All photos by Hollie Grace James
Coffee – raise your hand and keep reading if you can’t live without it. One thing us Ottawans certainly have the luxury of is a plethora of choices when it comes to cute and cozy coffee shops. From cat cafes to the most insta-worthy hot spots, finding a local space to hang out and achieve the ultimate caffeine buzz is far from an unachievable feat. This past weekend, hundreds of the city’s most jazzed up java fanatics came together at Lansdowne’s Horticulture Building for some sipping, savouring, and sampling thanks to the 2019 premiere and first ever Coffee Fest. Here are a few up-and-coming local roasters that we discovered, and it turns out they’re getting up to some really innovative and industry-changing projects.
I Deal Coffee
A small, independent roaster located on the outskirts of the Byward Market, this business has been running steadily for nearly twenty years and doing so happily in Ottawa for twelve. They pride themselves on amazing coffee paired with great food courtesy of their scratch kitchen, and roasting in small batches means they are particularly focused on the product from the ground up – their green beans (a rich source of antioxidants and other beneficial compounds) come from partners who source them out directly from farmers all over the world. Choices here are mainly blends, so they have meticulously and carefully selected beans from a variety of countries ensuring that they complement each other to the utmost perfection. Most importantly though, they roast every few days, so your coffee is always ultra fresh!
Animated Coffee
Adopting their rescue dog Yuki, a Siberian Husky living in Dubai in desperate need of multiple surgeries and extensive rehabilitative care, was a catalyst that brought this Ontario roaster to life for founders Ryan and Tara. At Animated Coffee, every time you take a sip, you are a voice for those who have none 25% of proceeds will be distributed to their animal charity partners across Canada. Throughout their time working on the coffee equipment supplied by Dalla Corte Canada at Coffee Fest, Animated Coffee was busy whipping up delicious Lattes and serving up blends like Fly (balanced, chocolate and stone fruit), Nest (cocoa & hint of dried berries with a low acidity) and Prowl (strawberry tart with a bright and clean finish).
Equator Coffee
With three locations in and around the city (the newest offering some pretty rad views from a little corner tucked into the NAC), Equator Coffee continues to attract old and new coffee lovers alike, especially with their nitro cold brew on tap. A rising trend on the coffee scene, this is like the Guinness of coffee – it comes straight from the tap and is infused with nitrogen to give it that rich creamy head. It’s a summertime special though, so make sure you put this on your coffee bucket list for its release as the weather gets warmer.