My Local

Having a local is a something l couldn’t do without, but to be clear it isn’t just one place and not necessarily the closest place. For me a local is that go to place in areas you are often at.

I have a local near home, one or two near work, one at the other end of the city, one in Providence Rhode Island, Metung, Singapore, London etc etc. You get the point.

Wherever I go I do the research to find a place, it’s a patient process but the reward at the end is great.

So what makes a local? Of course it begins with great coffee, that’s the easy bit, a quick google and you can narrow it down. The rest is a personal thing, personal taste ... here is mine:

• A strong tasting coffee, hair on your chest type thing

• An engaging barista, someone who pays attention. I like going into a place and hear someone use my name when they say hi, even better when I don’t even have to tell them my order. Better again if when it’s quiet we can have a chat and catch up on how our NBA teams are going (shout out to Troy of old t-Roy Browns fame, really miss that place)

• The right vibe. The place can’t be to new or fresh looking, I like a well worn cosy feel, like your favorite shoes or and old T-shirt ...

For the right mix of these three things, my local can be quite far away 🙋🏻‍♂️☕️