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Caffeine

“Coffee is a lot more than just a drink; it’s something happening. Not as in hip, but like an event, a place to be, but not like a location, but like somewhere within yourself. It gives you time, but not actual hours or minutes, but a chance to be, like be yourself, and have a second cup”

― Gertrude Stein, Selected Writings



Proper coffee, as in the store-bought coffee and not the plunger (french-press) that I make at 6am before leaving for work, is both a luxury and an essential. Gertrude’s words touch on how I feel about coffee - its not just the actual drink itself, but the chance to be apart and regroup (calling all introverts here).


I managed to make it through university without it, but got trapped in my first proper job by a dear friend who I blame for my coffee addiction. British readers, particularly those in the south, will know how seriously many Aussies feel about their coffee. An upside (perhaps the only one?) to the slow but steady gentrification of Parramatta is an increase in good coffee shops. At times, finding a good coffee shop while on a dig is almost an obsession. 


Here are the places that meet my criteria for “good” coffee… 

Bourke St Bakery

The sign “open from 5.30am” says it all. The shop is positioned next to one of the largest and longest running constructions sites and even construction workers aren’t immune to the insidious spread of hipster culture. Bourke St Bakery started in Surry Hills, one of Sydney’s native hipster homes, and its appearance in Parramatta is a sign of the place’s gentrification. 

This place does good coffee and very good sourdough for those who want to fork out a lot of money for a loaf. Perhaps though after Sydney’s COVID19-lockdown-created flour shortage everyone in town is now an expert baker? 

A colleague loves the carrot cake. I’m besotted with the bacon and egg roll, a splurge I allowed myself after forgetting my carefully prepared breakfast, morning tea and lunch on the kitchen bench at home. 

Double Mac

A hole-in-the-wall joint open weekdays and manned by a lovely, cheerful barrista. Popular with men in suits and in hi-vis a like. 

Mac St Coffee

My latest find located at the far end of town. Supplied very good soy flat whites to get me through the tedium of a site with very little archaeology, a bored and sub-par machine operator, and a pair of noisy (feathered) residents. One highlight was our daily team trivia - one of the team on site  made the effort every day to bring in copies of the Sunday paper quiz 😄 

Darcy St Project

Sadly, their Parramatta shop has closed, but in research this blog post I’m excited to discover that they have a shop in the city! This cafe is a social enterprise helping up-skill young people through making coffee. The people that ran the place when I was a regular were a delight: open, welcoming, patient and supportive. Interested in what I was doing and a friendly face each day while I struggled through a very difficult project. 

Meraki

Finding this cafe was a win this year. We were working on a project by the Parramatta Rive, and being May it was getting cold and damp. All our paperwork was constantly limp and damp. *ugh*. Ah, but coffee. Another cafe filled with lovely people who made a few minutes to chat each morning and recommended probably the best ground coffee I’ve had in a rather long time. This project required that I drive everyday and I found myself doing a deep dive into the podcast “You’re Wrong About” - a podcast about a random selection of American events in the recent-ish past where the hosts disect what the media told everyone versus what actually happened. Highly recommend. 




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