Week beginning November 30th - The importance of balance

This is what I remember. It was perhaps early 2009 (but I cannot be sure), it was at Gwilym Davies' coffee cart at Columbia Road Flower Market and one of the baristas was making coffee, again my memory fades on who it was, but they were talking about coffee to a customer and the importance of flavours and extractions and the palette and Gwilym over heard and said in a loud, happy voice 'but does it have balance!? It must have balance!'.

That is all I remember, that little snippet of information for the person who went onto become, or perhaps already was, the World Barista Champion, in the setting of an outdoor coffee cart in East London.

Balance. It is such a great word and descriptor for everything, because when you have balance, you can probably also say it is perfect.

Then I read the Coffee Boys book '52 guaranteed ways to make a profit'. One of the stand out items in there for me was outline of the five senses; touch, hearing, taste, sound and feel and how this affects, or disaffects, your business. Because if all the five senses are stimulated in the same way, evenly, with balance, then the experience of the guest will be perfect. That is the music is just right for the time of day, the food looks great, the decor is pleasing to the eye, the smells from the kitchen and the coffee machine are stimulating and delicious, the feel of the tables, chairs, the counter top brings pleasure. Everything is balanced.

Then we also talk about the staff who work there, but do not forget the employer or owner too, and having a balanced work/personal lifestyle. Too much work is too much, too little and you go crazy, having some home time, some escape time, but also being stimulated and challenged in the workplace, but not challenged too much. Quite simply having a balanced working environment that fits in with their (your) balanced lifestyle.

I don't think I need to further talk about a balanced diet, but as we all know, a balanced diet is a balanced lifestyle.

We could go on and on about it. But for me it still goes back to that those two small sentences that a World Barista Champion shouted out on a cold Sunday morning and leads into everything that I try and do.

It was also the realisation at that moment, that all we are looking for in a cup of coffee (and therefore life in general), the most simple and perfect description of all when you are trying to describe the way a coffee tastes, or makes you feel is- 'but does it have balance?!"

Incredible really isn't it?

Please enjoy the menu this week, for the next three weeks in the lead up to Christmas we have our Mince Pies back on in both shops. This year each Chef has come up with their own recipe. Chef Khan in Great Titchfield and Chef Flavio in Eastcastle.

Please also remember, we close for renovations from 6 pm on the 23rd December and re-open on the 18th January. Eastcastle street will open for business on December 28, 29, 30 then from January 4th onwards.

Peter Dore-Smith
Director
Kaffeine


Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast
Seven Seeded toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Breakfast Foccacia - Cotechino sausage, fried egg and gruyere cheese 6.50 (weekends only)
Porridge with condiments - golden syrup, honey, dried fruit, chopped nuts 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats
Mince Pies - Kaffeines' own mix - only 12 made per day 2.50

Sweet muffin: Dried apricot soaked in sherry and dark chocolate  2.50

Savoury Scones: Roasted red pepper and cream cheese 2.50

Friand: Raspberry and peanut butter (gf) 2.70

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80

White chocolate blondies 2.80

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00
Double chocolate chip and macadamia cookies 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Almond and custard slice 2.80
Banana bread 2.50
Lamingtons 3.50 (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only)

Lunch
Soup 4.50
Thai butternut squash with ginger and coconut milk

French retro baguettes 5.30

Ham, cranberry jam, avocado, gruyere cheese, baby spinach 

Grilled courgette, roasted red pepper, goat's cheese, coriander pesto, rocket

Foccacias 5.50

Crispy pancetta, roasted artichoke, aioli, camembert cheese, rocket 

Roasted aubergine, red onion, cheese fondue, tomato salsa, baby spinach 

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Roasted chicken salad with blanched green bean, savoy cabbage, roasted carrot, three mustard sauce and mushroom, chives

Heritage tomatoes salad with buffalo mozzarella, thyme and lemon dressing, rocket 

Roasted cauliflower with fresh peas and green pesto 

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Leek and mushroom with pecorino cheese 

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast
Sourdough Seeded Toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Gluten free bagel with butter and preserves 2.00

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Poppy seed brioche with courgette omelette, spinach, gruyere cheese, mushrooms and tomato salsa 5.00

Poppy seed brioche with treacle smoked back bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Croissant with smoked salmon, scrambled egg, tomato, rocket 5.00
Porridge with a selection of condiments (dried fruit, chopped nuts, honey, golden syrup) 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats
Mince Pies - Kaffeines' own mix - only 12 made per day 2.50

Muffins - Blueberry  2.50

Savoury - Courgette, pecorino and honey 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.80

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Lunch
Soup - Roasted ham in honey & spices and Jerusalem artichokes served with Gruyere cheese bun

Brioche 5.00
Poppy seeds Brioche with Italian roast ham, chilli cream cheese, spinach, tomato and red onion.

Baguettes 5.30

Aubergine and mushrooms, Dijon , Gruyere, rocket and thyme red pepper sauce.

Plum tomato, mozzarella, roasted courgette, spinach & basil pesto.

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Grilled chicken, spinach, cherry tomatoes, white wine crackers, pancetta, scallions & parmesan peppered dressing.

Blanched purple sprout broccoli, baby carrots, red onions, sesame seeds & kale nutmeg sauce.

Roasted mix peppers with spiced olives tapenade, red pesto and sour cream

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Savoury tart with roasted aubergine, sun dried tomatoes, peppers and pecorino cream pastry

Week beginning November 23rd - Just the menu this week

Another week has flown by, and here we are with another menu.

Please enjoy, as we will enjoy bringing it to you.

Peter Dore-Smith
Director
Kaffeine

Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast
Seven Seeded toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Breakfast Foccacia - Cotechino sausage, fried egg and gruyere cheese 6.50 (weekends only)
Porridge with condiments - golden syrup, honey, dried fruit, chopped nuts 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Sweet muffin: Banana, chocolate and coconut 2.50

Savoury Scones: Ricotta, spinach, pine nut 2.50

Friand: Raspberry and peanut butter (gf) 2.70

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80

White chocolate blondies 2.80

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00
Double chocolate chip and macadamia cookies 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Almond and custard slice 2.80
Banana bread 2.50
Lamingtons 3.50 (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only)

Lunch

Soup 4.50
Red lentil soup with tomato, mixed herbs and vegetables

French retro baguettes 5.30

Ham, artichoke dip, caramelised onion, baby spinach 

Grilled halloumi, roasted red pepper, red onion, tomato chutney, rocket 

Foccacias 5.50

Tuna mayo, red jalopenos, spring onion, sweetcorn, gruyere, baby spinach 

Crusted butternut squash, saute mushroom, chilli salsa, goat's cheese, rocket 

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Salmon fillet salad with boiled eggs, broccoli, roasted new potato, dill, hollandaise sauce and baby spinach

Slow roasted tomato salad with avocado, shallot, roasted walnut, parsley, radicchio and goat's curd dressing 

Roasted parsnips with romanesco sauce and watercress

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Yellow courgette with cherry tomato and parmesan quiche

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast
Sourdough Seeded Toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Gluten free bagel with butter and preserves 2.00

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Poppy seed brioche with courgette omelette, spinach, gruyere cheese, mushrooms and tomato salsa 5.00

Poppy seed brioche with treacle smoked back bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Croissant with smoked salmon, scrambled egg, tomato, rocket 5.00
Porridge with a selection of condiments (dried fruit, chopped nuts, honey, golden syrup) 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Muffins - Clementines, walnut  and coconut  2.50

Savoury - Red peppers, feta and pesto 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.80

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50
Vanilla Slice (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only) 3.50

Lunch
Soup - Roast vine tomatoes with a Parmesan twist

Brioche 5.00
Poppy seeds Brioche with Italian roast ham, Gruyere, spinach, red onion and Dijon.

Baguettes 5.30

Smoked salmon, capers, dill, rocket and lemon butter

Plum tomato, mozzarella, roasted aubergine, rocket and spice red pesto

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Roasted chicken, sweet potato, spinach, crispy kale, dried cranberries & curried mango dressing.

Roasted aubergine, pecorino, pine nuts & red and green pesto.

Char-grilled broccoli with roasted garlic, chillies and paprika almonds.

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Savoury tart with beetroot, butternut squash and goat's cheese.

Week beginning November 16th - Just the menu this week.

Just the menu this week, so please enjoy, as we will enjoy bringing it to you.

Peter Dore-Smith
Kaffeine

Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast
Seven Seeded toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Breakfast Foccacia - Cotechino sausage, fried egg and gruyere cheese 6.50 (weekends only)
Porridge with condiments - golden syrup, honey, dried fruit, chopped nuts 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Bakery

Sweet muffin: Poached apple and almond  2.50

Savoury Scones: Green pesto and mozzarella  2.50

Friand: Raspberry and peanut butter (gf) 2.70

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80

White chocolate blondies 2.80

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00
Double chocolate chip and macadamia cookies 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Almond and custard slice 2.80
Banana bread 2.50
Lamingtons 3.50 (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only)

Lunch
Soup 4.50
Chicken with sweetcorn, ginger and vegetables

French retro baguettes 5.30

Ham, saute mushroom, roasted onion, cheese fondue, baby spinach 

Crusted courgette, chimichurri sauce, buffalo mozzarella, rocket 

Foccacias 5.50

Slow roasted beef, horseradish sauce, fried onion, gherkins, rocket

Roasted aubergine, plum tomato, black olive sauce, feta, baby spinach 

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Tandoori lamb salad with roasted potato, red pepper, red onion, blanched savoy cabbage, cucumber and minted yoghurt sauce

Cous-cous salad with dried sultanas, apricots, roasted cashews, feta, lemon and parsley, rocket 

Brussels sprout and Russett apple salad with roasted hazelnuts

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Chicken with sweetcorn, ginger and vegetables
Roasted aubergine with tomato sauce and goat's cheese

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast
Sourdough Seeded Toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Gluten free bagel with butter and preserves 2.00

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Poppy seed brioche with courgette omelette, spinach, gruyere cheese, mushrooms and tomato salsa 5.00

Poppy seed brioche with treacle smoked back bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Croissant with smoked salmon, scrambled egg, tomato, rocket 5.00
Porridge with a selection of condiments (dried fruit, chopped nuts, honey, golden syrup) 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Bakery

Muffins - Lemon, vanilla, and cinnamon 2.50

Savoury - Courgette, cheese scrolls 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.80

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50
Vanilla Slice (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only) 3.50

Lunch
Soup 4.50
Spanish cod soup ( cod, orange, lemon and chilli )

Brioche 5.00
Kaffeine own Brioche with Spanish omelette, roasted tomatoes, spinach, and aioli sauce

Baguettes 5.30

Parma ham, artichoke, goat's cheese, rocket and basil oil

Tuna mousse, spinach, eggs, tomatoes and sherry dressing

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Meat balls cooked in spicy tomato sauce, saffron rice, caramelised onions and fresh mix herbs

Caramelised goat's cheese, soaked raisins and sunflower seeds , watercress and mini toast.

Baked mushrooms in a Dutch oven with garlic, chillies and Rosemary.

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Savoury tart with sautéed spinach, manchego cheese and white grape jelly

Week beginning November 9th - Just the menu this week

Nothing major to report or talk about this week, so please enjoy the menu as we will very much enjoy bringing it to you.

Peter Dore-Smith
Director
Kaffeine

Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast
Seven Seeded toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Breakfast Foccacia - Cotechino sausage, fried egg and gruyere cheese 6.50 (weekends only)
Porridge with condiments - golden syrup, honey, dried fruit, chopped nuts 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Sweet muffin: Orange and dark chocolate 2.50

Savoury Scones: Courgette and feta cheese 2.50

Friand: Raspberry and peanut butter (gf) 2.70

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80

White chocolate blondies 2.80

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00
Double chocolate chip and macadamia cookies 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Almond and custard slice 2.80
Banana bread 2.50
Lamingtons 3.50 (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only)

Lunch

French retro baguettes 5.30

Ham, beetroot relish, horseradish sauce, goat 's cheese, watercress 

Grilled halloumi, guacamole, red onion, plum tomato,baby spinach

Foccacias 5.50

Smoked salmon, cream cheese, cucumber, garden cress, rocket 

Slow roasted tomato, red pepper, spicy hummus, brie cheese, baby spinach 

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Roasted chicken salad with cherry tomato, cucumber, red pepper, gem lettuce, sesame seeds, teriyaki sauce, spring onion

Bbq tofu salad with chilli grass noddle, bean sprout, coriander, roasted peanut 

Roasted butternut squash with chilli, coriander and yoghurt sauce, pumpkin seeds 

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Beef sausage roll with saute vegetable and sweet chilli sauce

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast
Sourdough Seeded Toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Gluten free bagel with butter and preserves 2.00

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Poppy seed brioche with courgette omelette, spinach, gruyere cheese, mushrooms and tomato salsa 5.00

Poppy seed brioche with treacle smoked back bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Croissant with smoked salmon, scrambled egg, tomato, rocket 5.00
Porridge with a selection of condiments (dried fruit, chopped nuts, honey, golden syrup) 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Muffins - Poached pear, ginger, and honey 2.50

Savoury - Courgette, cheese scrolls 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.80

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50
Vanilla Slice (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only) 3.50

Lunch
Soup - Savoy cabbage, pancetta, Parmesan dices & white wine

Brioche 5.00
Poppy seeds Brioche with sweet potato, mozzarella, spinach, red onions and spice red pesto

Baguettes 5.30

Italian Coppa Cotta Ham, spinach, dried apricots, shallots and Dijon sauce

Smoked Salmon, pears, watercress, cream cheese & basil oil

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Bresaola, char-grilled Brussels sprouts, rocket, caramelised parsnips, wine tomatoes & maple mustard dressing

Turnips, confit garlic, goat's cheese & sesame sauce.

Saffron steamed rice with nuts and fresh herbs

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Savoury tart with sweet potato, blue cheese & honey pancetta

Week beginning November 2nd - Great Titchfield Street - Time for a facelift

Six years is a long time in cafe life. Lots of wear and tear, heavy use. Day after day after day, after day. Every year at Christmas we used to give Great Titchfield a going over with the paint brush, bring her back to life a bit. We have updated things here and there, to try to keep that freshness but still with the industrial, warm, loving look and feel, but it is very hard to keep it all looking lovely and fresh and clean. In fact, I would say that keeping everything spotlessly clean is one of the hardest jobs in cafe life.

I have always said that I would not open another store until the first one was pretty much perfect in every way. These were the plans, then we found Eastcastle street and could not pass up that opportunity, so we went for that and we had plans to renovate Great Titchfield street back in August, over the quiet period, as we were very happy and wanted to use the same architects (Design LSM) and the same builders (Blue Crow).

Unfortunately that did not eventuate, so plans have been postponed until the first two weeks of January 2016. We are still using the same architects and the same builders and some of the materials and feel of Eastcastle street will come over to GTS and it will, we envision, be something that will keep its style for another ten years at least.

We do not have major plans, but it will involve a bit of work to the back wall area and the windows to the rear of the building. It will also involve a freshen up of the front bench area, the seating along the wall and the back seating area, as well as a freshen up of the toilets and downstairs area.

So we will close Great Titchfield Street on the 23rd and she will re-open on the 18th of January.

The good news is that for the first time ever, we will be open over Christmas period, but only at Eastcastle street.

So here is our Christmas and New Year opening Hours.

Great Titchfield
December 23rd 7:30 am 6 pm
Then closed until the 18th January

Eastcastle

Weds 23rd 7:30 am 6 pm

24th, 25th, 26th, 27th closed

Monday 28th to Thursday 31st open 8.30 am to 6 pm

Friday 1st, Sat 2nd, Sun 3rd Closed

Open Monday 4th as usual, supporting both stores. 

Please may we take this early opportunity to wish everyone a safe and happy festive period and a huge thank you for all your kind support. 

Please also enjoy the menu for this week, as we will very much enjoy bringing it to you.

Peter Dore-Smith
Director
Kaffeine

Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast
Seven Seeded toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Breakfast Foccacia - Cotechino sausage, fried egg and gruyere cheese 6.50 (weekends only)
Porridge with condiments - golden syrup, honey, dried fruit, chopped nuts 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Sweet muffin: Strawberry and mixed chocolate 2.50

Savoury Scones: Red pepper pesto, cream cheese 2.50

Friand: Raspberry and peanut butter (gf) 2.70

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80

White chocolate blondies 2.80

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00
Double chocolate chip and macadamia cookies 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Almond and custard slice 2.80
Banana bread 2.50
Lamingtons 3.50 (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only)

Lunch

French retro baguettes 5.30

Roasted chicken, satay sauce, red onion, avocado, gruyere cheese, baby spinach 

Grilled courgette, roasted red pepper, mozzarella, peri peri sauce, rocket

Foccacias 5.50

Glazed ham, baked russet apple, brie, sweet chilli sauce, baby spinach 

Grilled aubergine, plum tomato, green pesto, goats cheese, rocket 

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Roasted duck hash brown salad with cucumber, blanched green bean, broccoli, spring onion, spicy bbq dressing 

Puy lentils salad with slow roasted tomato, red onion, grilled aubergine puree, coriander, roasted walnut, goat's curd dressing 

Roasted garlic and herbed mushrooms, with green pesto and kale 

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Cauliflower, red onion, rosemary, basil, mature cheese and sesame seeds

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast
Sourdough Seeded Toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Gluten free bagel with butter and preserves 2.00

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Poppy seed brioche with courgette omelette, spinach, gruyere cheese, mushrooms and tomato salsa 5.00

Poppy seed brioche with treacle smoked back bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Croissant with smoked salmon, scrambled egg, tomato, rocket 5.00
Porridge with a selection of condiments (dried fruit, chopped nuts, honey, golden syrup) 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Muffins - Gala apple, calvados and walnuts 2.50

Savoury - Courgette, cheese scrolls 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.80

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50
Vanilla Slice (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only) 3.50

Lunch
Brioche 5.00
Poppy seeds Brioche with Bufala mozzarella with tomatoes, aioli and spinach

Baguettes 5.30
Coppa cotta ham with dijon, red onion, gruyere, tomato and spinach

Aubergine with sweet chilli, goats cheese, thai basil and rocket

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Chorizo with panko fried cauliflower, chervil and lemon dressing

Pears with ewe's cheese, basil, black garlic dressing and watercress

Brown rice cooked in coconut milk served with coriander and celeriac

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Red onion with thyme, mustard and gruyere

Week beginning October 26th - Remembering 30 years in Hospitality

It is 30 years since I started working in Hospitality, and so I thought I would document the ten year stages here. In one way, it is a lovely way for me to write about it, but I also hope that perhaps it may inspire some of the younger generation, if they need it, to see that a career path in hospitality can be a really very rewarding and happy one.

1985 - 16 years old
I remember I wanted to be a chef, because I enjoyed cooking in High School. But then I remember deciding cheffing was too hard, and I could not remember recipes anyway. Somehow I decided that being front of house was the right choice and that I wanted to be 'a manager'. My mum tells the story that once around the dinner table my brothers and I were asked what we wanted to be when we grew up. I wanted to 'look after people', my middle brother 'wanted to draw' and my little brother wanted to be a 'funny man'.

So I did school work experience at the local Dorset Gardens Hotel Croydon, in the outer easter suburbs of Melbourne. It was known as a beer barn. Motel rooms, function rooms, drive through bottle shop, 2 public bars, 200 seat bistro and a really bad nightclub. I remember my first job on the Monday was washing out 150 ashtrays from a large function they had the night before.

I then got a job as a dishwasher in a local restaurant called Top Cat, also in Croydon, working Friday and Saturday nights. There was no dishwasher, it was all by hand in a 70 cover a la carte restaurant with a function room for 30 and I got paid $5.00 per hour. I was 17, and I was working with all these older female wait staff, 6 pm to perhaps midnight or 1 am. My mum would come and pick me up at night, or occasionally I got a lift home by one of the older waitresses.

When I was 18 I had a car, a bright yellow Holden 1977 Kingswood and I got a job at the 24 hour Denny's restaurant in Ringwood. I worked the night shift as a dishwasher, 11 pm to 7 am, Friday and Saturday nights. While my mates, and my brothers, were out clubbing, I was washing pots and scrubbing floors.

I then got into Box Hill College of TAFE (Further Education) and studied Certificate of Catering and at the same time, got a full time job at the Crown Hotel in very outer suburban Lilydale as a trainee Assistant Manager. It had a bistro on the lower level and a public bar on the High Street. I worked mainly in the bistro, but remember on my first day walking into the public bar and seeing one guy punch another in the head and start a big fight. I stayed here for three years. It was a fantastic education and lifestyle.

1995- 26 years old
After working in restaurants and cocktail bars in Melbourne for the past 7 years, I landed in the Greek islands in the summer of 1995 on the big trip around Europe. My first job in Santorini was as a helping hand to an alcoholic Greek signwriter. That lasted two weeks.

I eventually ended up as a promoter and bartender at the Tithora Rock Music Night Club. We handed out flyers to promote the club during the day on the beaches, then in the evening in the main town. The flyers, when handed in at the bar, got the punter a free shot and we got paid for every flyer that had our name on it. From 11 pm to 5 am each night I worked the bar, or cleared the floor of glasses. It was an absolutely amazing and brilliant 3 months.

In October 1995, I arrived in London with £400. I quickly got a job in a pub in Hammersmith called the Builders. Live in, with meals, it was where I met two of my longest and best friends, the live in married couple Andy and Vanessa. Talk about getting an education into London life. It was a great, great time and Andy ended up being the Best Man at our wedding in 2002.

Around then, my Dad said, 'what a great opportunity, you're in London, follow your career, develop yourself'. So I got a job as an Assistant restaurant manager in a 4 star Hotel in Kensington but it was awful so I left after a week. Through friends I ended up working the bar at the Oriel restaurant in Sloane Square, soon moving onto to the floor and service, where I stayed for 2.5 years.

We got paid £20 per 8 hour shift, tips were at the discretion of the customers, but we lived off tips, so the more shifts you did, or the busiest sections and the better waiter you were, the more money you made. I often worked 6 or 7 shifts per week to make enough money to live on and go out.  I never followed my dad's advice, instead I just had a very, very good time working as a waiter and enjoying the most that London had to offer. I feel extremely lucky that I was in London at this time and experienced all that I did.

2005 - 36 years old
After moving back to Melbourne in 1998, I worked in restaurants and hotels, got married, and got into teaching and training of Hospitality. In 2004, Malta joined the EU and my wife was able to get an EU passport. She asked if I wanted to move back to London again and so on June 1st, 2005, a May bank holiday, we arrived, with maybe £4000 to our names.

My wife started working in Design and I started working as a temporary agency waiter for £5.72 per hour, the minimum wage. It was a mixture of great, and really awful, like crying awful. I soon got a job in the agency itself and this led onto being offered a job as the Recruitment and Staffing Manager at Lord's Cricket Ground where I stayed for 3 and a half years. It had taken ten years, but I had finally taken my dad's advice.

In my belief, it was in 2005 that the speciality coffee industry in London took a major turn, with Flat White opening in Berwick street. Flat White was definitely the starting point of inspiration to open my own Hospitality business, or specialty cafe, in London. Again, my wife and I had a very good time in the first two years, lots of travelling, parties, having fun, working hard. By 2008, we had decided to 'stop talking about it and just do it' and so the plans for Kaffeine began. We opened in 2009 and in November 2010, we were awarded 'Best Independent Cafe in Europe' at the Allegra European Coffee Symposium.

2015 - 46 years old
After six years of running Kaffeine, as well as having two children who are now 5 and 2, we started planning for Kaffeine - The Second Store. A defunct, old, closed down cafe also in Fitzrovia was found, not too far away, not too close either, in a cracker of a location on Eastcastle Street and in March 2015, we opened the doors. It has been 20 years since I first arrived in London and immediately fell in love with the city, 30 years since I started in hospitality in the outer suburbs of Eastern Melbourne and fell in love with the industry.

And here we are. There is so, so much more to tell. A lot has happened in 30 years. What this makes me wonder is this. If all of this has happened in the past 30 years, what more can happen in the next 30 ?

If it is as good as the first, then I am very much looking forward to it.

Please enjoy the menu for this week, as we will very much enjoy bringing it to you.

Peter Dore-Smith
Director
Kaffeine

Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast
Seven Seeded toast with butter and preserves 2.00
Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 5.00

Breakfast Foccacia - Cotechino sausage, fried egg and gruyere cheese 6.50 (weekends only)
Porridge with condiments - golden syrup, honey, dried fruit, chopped nuts 3.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Sweet muffin: Sultana and honey apple 2.50

Savoury Scones: Plum tomato, cream cheese, basil 2.50

Friand: Raspberry and peanut butter (gf) 2.70

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.80

White chocolate blondies 2.80

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00
Double chocolate chip and macadamia cookies 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Almond and custard slice 2.80
Banana bread 2.50
Lamingtons 3.50 (last Thurs, Fri and Sat of the month only)

Lunch

French retro baguettes 5.30

Ham, mushroom pate, plum tomato, goat's cheese,  baby spinach 

Slow roasted tomato, red pepper, basil cream cheese, rocket 

Foccacias 5.50

Chorizo sausage, avocado, gruyere cheese, chilli mayo, rocket 

Grilled halloumi, roasted butternut  pumpkin, green pesto, baby spinach 

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Glazed ham salad with roasted chestnut, red onion, saute mushroom, blanched cabbage and pommery mustard dressing 

Saute russet apple salad with dried cranberry, red onion, candied walnut, goat's cheese and raspberry vinegar dressing 

Crusted butternut pumpkin with soured cream sauce 

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Crown prince squash with rosemary, mushroom and white creamy sauce 

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Smoked paprika brioche with courgette omelette, spinach, gruyere cheese, mushrooms and tomato salsa  5.00

Smoked paprika brioche with treacle smoked back bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 4.90

Croissant with smoked salmon, scrambled egg, tomato, rocket 5.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Muffins - Apple, cinnamon and almond 2.50

Savoury - Courgette, cheese scrolls 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.70
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.50

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Lunch
Brioche 5.00
Poppy seeds Brioche with grilled vegetables, watercress and coconut curry dressing.

Baguettes 5.30

Italian Coppa Cotta Ham, spinach, cheese hash browns, plum tomatoes and mild chilli Mayo
Smoked salmon, rocket, avocado, cucumber and ginger lemon cream sauce.

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Roasted chicken, butternut squash, celeriac, black beluga lentils, shallots, crispy kale and red wine dressing.
Cameo apples, mix leaves, feta, dried cranberries, caramelised walnuts and basil vinaigrette.

Heritage carrots, rocket and spiced red pepper sauce

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Savoury tart with butternut, candy red onions, feta and paprika pumpkin seeds

Week beginning October 19th - The Guest Espresso Program and S.P.K's

Quite a long while ago, one of our former superstar lead baristas came to me with the idea of running a guest espresso on the bar. This, they said, would be perfect for our baristas/staff to try different coffees and work with them, great for our customers to be able to try these coffees from other parts of the world and amazing for the reputation of the business.

Great idea, super idea, love it, only problem is, we have very limited space and already have two grinders on the bar, one for Square Mile Red Brick and one for Square Mile decaf. Now the very kind and accommodating people at Square Mile said 'yes, of course you can have another coffee on the bar' and so off we went.

So we decided to take off the decaf on the weekends and offer this guest espresso on weekends only. We had a 'Guest Espresso Program'! The lead barista had the responsibility of sourcing the coffee from the roasters and also buying in retails bags to sell as well. We allocated them an hour a week to organise their calendar, get tasting notes, liaise with the roastery, do the costings, discuss the program with myself and the manager of the store etc etc.

We were very particular with the costings of it all, I designed a special spreadsheet that was able to calculate the cost of the coffee per kilo, add in the shipping and then work out how much per shot it would cost and compare this against Red Brick. We worked out that the majority of coffees on as a guest came in at a higher costs per shot, so we added a price of .50 pence at the till to help make up for it, that and the labour time it took to source and organise the coffees. We usually ordered 2 or 3 kilos of coffee for the weekend. If you worked on a very simple and easy calculation 50 shots per kilo, that is 100 or 150 coffee sold extra, so a simple and easy maximum gross £75.00 extra in the till (take away your VAT at 20% after that though).

With these costings, some coffees were just not able to go on the bar, while others were actually cheaper than SQM with no shipping, so sometimes we did not charge the extra 50p at the till. Most though came in over, but that was based on our estimated shots per kilo costings.

We also worked out the cost price including shipping for the retail bags and the mark up %age of our other regular retail coffees and worked out how much we could sell them for. Of course you then had to predict how much coffee to buy in advance and hope that it sold, otherwise it would go to waste, or be sold at a knock down price later in it's life.

I would happily say that this program worked very well indeed. Baristas loved it, staff loved it, the customers who came in for the coffees loved it, perhaps I may say social media even loved it a little bit.

That is, until we started calculating our daily shots per kilo. This is where we calculate the amount of shots sold that day and divide that by the amount of kilos we went through that day. We found that the weekend numbers were way, way down on our weekday numbers. Like maybe 10 shots per kilo less. So if you were lucky enough to be doing 8 kilos a day, that is 80 coffees less, per day! Of course, we allowed that staff and baristas would be trying some, having a few extras just in case, then there was the dialling in of a coffee that we were just not used to, working with it during the day, not selling many so not being used to it when a sale was made, maybe not getting it right, making it again. This was not for all of them, some were absolutely amazing and worked very well indeed.

We also found that the sales we made were very much down to the person on the till and how good a sales person they were, which also directly related to how good the coffee was or how much they believed in it. Because unfortunately, for whatever reason, occasionally not all guest espressos were amazing. So when we tried it in the morning and went, 'oh, it's okay', it was hard to sell.

Then the absolute majority of the customers who came in on the weekends really 'just wanted a coffee'. To then be given the problem of deciding what coffee to have right at the point of the till, proved to be quite difficult indeed. Then they have to pay an extra 50 p for it.

Then we had the customers who wanted decaf...'oh sorry we do not have decaf today...' well, why not?' On some weekends, there were more requests for decaf then there were 'what is the guest this today?'

After much debate and consideration, we stopped the program in February this year. Perhaps we were doing it wrong, perhaps it is just our minimal bar and space and menu does not work for it, perhaps other cafes do it well and can justify this. But if you have a food menu item that just does not sell, or you can gain more value from changing that menu item to another, you would change it would you not?

It was a really hard decision, because the value to the baristas and staff is so great in that they are trying different coffees and working with roasteries and building a reputation, but at the end of the day, in this business at least, there was not enough value in the business of a Guest Espresso Program.

But is is not just a value for money consideration, it is also the disappointment of those customers who want decaf, and the perception of a business that 'pushes' a sale onto a customer when they just want a coffee and if that coffee is with milk or with water added (95% of sales), the taste difference is very minimal indeed and also asking the FOH person to push that sale, it's just not something I am comfortable with..*yes, 5% of our sales are espresso, so if you have a guest 'espresso' that is not many sales.

I do not like the decision, but I believe it is a reasonably practical and fair one, it is just not fair on our baristas who desperately love to work with other coffees. To them I am sorry.

However, we are going to trial guest retail program in the lead up to Christmas, so we will have a good range of different coffees for you to try at home, and we will run our in-house cupping programs more often.

Please enjoy the menu for this week, as we will very much enjoy bringing it to you.

Peter Dore-Smith
Director
Kaffeine

Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 4.90

Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Sweet muffin: Grated pear and almond 2.50

Savoury Scones: Courgette and feta cheese 2.50

Friand: Lime, lemon, coconut  2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.70

White chocolate blondies 2.50

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00

Almond and custard slice 2.80

Banana bread 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Lunch

French retro baguettes 5.30

Ham, grilled halloumi, avocado, plum tomato, coriander mayo, rocket  

Crumbed aubergines, roasted red onion, sweet chilli sauce, goat's cheese, baby spinach 

Foccacias 5.50

Crispy pancetta, saute mushrooms, roasted pumpkin, rocket 

Tuna, sweetcorn, spring onion, red chilli, aioli, gruyere, baby spinach

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Roasted chicken salad with blanched vegetables, smoked chilli dressing, mixed sesame seeds, baby spinach 

Buffalo mozzarella, plum tomato, red pepper, red onion, basil and parsley vinaigrette, toasted pine nuts 

Roasted beetroot with dill, mascarpone dressing and watercress 

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Sweet corn fritter with iceberg lettuce and spicy tomato salsa

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Smoked paprika brioche with courgette omelette, spinach, gruyere cheese, mushrooms and tomato salsa  5.00

Smoked paprika brioche with treacle smoked back bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 4.90

Croissant with smoked salmon, scrambled egg, tomato, rocket 5.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Muffins - Pear, walnuts and orange zest 2.50

Savoury - Courgette, cheese scrolls 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.70
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.50

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Lunch
Brioche 5.00
Smoked paprika Brioche with Bresaola , roasted vine tomatoes, rocket, mustard, crispy onions and mild chilli sauce

Baguettes 5.30

Italian Coppa Cotta Ham, spinach, conference pear, avocado, mint and lime Mayo sauce.
Camembert calvados cheese, rocket, grilled courgette, grated eggs, butter mushrooms and chives cream sauce.

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Roasted salmon, char-grilled mini cucumber, candy beetroot, tapioca dices, watercress, roasted walnuts & cucumber dressing
Grilled fennel, roasted mix grapes, Feta, watercress, fennel seeds, pistachios & citrus vinaigrette.

Blanched Runner beans, roasted hazelnuts, orange zest & chilli dressing.

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Savoury tart with spiced carrot purée, roasted sweet potato, feta and orange honey sauce

Week beginning October 12th - Smackdown - The Finals

It was about 7:10 pm when I got there, and Square Mile was already packed with ten deep at the bar and a very orderly and happy queue for the complimentary Kernel Brewery Beer. I would say the crowd was a mixture of those happy to be there and looking forward to the night, and possibly 16 baristas who were a little bit nervous and excited all at the same time.

Oli Bradshaw and the Square Mile team had done an amazing job of setting up the room, with the gleaming Victoria Arduino Black Eagle against the wall, and an old school desk set up for the baristas to pour the latte art on, with a Go Pro camera directly above and streaming onto the giant white wall.

The legend that is Billy Tahitis was dj'ing in the corner with old and new school rap classics and Ross Brown took over the mic for the evening as MC, whilst Kaffeine lead baristas Jakub and Sam dialled in the machine. We took polaroid photos of all the competitors so we could see who they were and by 7:45 we were ready to go. By now the room was packed with about 100 people, plus at least another 50 outside or at the bar.

AS per the heats, it was barista v barista, 2 cups of double shot espresso, steam your own milk and split your jugs, then pour the two cups and choose your best one. In the final though, we were also weighing the left over milk on the Acaia scales to add even more pressure.

Round one went like this
Edgar - Attendant
Zain - Harris and Hoole - Winner

Phil - Artisan
Helen - Lantana - Winner

So Yan - Attendant - Winner
Chloe - Kaffeine

Nico - Noble - Winner
Dean - Artisan

Laura - Curators
Heidi - Prufrock - Winner

Sam - Local hero - Winner
Piotr - Peanut Vendor

Jack - Origin - Winner
Will - Origin

Dhan - Caracoli - Winner
Alex - Origin

Round Two went like this

Zain - Harris and Hoole
Helen - Lantana - Winner

So Yan - Attendant
Nico - Noble - Winner

Heidi - Prufrock - Winner
Sam - Local Hero

Jack - Origin
Dhan - Caracoli - Winner

Then it was up to Round three
Helen - Lantana
Nico - Noble - Winner

Heidi - Prufrock
Dhan - Caracoli - Winner

And so we go to the finals - to determine third place we had
Heidi - Prufrock - Wins third place!
Helen - Lantana

Then in the final
Nico Halliday - Noble vs Dhan Tamang - Caracoli

In true Smackdown fashion, it was down to the very wire and the judges made the amazing discovery that the cups chosen to pour in were different sizes and so the call was made that we had to have a pour off!

So here we were, two baristas, one cup each, steam and pour at the same time. The cash was placed on the table, the music boomed and the crowd went wild. The judges deliberated, they conferred, they argued and finally we made the call 1, 2 , 3 and Nico Halliday is the 3rd annual winner!!!

A huge congratulations to Nico and to everyone, all 64 baristas who competed and put themselves forward. A massive thank you to the judges who donated their time especially lead judge and photographer Glenn Watson, as well as the amazing sponsors of the prizes and supporters of the entire concept, we are very, very appreciative.

Victoria Arduino
Square Mile Coffee
Coffee Hit
Minor Figures
Allegra Coffee Events

Please can I also say a huge thank you to the Kaffeine staff who once again made the event special and a success. Well done crew.

Here is the final album of photos by Glenn, check it out and we hope to see you again next year. Bring it on.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/getnoticed/albums/72157656043480153

Please enjoy the menu for this week. It is chocolate week, so we have a few extra special chocolate creations on for you.

Peter Dore-Smith
Director
Kaffeine

Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 4.90

Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Sweet muffin: Baked apple, walnut, honey 2.50

Savoury Scones: Green pesto and manchego cheese 2.50

Friand: Lime, lemon, coconut  2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.70

White chocolate blondies 2.50

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00

Almond and custard slice 2.80

Banana bread 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Lunch

French retro baguettes 5.30

Ham, roasted chestnuts, saute mushroom, cheese fondue, baby spinach

Buffalo mozzarella, grilled minted aubergine, plum tomato, chilli pesto, rocket

Foccacias 5.50

Roasted chicken, brie cheese, puttanesca sauce, rocket

Grilled red pepper, roasted carrot, tzatiki dip, feta cheese, spinach 

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Grilled salmon salad with brown rice, edamame bean, fresh pea, broccoli, dill, spicy tomato sauce 

Pink grapefruit salad with black olive, sweetcorn, feta cheese, roasted walnut, alfalfa, radicchio and avocado dressing

Honey roasted purple carrot with tahini and yoghurt sauce and pumpkin seeds

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Tuna fish cake with sweet potato and mango salsa

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Smoked paprika brioche with courgette omelette, spinach, gruyere cheese, mushrooms and tomato salsa  5.00

Smoked paprika brioche with treacle smoked back bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 4.90

Croissant with smoked salmon, scrambled egg, tomato, rocket 5.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Muffins - Apple, vanilla, raisins and spices 2.50

Savoury - Courgette, cheese scrolls 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.70
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.50

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Lunch
Brioche 5.00

Smoked paprika Brioche with breaded smoked mozzarella, schiacciatta salami, rocket, red chillies and plum jam

Baguettes 5.30

Italian Coppa Cotta Ham, rocket, grilled fennel, goats curd, braised red onions and blackberries dressing.
Roasted aubergine, spinach, sweet peppers, fresh basil, pine nuts and saffron cream fraiche sauce.

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Polenta dices, smoked pancetta, rocket, blue cheese, red chillies, fresh coriander, black beluga lentils & chilli oil dressing
Roasted butternut, mascarpone cheese, Parmesan shavings, rocket, dried blackcurrants & dark chocolate balsamic dressing.

Roasted romanesca, pine nuts, pomegranates, mix seeds and baba ganoush dressing.

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Mille feuille with earth mushrooms, jack Monterey cream pastry and mole chocolate savoury sauce

Week beginning October 5th - London Latte Art Smackdown - The Finals

Congratulations are in order. The final 16 baristas have made their way to the last week of the London Latte Art Smackdown and will be competing on Tuesday night at Square Mile Roastery in front of a mad, up for it crowd with some of the complete legends of the London Coffee scene as judges in the search for prizes, cash and glory and hopefully a pay rise from their employers (ha ha).

The four heats have seen some fantastic techniques and very high standards with some very close calls from the judges, so the final will be even closer with even more pressure, especially when you consider the prizes and we may even be trying to increase the pressure with an as yet unannounced extra test for all baristas.

£840 cash
Victoria Arduino 'Oscar' Single group espresso machine
Baratza Grinder
2 x Rhino grinders
Trophies courtesy of Square Mile and Victoria Arduino
Cases Minor Figures Cold Brew Coffee
Case of Kernel Brewery Beer

The finalists and the order of competition is as follows:

Edgar - Attendant
Zain - Harris and Hoole
Phil - Artisan
helen - Lantana
So Yan - Attendant
Chloe - Kaffeine
Nico - Noble
Dean - Artisan
Laura - Curators
Heidi - Prufrock
Sam - Freelance barista
Piotr - Peanut Vendor
Jack - Origin
Will - Origin
Dhan - Caracoli
Alex - Origin

Judges on the night include: Oli Bradshaw, Jeremy Challender, James (I won the 1st year) Bailey, Andrew Tolley, Ben Townsend, Phil Wain, Tim Williams, Claire Brice and David (I won last year) Urbinati with lead judge Glenn Watson.

Check out the photos from Glenn Watson of the last four heats to get an idea.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/getnoticed/albums/72157656043480153

I hope we get to see you there, please do say hello if you do. Doors open at 7 pm and we will try to get the heats started as close to 7:30 pm as possible.

So please enjoy the week ahead and enjoy our menus, as we will enjoy bringing them to you.

Peter Dore-Smith
Director
Kaffeine



Great Titchfield Street Menu

Breakfast

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Granola muesli with pomegranate molasses, Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes, passion fruit 3.90

Ciabatta roll with omelette, pancetta, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Ciabatta roll with avocado, omelette, rocket and tomato salsa 5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach & plum tomatoes 4.90

Cinnamon and Raisin Toast 2.50

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant 2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Sweet muffin: Dark chocolate, coconut, banana 2.50

Savoury Scones: Cox apple, dijon, gruyere 2.50

Friand: Lime, lemon, coconut  2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.70

White chocolate blondies 2.50

Portuguese tarts 2.00

ANZAC cookies 2.00

Almond and custard slice 2.80

Banana bread 2.50
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Lunch

French retro baguettes 5.30

Ham, apple butter, red onion, gherkin, manchego cheese, rocket 

Grilled halloumi cheese, zucchini, avocado, tomato chutney, baby spinach

Foccacias 5.50

Smoked salmon, mint  pea, cucumber, wasabi mayo, watercress

Crumbed butternut squash, roasted red onion, sweet chilli sauce, feta cheese, baby spinach

Salads: 5.50/6.90

Roasted curried lamb salad with red onion, new potato, parsnip, coconut,  jasmine rice and mint and yoghurt dressing

Slow roasted tomato salad with roasted mixed pepper, aubergine, buffalo mozzarella, anchovy dressing and rocket

Glass noodle salad with edamame bean, fresh chilli, spring onion, coriander, sesame seed and tamariand dressing

Tart: 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Fresh fig, smoked bacon, thyme, goat's cheese

Eastcastle Street Menu

Breakfast

Traditional bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Paleo granola with Greek yoghurt and rhubarb and raspberry compote 4.00

Fruit salad with pineapple, mango, strawberries, grapes and passion fruit 3.90

Smoked paprika brioche, calvados potato mash, medium baked egg, grilled courgette and onions with crème fraiche and chives  5.00

Smoked paprika brioche with bacon, roasted tomatoes, avocado, rocket and aioli  5.00

Croissant with Italian roast ham, talleggio cheese, spinach and plum tomatoes 4.90

Croissant with smoked salmon, chopped egg, tomato and sprouts 5.00

Pastries by Seven Seed bakery

French butter croissant  2.00

Pain au chocolat 2.50

Almond croissant 2.80

Baked Treats

Muffins - Blackberries   2.50

Savoury - Spice salami, vine tomatoes, mozzarella 2.50

Super moist chocolate brownies (gf) 2.70
Blueberry, banana and nut cake with vanilla icing  2.50
Gluten free and dairy free protein bar 2.50

Vanilla, popcorn and caramel tarts  2.90

Banana bread 2.50
ANZACS  2.00
White chocolate, oats and cranberry cookies  2.00
Portuguese tarts 2.00
Raspberry and coconut slice 2.50

Lunch
Brioche 5.00
Smoked paprika brioche with Scottish smoked salmon, watercress, avocado, cucumber ribbons, plum tomatoes, mix seeds and horseradish cream sauce

Baguettes 5.30

Sourdough baguette with Ham, spinach, gherkins, Gruyere, tomatoes and Dijon mustard

Sourdough baguette with roasted tomatoes, candy red onions, Gorgonzola, rocket and peach Mayo

Salads 5.50 / 7.00

Prosciutto cotto Ham, Bibb lettuce, shredded red cabbage, mandarin oranges, raisins, sunflower seeds, desiccated coconut and poppy seed dressing
Fragrant Black rice, watercress, shredded carrots, beetroot, goat's curd, mix seeds and walnut oil dressing

Golden fluffy couscous, caramelised onions, mix nuts, dried black currants and roasted cherry tomatoes

Savoury Tart 4.40 or 8.00 with salads

Smoked haddock fish cakes and honey aioli sauce