Comfy coffee

We are in the age of coffee. In our hectic urban lives, coffee has become an essential fuel for working minds; we seem to grab a cup on the go from a coffee corner shop and keep going. Coffee chains have become a ubiquitous feature of our cities, most offering more or less standard fare with boring sameness, in unassuming settings. Though we find comfort in coffee, it is doubtful that we are comfortable in those coffee corners. They seem to be far away from the coziness of home.

However, things need to change. Urban life is hard enough to cope with, people are stuck with work, spending long hours in transport, and have limited time at home. Especially the students are usually like digital nomads in the city, their lodging seldom offering the sereneness of home. Most venues for drinks and food are overly noisy and crowded; it is not easy to find a secluded corner to rest, have a conversation with friends, or work in tranquility. This is also true when visiting another country, one feels edgy sitting in a place too long, with waiters eyeing your table constantly. I remember finding refuge in a coffee corner close to Angel Tube station in London. It felt almost like home, I had my comfy leather armchair and a coffee table, and I could work on my laptop, having not only coffee but an array of delectable things to eat, especially I remember the warmth of the ginger-laced carrot soup or the tomato and basil one that immediately transported me to home. Even finding my private booth, my London comfort spot from breakfast to late night became that coffee house. It was sort of home away from home for me, and then slowly I realized that the spot was indeed a chain, not a boutique coffee shop, and their coffee was also superior to most other brands. The other day, I remembered all these, when I met Ahmet Yanıkoğlu, the CEO of the British chain Caffè Nero in Türkiye, for the occasion of their new three-story edition in Pangaltı.

When talking with Yanıkoğlu, it all made sense. They were truly aiming to achieve that special coziness. Being a coffee chain, they surely give importance to serving premium coffee, but they also care about the atmosphere they create, trying to be as homely as possible, trying to give a unique individual character to every single store. He passionately talked about the bench chair we were sitting on, saying that it was his favorite spot in the store. I noticed the slightly backward inclining design of the bench made it very comfortable for sitting, found only in old-school retro chairs. Details as such, sometimes including home-style lampshades, give a feeling of home, and of course, the smell of freshly brewed coffee wraps everything together to accentuate the homely feeling. Now, as I learn from Yanıkoğlu, they also add freshly baked goods and sandwiches and croissants made right on the spot, adding to the warm atmosphere, with the surrounding aroma akin to a bakery.

But of course, an individual character cannot only be achieved by homely design and mood-creating aromas. The human element is essential in creating individuality in a venue. We always miss a caring waiter we know in classic restaurants or a familiar face in a shop. Barista is the answer for that in a coffee corner. Yanıkoğlu also explained their attitude in that aspect, saying that their motto is “Good people make great coffee.” Serving great coffee to customers day in, day out is no easy feat. Baristas must be trained by experienced coffee trainers to ensure each of the Baristas are skilled in the art of coffee making. When you have a perfectly made cup of coffee with a big smile, what else you could ask for. Last but not least, the bean itself has to be special. It is true that every coffee bean has a story and a flavor of its own. Not easy to choose to fit one’s individual plate, considering the fact that there are endless choices across the continents, all the way from Latin America to East Africa and Southeast Asia. Especially the high-altitude beans grown in rich soil offer an ideal aroma profile, but it is also all the processes from picking to roasting and grinding that make the difference. This is an essential element of good coffee, and a classic cup owes its perfection given to the minute details in its creation. It was the meticulous research of Gerry Found, the founder of Caffè Nero, who left no stone unturned in his drive to create their signature blend nearly 20 years ago. Tirelessly sourcing, selecting, and tasting combinations of beans from across the coffee-growing world he honed the Classico blend, as it is today, a wonderful, rich flavor with a sweet spot of boldness and complexity, combined with notes of toasted bread and intense dark chocolate, the same blend offered at all outlets around the world.

As said, coffee chains are now an integral part of urban life. We are all addicted to the commodity of chain stores which offer us quick fixes of food or coffee. But we also miss the individuality of old-school places and the coziness of a homely feeling. To offer both seems to be an oxymoron. To be fast, yet slow; to be a chain but home-like; to offer the same at every store, yet give the feeling of individuality. So, it is not all about the coffee itself, but also the human factor, the attention to detail in design, freshly prepared food to go with, peasant music not banging in your head, and the whole welcoming attitude to give anyone stepping in as being special. In our hectic worlds, we all need a whiff of breath to stop and savor the moment to sip good coffee. I think the fast life has to pace itself to a slower rhythm, thanks to comfy coffee corners like this, we can close ourselves to a cocoon, and savor the moment.