The specialty coffee scene is booming in Lausanne and I couldn’t be more excited about it. The Coffee Project is the latest addition to the city’s quality coffee scene. They opened their first specialty coffee shop in rue Marterey back in November 2017 and although it’s pretty small, it’s a great spot to enjoy a damn good flat white. Vangelis Katselis is the Greek founder behind this project and that’s the reason why here you will also find various other Greek quality products such as honey and homemade pies.
What’s on offer?
The highlight here is specialty, single-origin coffee deriving from single, handpicked farms around the world: Guatemala, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Colombia, Kenya and Peru.
The coffee derives from The Goodlife Coffee Company, a Swiss company based in the greater area of Lausanne and accredited by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA).
It’s nice to have a few different options to try and decide what’s best for your own palate.
On the menu, there is espresso, cappuccino, double cappuccino and flat white which is a double shot of espresso with less milk than the double cappuccino so the taste of the coffee is stronger.
On the menu, there is espresso, cappuccino, flat white but also freddo espresso and cappuccino.
My personal favorite of the moment: flat white with El Salvador coffee and moustokouloura (Greek cookies made of grape must) or a warm, handmade spinach pie.
“El Salvador & Ethiopia are possibly the best options for milky coffee.” Vangelis tells me.
But, summer is coming and I am pretty sure that soon I will order either a freddo espresso or a freddo cappuccino. So excited about it, you must try it out!
On the coffee menu there is also Greek coffee available which is prepared traditionally in a specific machine which allows it to be prepared slowly; this is the only coffee blend with robusta on offer here.
What is also different about The Coffee Project is that the barista asks you if you want sugar in your coffee and how much so they can prepare your drink properly –they only use cane sugar or stevia. And for those with specific dietary requirements, apart from full fat milk they also have nonfat, vegetarian, vegan, almond and soya milk.
What else is on offer?
Cheese pies, spinach pies, ham and cheese pies, cookies and cereal bars all. You can also find yoghurt, a big variety of honey, pasteli (honey sesame bar), and pistachios from Aegina which are delicious.
Pistachios from Aegina in Greece are delicious.
The Concept
Vangelis tells me more about their philosophy:
“We want to re-educate local people about coffee and highlight the healthy benefits of drinking coffee; we offer top quality, specialty single origin coffee from specific farms around the world. We don’t sell robusta and we don’t sell burnt coffee. We feel that our project has been embraced from day 1 especially by the expats and of course by the Greeks who love to drink freddo espresso. Locals are still a bit sceptic because we are different in the sense that we do not sell café renverse or café au lait.
Vangelis graduated in 2005 from École hôtelière de Lausanne and had a restaurant chain in Athens for about 10 years but took the decision to return to Lausanne and work on the specialty coffee industry for a change. He is a fifth-generation hotelier as his family founded hotel Grande Bretagne in Athens, possibly the most iconic hotel occupying a prime location, which they sold back in 1991.
If you have been to Greece you will most probably have noticed that there is a thriving coffee culture and a plethora of coffee shops in most places. For many, frappe might be the coffee most connected with the Greek coffee culture but lately, luckily, it’s all about specialty coffee and there are now many coffee roasting companies which excel in their fields. There are also award-winning baristas and the people are more and more interested in specialty coffee, which is essentially great quality coffee.
The coffee roaster
The coffee derives from The Goodlife Coffee Company, a Swiss company based in the greater area of Lausanne and accredited by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA).
The coffee shop in rue Marterey.
Where?
In the centre of the city, near the lovely Parc de Mon Repos. (Rue Marterey 1-3, 1005 Lausanne)
The Coffee Project
Now tell me, have you tried The Coffee Project yet? Have you ever tried a Greek-style freddo espresso or cappuccino? Wouldn’t you rather have a cold coffee while the weather is nice and warm? Leave a comment and tell me all about it!
Are you visiting Lausanne soon and want to know which are the best places to eat and drink? Are you new to the city and eager to discover the top foodie addresses? Check out my ebook – The Curated Foodie Guide to Lausanne which consists of a 4-day foodie itinerary and insider’s tips on local life.
