Espresso at Oxford is a collection of photographed memories from my favorite coffee shops at Oxford: Society Café, Jericho Coffee Traders, and Missing Bean Roastery.
Society Café
Society Café is an independent coffee shop located on St. Michael’s in the heart of the Oxford city center. They also have two stores in Bath and one Bristol, with a second one in the works.
Society Café always has two espresso beans from different farms and roasters, as well as 3 choices of filter on any given day.
Society Café also serve loose-leaf teas, hot chocolates, cold drinks, local cakes and pastries, and home-made sandwiches. I often saw people enjoying their morning with a coffee and a slice of cake, sitting on tables just outside the café.
Society Café, like most others at Oxford, have small loyalty cards that can be stamped with each espresso purchase for a free coffee down the line. If only they gave out stamps for pastries as well, I would have earned my free coffee weeks ago…
A phenomenon that has not yet taken off in the United States is the “keep cup.” The keep cup is reusable, and coffee shops often offer discounts for customers that bring them in — Society included. The keep cup concept is flexible as well. Starbucks in America will only take Starbucks branded reusable mugs or thermos, but cafés here will take any keep cup.
In my experience, Society is a great place to go for a social coffee and to get some work done. There is ample seating and even a below ground level with additional tables and chairs.
This is Society’s pitch for their café:
Society’s ‘urban living space’ is designed with all of us in mind. Come park your bike, buggy, dog. Come with friends, to maybe make new ones or come alone for some solitude and people-watching. Come drink some perfectly prepared coffee, exquisite tea or hot chocolate made from chunks of the real thing. Come have delicious cake, homemade granola with yoghurt and compote, fresh sandwiches and healthy treats for children.
As well as filling your tummy, if you feel like it, you could also feed your mind — art house books and magazines, exhibitions, from time to time we welcome artists in residence and for children there is a creative space designed to get ideas going (giving Mum and Dad a chance to collapse into a sofa and relax!)
Jericho Coffee Traders
Next up is Jericho. Jericho has two premises: an Espresso Bar, and a Café & Roastery — both serving delicious espresso and filter coffees accompanied by locally made pastries and cakes.
Jericho Coffee Traders was born in 2009 when the owners purchased a Vespa “tuk-tuk” that they discovered for sale on the side of a road.
We had the chance to see the trike in action at the Oscar Wilde Party, held at Magdalen on the evening before May Day. Jericho was hired to serve (phenomenal) espresso martinis.
Jericho also boasts a thriving coffee subscription business, ranked 3rd in the Lightning Top 50 UK eCommerce Companies, as well as a coffee school with courses for both novices and experts. In addition, they regularly launch pop-ups around Oxford — most recently, at the Oxford Botanical Gardens.
Missing Bean Coffee Roasters
Missing Bean became Central Oxford’s first independently owned coffee shop in 2009, with the opening of their location on Turl Street. There are now five locations around the UK.
Missing Bean has an almond-chocolate croissant that I am a fan of. It’s usually almond, or chocolate, but never both. Mind blown.
The interior is cozy but lively. The sounds of lo-fi beats, milk frothers, and clinking mugs fill the air. It’s a great space to work on creative projects…like this one.
The interior of the café:
Direct Trade
Missing Bean is big on direct trade. According to their website:
Buying direct means that farmers receive 100% of the costs for their goods, which results in a price that’s often far higher than fair trade. A direct partnership with farmers means that we can ensure sustainable production and ethical labour practices are being followed. Being in direct communication with the farms gives us more options when sourcing our beans and allows us access to unique coffees.
Bonus Espresso Photos
Thanks to Stone Yang for contributing photographs to this collection.
