Score 80/100
*Technical Breakdown*
Taste - 7
Texture – 8
Temperature - 8
Technical Ability - 8
Appearance - 4
Atmosphere - 5
Address: Market Lane Lisburn, BT28 1LU
Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 7am-7pm
Wheelchair Access: Yes
Child Friendly: No Provisions Made
Customer Toilet: Yes
Internet Access: Free Wifi & Computers

Roast is a very popular and growing chain in and around Belfast, which as far as I know started out on the Lisburn Road. It has recently been refurbished, taking it from its prior student grungyness to a more sleek sophisticated style with an outrageous Fresco on the back wall, which I love to bits.

I feel I have to clear up a very common misconception, Roast do not roast their own coffee; however they do have their own blend prepared and roasted by Belfast based Roaster Bailie’s. Bailie’s know about coffee and produce some of the best commercial roasts I have tasted in NI, so I was quite looking forward to trying their coffee. However I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up.

As usual I ordered a Cappucinno, which came in a roughly 9fl oz, round cup. The first thing to hit me was the milk, a thick froth of large bubbles, almost dry in appearance floated on top of the coffee. The temperature was far too high and even though I do prefer cooler drinks, EU laws do not allow drinks to be served above 140C and this far surpassed that limit. I had to wait a few minutes before I was able to take a proper drink only to taste a bitter, underextracted mixture of espresso and burnt milk. A thorough disappointment.

I do not normally complain about coffee that I am served, but as I felt this was particularly bad and as I do like to chat to the Barista before writing something like this, I thought I would mention that I didn’t find my coffee to be particularly nice and that it was a little too hot (trying to be as polite as possible) only to receive an “Oh…” and a blank look in return.

I watched as a wet portafilter was filled with ground coffee from a full doser (the coffee was not ground recently), lightly tamped and fitted into the grouphead. The Barista in question looked as though she was dressed to go clubbing, full makeup, styled hair and a very low cut top that “barely fitted.” I hate to sound harsh or make judgements based on appearance, but after asking where the coffee was from and being told “those bags over there,” it seems that image was being put before skill. It seems to be a growing trend that front of house baristas are required to be attractive women or trendy gay men, which although it adds “style” to the environment does nothing to promote or improve the CORE PRODUCT the establishment is supposed to be selling. My verdict? Terrible coffee and a seemingly unprofessional ethos, would certainly make me think twice before returning.

*Technical Breakdown*

Taste – 3 (Underextracted, bitter)
Texture – 4 (Thin with dry foam)
Temperature – 4 (Too hot)
Technical Ability – 5 (Coffee should be ground when needed and tamped firmly)
Appearance – 2.5 (Macro Foam)
Atmosphere – 4 (Stylish location, with wifi and internet kiosks)

I decided to take a long over due trip to Cafe Krem in Newry one busy Saturday afternoon. I was pleasantly surprised by the interior, this was no granny cafe, or bisto, this was a coffee shop through and through. I got inline to order and saw a face I recognised from online photos, Mariusz Mescek (no I didn’t remember his name, sorry) who came 2nd in the NI heat of the UKBC. Also pleasantly surprising was the addition of Cappuccino Italiano on the menu, these people knew their coffee.

I ordered and although from my vantage point I could not see the shot being pulled, I could tell it was being made from freshly ground coffee with a proper technique. Before completing the drink, the cup was set on the counter infront of me, as a perfect rosetta was poured. I really have to take my hat off to showmanship like this, which is sorely missing in many establishments.

Now for the important bit, the coffee, as I’ve mentioned before I’m not a technical expert nor do I have superhuman taste, but on my first mouthfull of this coffee I knew I was on to something. The microfoam and espresso had mixed thoroughly, there were no distinguishable layers (which is a good thing) and the texture was smooth and velvety. There were definite chocolate tones in the flavour, enhanced by the sweetness of the milk, but not so much as to overwhelm the coffee taste, it was an overall balanced cup. The temperature was hot, but not so hot that the cappuccino was undrinkable, it’s a very hard range to hit, but they did it and I was happy.

I had a nice chat with Mariuz after, who was still buzzing from the excitement of the UKBC. Its great to see a barista that is not only passionate about his work, but would take time to share that with a complete stranger. I wish Se and his team all the best for the future and may they keep up the good work, they’ve done NI proud and their coffee ain’t bad either

*Technical Breakdown*

Taste – 9
Texture – 9.5
Temperature – 9.5
Technical Ability – 9
Appearance – 4.5
Atmosphere – 4

*Coffee Tip*
For anyone who doesn’t know, a “true” cappuccino is 5-6fl oz of liquid made from 1/3 espresso (one shot) and 2/3 milk. The usual serving of a cappuccino in UK/Ireland/USA etc. is one shot of espresso in a 9fl oz (or larger) cup making the overall coffee weaker, in turn allowing the coffee to be made with less fresh and/or lower quality beans, by diluting the taste. Its pretty yuk!