Something’s brewing on Brian Boru Street

THE hanging light-bulbs of Boru Coffee Shop emanate a warm light, and you’re always met with an equally warm and lively welcome upon arrival.

Brian Mills, owner, and Alan Dineen, Head Barista, are like a double act, full of laughs and banter, and they build genuine rapport with their customers.

I was sitting by the window sipping my flat white whilst customers were streaming in, continuing on from the chats of previous visits. It feels like a valuable hang-out spot for some time-out before people go back to the grind. I’m sure it’s a highlight of people’s days.

There’s an old school feel to the area with the lovely old stone wall façade, the graffited walkway that takes you towards the train station, and the church steeples in the background.

There’s something down to earth about being positioned on a busy junction, and it sits like a pit-stop refuge from the surrounding bustle, with no frills and theatrics, just a straightforward operation - but they also manage to deliver a product with style.

If it’s a delicious coffee and a tasty snack you’re after, they have it. They’re pure Cork and pure sound! What more do you want?

I caught up with Brian for a little insight into the business.

Q: How long has your café been open, and do you know what the premises was in the past?

We’ve been open two years this December. The Building is roughly 80 years old and the whole of Clyde House, together with our coffee shop building, belonged to Clyde Shipping, which was a Scottish logistics company, and our coffee shop building was once stables for horses.

Q: Where did the inspiration for the design and aesthetic of the café come from?

The inspiration came from the name of the street, Brian Boru Street.

The design of the logo is a cup to represent coffee and a crown to represent the first High King of Ireland. We only realised as the plaster was stripped off the front of the building that the magnificent stone was underneath. We went for a very minimal interior with grey and white tones and a few quirky characters floating about on the shelves.

Q: Can you pinpoint when you fell in love with coffee?

Nearly 10 years ago, going into Eoin Mac of Filter on George’s Quays, and he opened my eyes to the world of coffee.

Q: What are the most important factors for serving quality coffee?

Choosing the coffee, grinding it, weighing it, tamping and timing it.

Q: What espresso machine do you use?

Rancilio RS1.

Q: How do you choose your espresso blend, and how often do you change it?

We get our espresso blend from Shane at Red Strand Coffee. We have a Brazilian, which is our house coffee, on grinder 1, and on grinder 2 we usually change it every fortnight with some other Irish Roasters like Three Fools, Stone Valley, Never a Days Trouble, Board Walk, Soma and Café Moly.

Q: Do you serve filter coffee?

Yes, we serve V60 and Batch. Different brew methods yield coffees of different textures via their filtration and style of brewing.

Q: What are your three best-selling drinks?

1. Flat white

2. Long black

3. Latte

Q: What’s the favoured drink amongst your team of baristas?

Flat white or a batch brew, but the flat white would be number one.

Q: What’s an ideal barista to you?

Someone who has a good coffee knowledge and has excellent rapport with customers. Someone who keeps the coffee station clean at all times and is always able to multi-task.

Q: What’s your ideal morning café playlist to get the blood flowing and the punters happy?

Some of the ideal morning songs I like to play are DJ Shadow, Midnight In A Perfect World; Massive Attack, Teardrop; and Thievery Corporation, Lebanese Blonde.

Q: What’s your daily caffeine limit and do you have a cut-off hour?

Five minimum, and no cut-off time.

Q: How would you describe the spirit of your café?

I would describe our coffee shop as a nice, chilled environment where people can come and grab a coffee on the go or sit down and chill, and myself and Alan are always up for a chat.

Q: One final word to your customers and the people of Cork city…

Thank-you so much to our loyal and regular customers and our one-off customers for their support over the last 22 months - we would not be here without your support.

I love coming into work, chatting to my regular customers and also meeting new ones, the knowledge I have learned over the last 22 months from different customers is invaluable.

You can find Boru Coffee Shop on Brian Boru Street, Cork city.