Speciality coffee trend sweeps Flanders and Brussels
Coffee houses that reflect the varied local mix of cultures and ethnicities have been popping up across Flanders and Brussels in recent years
An international cuppa
Caffenation, an Antwerp coffee bar and roaster that opened its doors in 2003, was one of the forerunners of the Flemish coffee house scene. “In the beginning it was just me sitting on this side of the table,” explains Rob Berghman, the enthusiastic owner. “The traditional coffee places said we were crazy. But 15 years later, and we’re not so lonely on this side of the table anymore.”
According to Berghman, the success of the local coffee scene is a direct results of the quality of the brews and beans, as well as the enthusiasm driving the whole movement. “This scene is full of maniacs; it can never be stopped,” he says.
The distinguishing features of “speciality coffee” come down to a number of factors, he says. “First, we are always very clear about what’s in the cup – which beans, and so on,” he says.
Small-scale
Berghman notes that he also visits the plantations of his Kenyan suppliers so he can deal directly with the farmers, which is standard practice for coffee houses. This aim to provide consumers with the best product, together with his desire to positively impact producers abroad results in an offer of unique blends in the cafe in central Antwerp.
Belgium’s newcomer status on Europe’s coffee scene is reflected in the scale of the market. Caffenation roasts 45 tons of coffee per year, making them one of the biggest roasters in the country.
But the amounts are still tame compared to other countries, where market leaders roast hundreds of tons of beans every year. According to Berghman, the small size of the industry due to the high cost of labour, which make it difficult for cafes to be profitable or rapidly expand.
“I need to pay at least €25 per hour before tax,” Berghman explains. “This is why owning and running larger coffee houses is simply not profitable. That’s also why large chains like Starbucks cannot expand here.”
Caffee Italiano (pictured), meanwhile, stands out for its no-nonsense approach. In the heart of Brussels’ European quarter, you queue, you’re greeted with a loud “Ciao!”, your order is shouted to the barista, and you receive a plate for the coffee.
When it arrives, you have two options. Squeeze past the queue stretching outside to find an inch of space and quickly swill your €1 espresso. Or, dive deeper into the crowd towards the chef, where the paninis and sandwiches await.
We got our inspiration from Ethiopian coffee houses and added a contemporary twist
Italian flavours
There’s something uniquely Italian about drinking coffee this way. It’s your lunchtime caffeine fix, without the pamper and chic of trendy cafes, or the financial ruin wreaked upon your wallet by a pumpkin spice latte.
“We use Valentino coffee, which comes from my region, Puglia,” explains Caffee Italiano owner Pietro Molendini. “It’s a 60-year-old family business that I really appreciate for their mastery of roasting.”
Because customers drink their coffee “standing in front of us,” he continues, “we are able to establish contact – exchange a few words, an anecdote, a quick word on football,” Molendini says. “That’s the charm of this place.”
With an inviting coffee fragrance, African music and a dimmed interior, Aksum café, also in Brussels, transports patrons to Ethiopia, both the birthplace of coffee and one of the worlds’ largest coffee growers. “We got our inspiration from Ethiopian coffee houses and added a contemporary twist,” explains co-owner Jarmo Pikkujamsa.
Portuguese brew
On an inconspicuous corner not far from the cobblestoned streets that ring the city’s Grote Markt, Aksum similarly aims to offer patrons transparency on what’s in their cup. “We use a range of organic coffee varieties that we source from Ethiopia ourselves. These usually include Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, Lekempti or smaller rare and ‘wild’ coffees.”
According to Pikkujamsa – who hails from Finland and holds a PhD in Oriental and African Studies from the University of London – the growth of the local coffee scene is also reflected in the crowd that walks into Aksum. “We first attracted foreign customers, and the Belgian clientele soon followed. It has been interesting to see that the coffee house culture has indeed become more varied and international.”
Portuguese cafes have become a common sight in most local cities, and so has its strong coffee brew. At Forcado Café in the Brussels’ Sint-Gillis, cork wood floors and other interior details serve as a subtle hint of Portugal, but the diaspora community – one of the largest in the country – is not the only crowd visiting.
“We wanted to create a qualitative coffee shop that represents Portugal and its heritage nicely,” explains co-owner Joaquim Braz de Oliveira, who comes from the country. “Portuguese coffee is very strong, and very intense at first, but it leaves a very soft aftertaste.”
At Forcado, a simple espresso – bica in Portuguese – combines delightfully with the sweet indulgence of classic Portuguese pastries like pastéis de nata. But Braz de Oliveira says he wanted to create more than just a fashionable space, sugar-coated with nostalgia. “We wanted to create more than a trend – something that would look good even 10 years from now.”
We wanted to create a qualitative coffee shop that represents Portugal and its heritage nicely
Music through coffee
In Ghent, Consouling Sounds Cafe stands squarely at the centre of the city’s internationally renowned music scene. The coffee house developed from the music label, which has been working for 10 years to put local artists on the global map and to bring international acts to Belgium.
“We were thinking about opening a creative office where we could meet with artists,” says Mike Keirsbilck, one of the heads of Consouling Sounds. “Having coffee available just came naturally. The coffee is a gateway to create a sociable environment where people can come and work, talk or just buy some records."
Though he plays down the cafe’s importance in the local coffee scene, Keirsbilck is adamant about providing the same quality in their coffee as in their music. “I’m just interested in serving an honest pot of coffee. No more, but also no less.”
The future of the coffee house scene in Belgium is difficult to predict, both industry experts and the dozen shop owners leading the trend say. “The speciality coffee scene in Belgium is growing,” says Loïc Installé, national co-ordinator of the Specialty Coffee Association Belgium. “Last year, the amount of coffee houses in Brussels almost doubled.”
Caffenation’s Berghman echoes the sentiment. “Twelve years ago we were alone, but competitors help grow the overall movement; it has a knock-on effect.”
Photo by Benas Gerdziunas
