April 9, 2013, 11 p.m.
WHEN it comes to coffee, we Novocastrians are certainly spoiled for choice. The east end of the CBD has long been home to the likes of Sprocket, Estabar and 2300 for a hot drop, joined by One Penny Black, Good Brother, Ground Floor, Coffee on Hunter and more as the months and years flew by.
But, increasingly, the growth of cafes is heading west, with Saluna opening at the former Lexie's On King site on King Street, just a block or so along from Coffee on Crown. Fusion Gourmet Bites & Coffee has also joined the coffee crowd just back from the corner of Darby Street and Hunter Street.
Further west again, in the hub establishing itself as the west end to rival the east end of the CBD, is stalwart Bank Corner on Bellevue Street which is joined by newcomer The Social in recent months.
A little further west you can also get coffee at Wickham Motorcycle Co and Dark Horse Espresso, among others.
The Social quietly opened its doors before Easter and officially opened last week with the familiar faces of Ross Ciavarella and Chelsea D'Aoust from roaster and coffee house Sprocket Roasters, Newcastle, at the helm. Samantha Anderson has also joined The Social team as manager.
D'Aoust said she sees the same potential in the west end as they recognised in the now bustling east end of the CBD.
"The west end is what we saw in the east end four years ago," D'Aoust, who sits on the West End Advisory Group, said. Ciavarella agreed: "The west end has a new vibe and flavour coming in."
Though they have run Sprocket for several years, their new cafe is very different from the Newcastle institution and indeed, other cafes in town.
The concept began with Ciavarella's new way of making coffee, called the Bowser, a lever machine for making espresso which he designed himself.
"It's all about simplicity, that's what the machine is about: taking it back and making it all about the shot of coffee," he explained. "It's also about making the barista accessible to the patron and getting rid of the barrier. At the front window, the customer becomes part of the process."
Indeed, there's no ordering with one person at the till and waiting for the barista (often hidden behind the machine) to make your coffee. Instead, the window on to Hunter Street opens to reveal four of the Bowser coffee levers, with a barista behind ready to take your order and make your coffee in front of your eyes.
The Bowser lever system replaces the pump and boiler in a traditional coffee machine and instead infuses hot water into ground coffee before dripping the coffee into the cup under 9 bar pressure. The result is a delicious shot of espresso coffee which is sure to get your heart started.
Ciavarella said the process was softer on the coffee, producing a drop which is not as bitter and shows off the flavour of the coffee beans more than other machine-driven methods. For instance, the Cuban-based coffee bean blends used at The Social (roasted at Sprocket) show off nuanced flavours such as the influence of the beans being grown close to tobacco plantations in the Caribbean country.
The Cuban influence continues with the selection of coffees on offer. In addition to the usual flat white, long black and plenty of tea, The Social has a menu of speciality coffees - Cafe Cubano - with more to come.
Try the cafecito (espresso with demerara sugar), cafe bombon (espresso served over a shot of condensed milk), colada (three double shots of coffee served in a jug with glasses to share, you can add a jug of warm milk).
The Cuban influence also extends to items for the non-coffee drinkers, with chilli hot chocolate (milk, cocoa, cane sugar and cinnamon with a dash of hot chilli), badita de cocoa (sweet chocolate milkshake with condensed milk, demerara sugar, ice and milk) and badita de plantano (sweet banana milkshake with condensed milk, demerara sugar, ice and milk).
Street food from the Caribbean country is also served at The Social, including a range of pressed sandwiches with fillings including Peri Peri chicken; bean and corn salsa; demerara, lime and chilli cured beef; and achiote pulled pork.
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