New Coffee Spot: Story Coffee

Story Coffee
Click here for the ‘vlog’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ILB9Jcc8rc
Location:
Opening Times:
Monday – Friday: 7am – 4pm
Saturday: 8:30am – 5pm
Sunday: 9am – 5pm
Coffee:
Good coffee by Square Mile Coffee Roasters. Espresso doesn’t seem particularly deep or earthy but it’s got a pleasant flavour. Price wise, Story is absolutely on par with most independent cafés around London: £2 for an espresso and £2.60 for a Flat White; serving a Flat White as 6oz standard.
Atmosphere:
Story seems like a very ‘cool’ café. Imagine most customers ordering a double espresso and reading the Guardian, that’s Story – I liked it!
Design:
Clean, bright and open-planned. There’s not a huge amount of seating which gives Story a really nice, simplistic and unclustered feel.
WiFi:
None
Customer Service:
Friendly staff unless you bring your laptop.
Ideal for:
Catching up with friends when you’re in a bit of a rush*
*You’re not sure how long you have left on the parking ticket; you have to pick the kids up from school and you’ve seen enough holiday snaps to last you a lifetime.
Here it is! The first in a new set of vlogs where I visit a new coffee shop each week and tell you guys what I think.
Visually, I love Story. It’s bright, open design enclosed by large glass windows give it a fresh, modern look. The menu, both food and drink, is simple. The emphasis is definitely on coffee, a good move when using Square Mile Coffee beans, a company based in East London that is regarded favourably amongst coffee enthusiasts across London.
That said, if it’s a real hipster café you are looking for then you’ve come to the wrong place. This is particularly true when it comes to their bad attitude towards laptop users. Yep! If the lack of WiFi wasn’t a big enough hint, as soon as you take out your macbook you’ll be asked to move into the corner. Rude? A little. Although… I can sort of see where they are coming from.
While that’s enough discouragement to stop me going there to work, I’ve got to be honest and say it wouldn’t put me off choosing Story as a place to meet friends and drink good coffee. I guess, after all, that’s the point: Story is a meeting ground for friends and community, not an office space. Far more suited (and accommodating) to those needs are the likes of Timberyard, with multiple cafés scattered across the city.
From what I’ve experienced though, the staff at Story were nice. They know their coffee and there’s little more to it. Sure, there are no fancy Rude Health milk alternatives (which is usually the sign of a great café) but that’s just not what Story is about. Story is simple, good coffee. Maybe we (as customers) have just over-complicated it all?
Would I go back? Definitely. Sure, I wouldn’t go brining my laptop and asking for the nearest power socket any time soon but if I was after a decent coffee I’d definitely pop in.
Looks like a cool place! I recently bought a copy of the Northern Independent Coffee Guide and I’m loving it. Really hoping to explore places around me!
Loved your vlog, all the vlogs, actually. I wished you’d do more Youtube 🙂