Meal Ticket: Coffeeangel Trinity, Dublin 2

Coffeeangel has been a major influencer in the coffee movement in Dublin over the past decade

Coffeeangel
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Address: 15 Leinster Road South Dublin 2
Cuisine: Fusion

Working for yourself has many benefits. Among them include working from home in your PJs (hell, in your bed if you want) and creating your own hours. The drawbacks can be the distractions of home making it hard to avoid procrastination loops. A new, clean space is a great way to break a cycle of procrastination, and if I’m having a bad week of it, I tend to coffee shop-hop, carrying my laptop bag and bedraggled charger with me wherever I go.

One day not so long ago, I turned up at Coffeeangel Trinity (formerly Cup) at 11am and I didn’t leave until closing time at 5pm, having a highly productive thanks to the support of Coffeeangel’s free WiFi. I started my workday with a fruit scone, baked in house earlier that morning and warmed in their oven right before serving. It’s one of those enormous biscuity scones and it’s a mid-morning treat slathered with jam and butter.

Coffeeangel has been a major influencer in the coffee movement in Dublin over the past decade. Colin Harmon of 3FE worked as a barista in Coffeeangel’s IFSC branch before founding 3FE back in 2009. Coffeeangel sells its own coffee beans as well as beautiful coffee accessories in its stores, such as Sligo based O’Riain Pottery coffee mugs.

Pretty soon, I’m two deadlines down and it’s time for lunch. The toasted ham and cheese (€6.50) is on good, crunchy bread that toasts well. The ham slices are thick and rustic, rather than thin and over-processed. Two flat whites in, I switch to Coffee Angel’s decaf to prevent major jitters. I move to plug my laptop charger into the socket in the corner table when it becomes free and turn my back to the busy street outside.

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When I finally lift my head from my laptop, it’s dusk and the staff, who have been totally cool with me being there for the entire day, are sweeping up around me. I may have slightly over-stayed my welcome, but the welcome never seemed to wear out.

Aoife McElwain

Aoife McElwain

Aoife McElwain, a contributor to The Irish Times, is a food writer