Last week, a little grey van marked "Brewed Boy espresso" set itself up on Rupert St - conveniently en route to my morning walk to the Tube.
There's a big shiny coffee machine on the back, and Square Mile Winter brew pulsing through its veins. And Rob, its barista, smiles a lot and wears wellies. These sorts of operations always intrigue me, and my curiousity was sufficiently piqued. I immediately had Brewed Boy earmarked for a morning heart starter.
My every effort to sample the goods was scuppered during that first week. Power cuts, rain and early morning meetings defeated me at every turn.
But finally, I made it. And it was worth it.
The flat white is smooth and soulful - a joyous way to start the day. As readers will know, I'm fussy about my coffee (especially that crucial first of the day) but I could not have enjoyed this one more. Barista Rob is of such sunny, chatty disposition that I'm almost considering becoming a morning person. Almost. He made espressos in Australia (Brisbane) for a while - an excellent training base, if I do say so myself - before returning to London recently and deferring a journalistic career to pursue his passion for the good stuff. My luck!
Flat whites are a bargain at £1.80 (lattes are £2.00), come in the right sized cup (without even asking or, worse, having to repeat oneself to an incredulous double take that no you don't want regular) and Brewed Boy is now, happily, a permanent fixture on Rupert St. Although....
I was outraged to hear this morning that the local bullies in one Rupert St cafe keep hampering Rob's attempts to make me a good coffee by pulling the power and forcing him up the road. His exact current position is uncertain. And I had to resort to a disgusting coffee at the work cafe - don't mess with me today. If you're wandering through Soho, give Starbucks and Costa a wave, give the red cafe on Rupert St the one finger salute, then buy a lovely, heart warming coffee from Brewed Boy.
Brewed Boy Espresso, Rupert Street, Soho, London, W1D
Check Brewed Boy out... great guy!!
ReplyDeleteI worked with him during his journalist days in Australia. To be honest I have never tasted his brew, but knowing his penchant for style and quality he wouldn't serve anything other than a 1st class brew. His personality and charisma come as an added extra...
Good luck Rob!!
Good Luck Rob.........I hope your venture goes well & you continue to thrive!!
ReplyDeleteMaybe you can come & treat us all to a Brewed Boy Latte sometime soon!!!!!
Don't forget where your first supply of coffee came from!! Ha ha ha
Take Care.
xXx
Will try it out, cheers for the tip. Does he do long blacks? I'm sure he does...
ReplyDeleteBrewed Boy Fan and Anon - thanks for your comments, and good to see BB already has some die hard fans.
ReplyDeleteIbzo - I'm sure he will do a long black for you. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteThat brewedboy, I call him rudeboy. He make week coffee. I taste it, it like horse urine. And I warn him “You not come here and with silly car – it leak oil and make the customer shoe slip on our street". He falled and get hurt. Rudeboy fault.
ReplyDeleteBetter coffe at that red caffe. Better service quality. Cleaner.
Hi Umut - I think Brewed Boy is easily the least rude thing I have ever encountered on Rupert St! If the other cafes on Rupert St are any good they should have nothing to fear by a bit of healthy competition. The more they try to thwart new ventures on the street, the more it only makes me suspicious they are insecure about the quality of their own product. I'm still with Brewed Boy, but I hope you enjoy your coffees elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteForget horse urine, the only thing Umut can taste is sour grapes!
ReplyDeleteMy business partner and I have now stopped wasting our money at Starbucks as Brewed Boy delivers one of the best Lattes we have ever tasted.
Courteous and friendly, Rob is a very welcome addition to our neighbourhood. Try his coffee -it does not disappoint.
Popped along to Rupert St today and easily spotted Brewed Boy, with a line of people eagerly awaiting their morning coffee.
ReplyDeleteServing up Square Mile's Winter Espresso with a smile, Rob has a great story to tell and is passionate about his relatively new career.
Bring a (decent) book and trade it for one that Brewed Boy has in it's small but growing library.
But it's the coffee that most people come (and come back for!)
I'll be back for more next time I am near Rupert St.
Keep up the great work Rob
Very funny story line.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
James
http://minicab-london.org.uk