Things to do in London: The Espresso Room
Ever since their opening and winning of Time Out’s best new coffee shop in 2010, I’ve wanted to try the coffee served in The Espresso Room. I never had the chance to do so until recently when I had an hour to kill before an exhibition I was going to in The British Museum so I walked over to the nearby Espresso Room to try, and I’m glad I did.
The Espresso Room is tiny, with a few benches outside for people to enjoy their coffee and a lone bench inside which we occupied gladly. A tiny coffee shop means the aroma of brewed coffee wafts gently off the La Marzocco to every knock and corner of the busy cafe. If you are a coffee-holic, you’ll know how maddening a whiff of good coffee is, therefore you can understand that standing in a long line sneaking outside the cafe’s door while inhaling the scent of coffee is a happy experience on its own.
The Espresso Room not only serves coffee but a few munchies, sandwiches, and even a daily soup. We ordered the tiny square of Pecan Pie to go with our coffees.
The baristas working behind the counter were really friendly and had that air of people doing something they are passionate about them. As we placed our orders and took our seat -or rather bench, they were happily chatting with the customers. The atmosphere is certainly jolly and relaxed, an ideal setting for a coffee place. That’s our bench by the way.
I loved the pecan pie, the perfect complement to my double espresso.
The double espresso: bold, strong, and not for the faint hearted. The crema was thick and gorgeous, I enjoyed every sip of my perfect espresso shots.
What really captured my heart though was the cappuccino. Though cappuccino is not really my favourite coffee drink I felt like tasting it and when I did, I almost drained the cup in one gulp. In my humble opinion it was one of the best, if not the best, cup of cappuccinos I’ve tried in a very long time. When the cup was gone, I went to the counter and ordered me another one for takeaway.
In The Espresso Room you don’t only drink coffee, you talk about coffee, you smell the coffee beans, and you can buy them and have them ground on the spot -or buy a grinder and other coffee-related items-. I left with a takeaway cup of cappuccino and gorgeous-smelling ground beans to brew at home.
By the way those shelves thing shelves on the wall? They double up as the thinnest cupboards I’ve ever seen and hide a wealth of items inside for the cafe’s use! Talk about a space saver! I was so happy at The Espresso Room, I didn’t want to leave.
As I sipped my delicious cappuccino while walking to The British Museum in that crisp sunny spring day, I realised that The Espresso Room is exactly the kind of place I’ve always fantasized about having one day, a tiny coffee place where I brew coffee and serve it, joyful cup after joyful cup, to eager coffee-loving customers. Maybe one day, who knows, but for the time being having those delicious cappuccinos will do.
The Espresso Room is located in 31-35 Great Ormond Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1N 3HZ. For more information and directions you can check their website (link) or follow them on Twitter (@TheEspressoRoom) or on Instagram (@TheEspressoRoom).
