Shift Espresso Bar
22 November 2019
SHIFT ESPRESSO BAR
Temple House, corner of Buitenkant and Roeland
Streets, Cape Town
There are those seemingly
perpetual bad luck spots for eateries, where one establishment after the other
tries to make a go of it, some for a few months, some for a year or two,
without ever making it. Perhaps it’s insufficient passing trade or lack of
parking, and obviously, often too, it’s simply a lack of USP to draw patrons,
but whatever it is, when a new place opens in of those spots, one immediately
has little hope for it.
Shift occupies a
space that hitherto seemed to be one of those doomed premises since Carlucci’s,
then expanding a brand that’s a defunct now, opened here and was succeeded by
various failed enterprises until now.
Just on present vibe and buzz alone, Shift is already winning.
There are Shift
outlets in Woodstock, Green Point (possibly coffee only) and on the edge of the
Waterfront. The younger goddaughter alerted me to the brand, referring to these
earlier ventures and it’s fortuitous that the latest incarnation is almost on
my doorstep. I came here for coffee and an excellent slice of cheesecake last
Friday, and today I’m back for the full breakfast experience.
It’s one of
those places I immediately like, with its bright and cheery ambience from the
huge windows on two sides and contemporary Cape Town coffee shop style of dark
wood, wrought iron and face brick. It’s not cosy and intimate but it’s lively
and fun.
The space is divided
into two wings of equal length, with a mix of small tables with chairs and
communal tables with low metal stools with upholstered seats, and counter
seating at the Buitenkant Street window, and a massive central doorway. At the
far end of the wing where I sat there’s a small dais with couch and easy chairs and a coffee table with
some paperbacks for those who want to relax with a cuppa joe and a book, or
maybe just the beverage.
In common with
similarly situated eateries, it’s unfortunate that Shift is at a busy, noisy
intersection and the traffic noise can be quite disturbing when the front door
and side windows are open. The traffic also competes with the upbeat modern
rock on the PA.
The service, and
barista, counter is in the centre of the two wings, facing the entrance, and
displays a variety of sweet pastries, muffins, cheese cake and carrot cake.
The breakfast
menu is quite interesting, with three health options (oats, blue yoghurt spread
and red yogurt spread – the difference lies in the berries used), filled
croissants, scrambled eggs and avocado on toast, poached eggs with what I read
as ” bog of salmon” (hey, I had to google this and the answers weren’t encouraging;
then I looked at the capitalised print more carefully, and it might be 80G of
salmon), omlette(sic), breakfast sandwich, a fry up, plus a couple of breakfast bagels.
My choice was
the bacon bagel (R75) with cream cheese and avocado, served on greaseproof
paper on a wooden board. To me, the so-called bagel is just a bagel shaped
bread roll (in texture and taste) but the bacon was well-cooked and there was
enough avocado for an okay light meal. Don’t expect the earth to move.
I indulged the
sweet tooth with a lovely, fresh pain au chccolat (R30.)
At R18 the minuscule
quantity of espresso was a bit steep, compared to other coffee shops that almost
fill the cup.
The total bill
came to R155 before tip.
Shift shares the
intersection with the Kimberley Hotel, across the street, and there are The Raptor Room and Conways on
the other side of Roeland Street, with Vida a block up on Roeland, and Truth a
couple of blocks further down on Buitenkant Street. The main hub of the East City Precinct is
only a few minutes’ walk away. This previously neglected part of the city has
been repurposed and revitalised, and Shift is excellently positioned to take
maximum advantage. I’d say the bad luck hex on its location has been broken.
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