Caffeinate N8

140 Crouch Hill, Crouch End, London N8 9DX
There’s a bizarre feeling to hovering by a coffee shop doorway now. Unsure whether you can or can not go in depending on how many people are ahead of you, you twitch against the invisible threshold like a moth persistently bumping into a lightbulb whilst you wait for a confirmation nod from the barista at the bar.
It feels good to be back in London again. Not that I’ve travelled in for an ‘unnecessary journey’ from my Home Counties base of operations (although I’d argue the pursuit of decent coffee is entirely necessary) but rather I’m trying to edge back closer to the city and am permitted to view houses providing I attempt to social distance whilst clustered in shared flats and rooms for single-people. 
Fortunately, the Hornsey house I drop in on today is conveniently close to my sister’s flat in Turnpike Lane so, once my viewing is done, she leads me -at a two metre distance, of course- to several spots of her fancy. Crouch End would be where I suspect I’d be spending most of my time (given it’s proximity to the property) and so we head up the high street where I am surprised by the middle class boutiques, independent stores and urbane feel to the place given that I do not always have the most positive takes on North London (despite it being one of the areas of the great metropolis I will defend most ferociously).


At the top of the road, past the bakery recently featured on BBC crime-thriller Killing Eve, Caffeinate sits as a pastel-coloured cubby hole of delights as its hip interior beckons you in with images of tropical birds and plant covered light bulbs, but the urban jungle feel is somewhat lost when only two people are allowed in at a time. I’ve already had two mugs of coffee today so I decided to change things up a bit with an iced, oat milk, latte since the sun is out and basking the usually grey streets of London in a bright, yellowy glow.
I’m pleased to see them shop uses Allpress Espresso beans, a roaster that uses hot air roasting to maximise the taste. It doesn’t deal in subtleties or minute flavour tones, it’s more
the sort of coffee you can drink in any form and you definitely know you’ve had a coffee, and I respect that. Even in an iced latte, where the makeup is predominantly milk (or milk alternative) and ice, you still get the strong, rich roast come right through without any interruption. This is not an iced coffee for those used to chain store frappe’s or milkshakes masquerading as coffee.
I take a pew on one of the bench seats lining the narrow store front as my order is made up and the eerie quiet of being in a cafe when no one else is around is both relaxing and yet perturbing. I’d love to be here if and when the hustle and bustle returns and, if things go to plan, I may well get the opportunity. There are too many unknown variables to commit to becoming a ‘regular’ at this stage what with a global pandemic, rental prices and the abundance of decent coffee shops in the area…but, should the stars align and a little bit of luck fall my way and theirs, I wouldn’t rule it out.