Coffika Experience

Firstly who are Coffika? They are a independent speciality coffee house passionate about quality coffee. They are situated in the very popular Meadowhall shopping mall in Sheffield. They have managed to bring together locally produced Sheffield coffee and milk to create this local inspired coffee house.

For a very much high street and mainstream style shopping centre, we are very lucky to have a speciality coffee house in such a location.

So after discovering Coffika it became my go to coffee stop whenever in Meadowhall. On one occasion I got talking with one of the managers called Ed. He suggested I should come and spend a bit of time with their head barista Klodian which is exactly what I did, recently.

I met up with Klodian who is originally from Albania. He has 20 years experience working with coffee after working in Greece and London before coming to Coffika. So you would imagine he knows a thing or two about coffee. In fact, it was obvious in an instant that he knows a lot about coffee and is a real ambassador for the culture.

We spent some time walking through their La Marzocco espresso machines (of which they have 2, yes 2!). Then we started going through all the different types of espresso based drinks, lattes, flat whites etc. Within the space of half an hour I had learnt a lot, including the different measurements and process of each espresso. From weighing the coffee to the nearest gram, to timing the extraction to get the perfect time for each extraction. I could really see that they do love coffee and love to share their knowledge with other enthusiastic people like myself!

Yes, this above is my poor attempt....pun intended. 

The coffee they use is from a Sheffield based roasters called Forge and it is a mixed blend from Ethiopia and Peru. All coffee is used within a couple of weeks of being roasted, so very fresh! The milk is also from a local company called 'Our Cow Molly' and is also as fresh as you can get it. The milk is fantastic, extremely creamy once steamed and compliments the coffee blend perfectly.

The way Coffika have made this very much a local coffee house effort is great and it is a great advocate for the Sheffield coffee community.

Klodian showed me his single origin cold brew that he brews in house. After taking a sample of the cold brew we actually started making the next batch! It was awesome to be involved and included in this because I've had very little experience with cold brew coffee.

It goes without saying, once you have visited, that Coffika coffee house is a modern serene atmosphere away from the madness of Meadowhall shoppers. In the upstairs seating area you can people-watch til your hearts content, chilling out with a flat white and a slice of cake.
Meadowhall I think we have found a winner.

I would like to thank Ed and Klodian at Coffika for setting this up with me. Its been an awesome experience meeting great people from within coffee. As I keep saying, the coffee community are so enthusiastic about supporting the specialty coffee industry and broadening its exposure in the wider community.

Thanks for reading and keep drinking coffee!