A small cup of coffee, please 

It’s Saturday morning. You’ve been for a run, had your muesli, done your mum’s taxi bit and now you’re heading into town to do your weekend errands. You might be getting your car washed, picking up some food shopping and you’ll also go for a coffee. Am I right or is this just my Saturday? 

Same high-street, different town 

Look around. There’s a Starbucks, a Costa, perhaps a Pret or a Nero.  

Does this sound like your local high-street?  

Scatter in a few other chain stores and you could be on any high-street, anywhere in the UK. There are some exceptions, I know, some small highstreets are preserving their unique charm, but chain coffee shops, in particular, are popping up all over the place and we seem to be flocking to them with our reusable coffee cups in hand. 

In London are you ever more than about two feet away from a Pret? And in all the bigger towns the ‘big four’ are there: the wavy hair one, the Italian one, the French one and the other Italian one. Plus, others selling their flatisserie and boissons chaudes. 

I live in Tenterden, a pretty market town in Kent with a beautiful tree-lined high-street and plenty of independent shops. We’re not short of places to go for coffee. We have everything: tea rooms, cafés, pubs, delis, coffee shops, bakeries, the list goes on.  

We’re a rural town that has two of the big four, so far. They’re going strong.  Luckily, we’ve got plenty of others to choose from. Some run by local people. Each one of them different. 

Why are the coffee chains proving so popular?  

They’ve sold us a coffee culture that we didn’t know we wanted. Now we have it, we can’t get enough of it. They do so well because they appeal to everyone and we’re familiar with them because we see them everywhere.  

We—and I’ll include myself in this—go to them because of convenience and consistency. You know what you’re going to get, there’s room for the pushchair, they don’t frown at the kids or groups of teenagers, you can see what they serve and how much it’s going to cost and you can get the latest calorific frappawhatsit  in a cool cup with a straw if that’s your thing.  

They’re all much of the same in their own way. It’s a question of personal taste where you pay your money and make your choice. 

Personally, I think Nero is the best of the bunch. It smells like a coffee shop in there.  

Pret’s not bad, but you didn’t go there just for coffee, did you? 

As for Starbucks, I won’t touch their over-roasted coffee. You might as well put hot water on a lump of coal and drink it. 

Costa is supposed to be for coffee lovers, yet their coffee is weak, too milky, too large for my taste. I’m convinced it’s coffee for people who don’t actually like coffee. But it’s probably a far cry from the early days of Sergio and Bruno Costa’s vision and has since passed through the sticky fists of several drinks giants. 

What can an indie coffee shop offer that’s different? 

You’ll get a different selection of drinks and food. Lots of independent coffee shops change their menus seasonally and might even change up their speciality coffees.  

They’re more likely to sell and serve small–batch coffee. They may even roast it themselves. They’ll be knowledgeable about it and they’ll understand the coffee, not just follow instructions on the 12 steps to a perfect cappuccino. They’ll know their V60 from their Chemex and they’ll happily tell you about it. 

They’re more likely to use local produce and small producers. This could include local dairies, a local baker or local fruit juices. You’re not just supporting them, but you’re supporting other local businesses.  

The food is real and not mass-produced. Real cakes freshly baked by a baker, not a machine. Cheese cut from a block. Ham carved in front of you. Condiments that you can buy and take home with you. These places smell of real coffee and cooking, not D10 sanitiser and boiled milk. 

They will care about you as a customer. Not just your loyalty points, the mystery shopper score or sales targets, they will care about you and your repeat custom. If you go there frequently, they’ll know your ‘usual,’ the way you like it.  

They’re more likely to use less packaging. As the food is prepared to order, there’s less paper and plastic. They’ve already adapted to compostable takeaway cups or they’ll sell you a reusable cup that fits under a portafilter.  

I’ll take mismatched plates and cosy seating over branded cups and office lounge furniture, please. Great coffee and real food in places that talk to me about the people that run it, the produce they sell and the people that go there.  

The corporate coffee shops are fine, but they’re a bit boring, sanitised and samey. The independents offer more. 

Seek them out. Find your favourite.  

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Thanks again for reading. This is my third serving on the #Write52 challenge. One post each week, for a whole year. Read more from us or join us.