areas.  Do it now and be in the know!  

~Thank you to Ryan, Shaun, and all the baristas who made Friday evening's event so entertaining
~Thank you to Tanya and the Fresco staff for the wonderful venue
~Thank you to Sean Sampson for the excellent musical entertainment
~See you all on May 17

Ellen


Where do you get t-shirts like this?  I want one!

PS to Firefly - Come join us .... we'd love to finally meet you!

African Sky's

Thursday morning as I was preparing to leave my house for the Crawl I noticed the slight beginnings of a rainbow in the distant sky.  The route I took to this week's coffee shop (tea garden) had me go from Circular Dr. to Kragga Kamma Rd. and on into the Theescombe area where I turned left onto Welcome Rd.  And quite a welcome I received..... it was at this point that the faint rainbow I had seen only fifteen minutes earlier had turned into a bright and beautiful full arch of vivid colors (6-7, depending on when you learned the visible light spectrum!).  As I continued down Welcome Rd. and saw where the rainbow actually touched the ground I figured it was my lucky day!  Much to my dismay there was no pot of gold to be found, however when I turned left onto Nassau Rd. quite a gem was awaiting me in the form of African Sky's.

African Sky's is located at 120 Nassau Rd. in Theescombe.  It is actually a multi-functional venue.  An 85 seat outside tea garden is situated adjacent to a touch farm and a children's play area.  There is no entrance fee and all the tables are fiixed with shade umbrellas.  This is a perfect spot for book club and writers' club meetings, breakfast gatherings, or groups of moms and kids to enjoy a day outdoors.  Should the weather be anything but warm and sunny, don't cancel or change your plans for the day..... rather, just take your meeting/gathering/play group indoors to the large banquet area.  The inside venue is typically used for weddings/ functions/parties of up to 120 guests.  Additionally, there is a lapa room which seats up to fifty people.

The African Sky's coffee shop/tea garden hours of business are Wed-Sun (including holidays), 10-4:30, at which time breakfast, lunch and cakes are served.  Large events in the indoor venue can be scheduled for any time with catering available.  Also on the property is a self-catering facility for small daytime gatherings/parties.  All of the African Sky's areas are wheelchair accessible and there is plenty of parking available in the lot at the entrance on Nassau Rd.

Meet the Barista
Thembi



Meet the African Sky's Staff
Kholeka, Thembi, Manager Le-ann, Viv



Thursday's Crawlers, Gail Darne, Sylvia Mynhardt, June Nash and her grandson, Luke, Margaret Zoetmulder, Margaret and Arthur Marshall, Beth Vieira, Leanne Waller, Anne Marie Rankin, Nomusa Nkomo, enjoyed the rainbow view compliments of the off and on drizzle but due to that light precipitation we chose to sit indoors.  We were made to feel right at home by the staff and management.  Our barista/waitress, Thembi, kept the teas and Caturra coffees coming while chefs, Kholeka and Viv, supplied the "No-Food-On-The-Crawl" rule-breakers with lucious scones and cakes.  Later, as the Crawl was well underway, Manager, Le-Ann Heydenrych, took interested Crawlers on a tour of the facility.  During the tour I couldn't help but ask about the incorrectly placed apostrophe in the venue's name.  Le-Ann explained that the owners just wanted something different that would draw attention.  It does just that,,,,Le-Ann says "the apostrophe" comes up often in her conversations with customers.




This Week's Crawlers
Beth, Gail, Sylvia, Arthur, Anne Marie,
Margaret M., Margaret Z., June, Like, Nomusa
 not pictured - Leanne



Well, among the Crawlers on Thursday "the apostrophe" did not come up in the conversation.  What we did discuss, in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings, was world wide terrorism.  Quite the weighty topic for those who are just out for a nice morning cup of coffee.  However, in my experience, talk of these types of horrific events generally leads to ramped up feelings of patriotism and national unity, and a search for meaning and something positive.  Our focus on the Crawl, then, turned to the good things that arise from such a tragedy..... people helping people, heroes, and the resilience of the human spirit.  Our collective thoughts and prayers go out to the people of Boston.

"Be a rainbow in someone else's cloud."   -Maya Angelou

~Thank you to Manager Le-Ann and the African Sky's staff..... a wonderful group of ladies!
~Happy Freedom Day, South Africa!!! - April 27

Until next week,

Ellen

Is that a wallaby I see?

Roast Master Cafe

There are only a few coffee shops in PE where their coffee beans are roasted right on the premises.  Thursday's Crawl site, Roast Master Cafe at Moffett on Main Lifestyle Centre in Walmer, is one of them.  The aroma of freshly roasting beans is one I find irresistable so whenever I'm at Moffett on Main I usually stop in for a take-away coffee.

Meet the Barista/"Roastmaster"
Veliswa

The Crawlers visited Roast Master's sister shop on Bridge St. in South End over a year ago (March, 2012 post).... I think over 20 of us showed up that day!  This past Thursday's group was somewhat smaller, but no less enthusiastic with Beth Vieira, June Nash, Margaret Zoetmulder, Margaret and Arthur Marshall, Nomusa Nkomo, Sylvia Mynhardt, Gail Darne, June Nash, Colleen LeRoux, joining me for tea, coffee and Roast Master's famous bagels.

This Week's Crawlers
Sylvia, Gail, Beth, Colleen, June, Arthur,
 Margaret Z., Margaret M., Nomusa



Roast Master's famous bagels



Roast Master Cafe is situated right in the middle of the shopping centre with many of its eighty seats spilling out into the perimeter of the main concourse.  This open floor plan lends a sidewalk cafe style atmosphere to the shop.  Roast Master has been at Moffett on Main for four years offering the centre's patrons a menu of beverages, breakfasts, lunches, and a large variety of fresh baked goods made on-site by their own baker.

Meet the Manager
Tracey Saker

 

Thursday's staff on duty included manager, Tracey Saker, barista/roaster, Veliswa, and waiter, Lubabalo (who made sure our bagels came fresh out of the oven!).  The service, coffee and bagels were all outstanding!  Roast Master's hours are Mon-Fri, 7:30-5:30, Sat, 8-5, Sun, 8-2.

Meet our Waiter
Lubabalo

Hot chocolate and cappuccino....
two of my favorites!





Conversation at the table on Thursday centered mostly around the Ironman South Africa event that would be held on Sunday, April 14.  For the past nine years PE has hosted this event that brings over a thousand participants from all over the globe to the Nelson Mandela Bay area.  PE experienced horrific weather for last year's Ironman..... reports predicted beautiful conditions for this year's event.  Sunday did prove to be the perfect day for Ironman 2013.  Lou and I usually just see the cycling and running portions but this year dsecided to check out the swimming start.  Definitely well worth getting up before the crack of dawn to witness the Ironman start from the pier at the beachfront.  The coffee stalls, which were open when we arrived, surely made the early morning experience more than bearable!



Welcome to PE!!!!



~Thank you to the Roast Master Cafe staff!

~Happy Birthday to my daughter-in-law, Maryanne, in Cleveland, TN - April 19

~Happy Birthday to my nephew, David, in Edinboro, PA - April 19

~Congrats to all the 2013 Ironman participants!

Until next week,

Ellen

















Pierre's Bistro

I'm not much of shopper, thus, I don't spend a lot of time at the malls here.  So, when Keith suggested we try Pierre's Bistro at the Greenacres Shopping Centre for the Crawl I knew I would have to do some reconnaissance work.  Lou and I stopped by Greenacres on the way home from a Masterton's run (no surprise there!) a few weeks ago in order for me to check out Pierre's.  As we both are totally unfamiliar with this particular mall, we ended up walking around aimlessly trying to get our bearings.  Once we spotted Pierre's I wasn't sure I'd be able to find it again.

Gail Darne (who is just as unfamiliar with Greeneacres as I am) and I left very early on Thursday giving ourselves plenty of time to get lost but there was no need as we found Pierre's easily, got a table and waited for the rest of the Crawlers.  We didn't wait long before Nomusa Nkomo, Les Baldwin, June Nash and a very hungry Beth Vieira joined us.  Our waitress, Faith, and Pierre's barista, Blanche, were quick to serve our teas and Sumatran coffees.  Beth and Gail took advantage of the Coffee/Cake Special while Les decided on the Breakfast Special.  Pierre's also offers a Pancake Special and a Burger Special along with a menu filled with other breakfast, lunch and light dinner selections.  The extensive list of hot beverages looked so tempting I wanted to try one of each but settled on a first round cappuccino and a second round coconut mocha cappuccino.... excellent choices!




Meet the Barista
Blanche





Regular Cappuccino

Coconut Mocha Cappuccino





Pierre's Bistro is actually situated upstairs at The Bridge foodcourt in Greenacres.  It has been there for fifteen years or so.  Present owner and my American compatriot, Nathan Lowe, took over the business about four years ago after globetrotting with his family and finally deciding to settle in PE.
Pierre's seats 68 in the non-smoking area and 44 in the smoking room.  The shop's hours are Mon-Fri, 7:15 (nice and early!) - 5, Sat, 8-5, and Sun, 8:30-2.

Meet the Owner
Nathan Lowe - far left
Hanging out with the Crawlers



Meet our Waitress
Faith

So, with the winter season fast approaching, the first topic of discussion was whether or not to get the flu vaccine.  Seems that most of us are opting not to..... and taking our chances.... a decision we may live to regret.  The conversation then turned to education at the high school and university levels in SA and in the States.  Despite the differences it was agreed that education is pricey regardless of where one lives in the world.  Which brings me to one of my favorite quotes, "If you think education is expensive, try ignorance." (Derek Bok- former President of Harvard Univ)

This  Week's Crawlers
Gail, Nomusa, June, Beth
not pictured - Les

It was decided on Thursday that another Bridge foodcourt coffee shop would be added to our list of upcoming Crawls.... stay tuned!

~Thank you to Nathan, Faith, and Blanche for the friendly reception and quick service!

~Congrats and good luck to my daughter, Liz, on starting your new job in Washington, DC.

~Congrats to my son, Jeff, on winning your first ever boxing match at the Golden Gloves.... now that you're

   undefeated it's time time to hang up the gloves!

Until next week,

Ellen