In the last couple of years a vibrant coffee scene has sprung up in London’s East End. It’s got so big that it has even been picked up by the New York Times. http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/travel/28heads.html

London was a actually major centre of coffee when the drink first came to Europe in the seventeenth century. Since then, of course, tea has taken over as the nation’s national hot drink. Now things might be about to change.

The brand that all the new coffee scenesters are kicking back by the gallon full is Square Mile. http://shop.squaremilecoffee.com/ They have named themselves after the old heart of London coffee – the square mile of the City of London itself. That is where all the coffee shops used to be situated in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Lloyds of London, the world’s largest marine insurer, started as a coffee house in the City.

Square mile have an interesting blog, well it is interesting if you’re a coffee nut: http://www.squaremileblog.com/

Watch out for the World Barista Championships this June, which is the coffee nut’s Olympics: http://www.worldbaristachampionship.com/2010-the-event

Kindly donated by Jon Barrett

Like-for-like sales at Costa were up 5.3% over the year to date, with a 9.5% rise in the fourth quarter.

Whitbread said the introduction in January of the Flat White – a strong espresso and milk drink originating from antipodean coffee houses – helped recent sales.

Read more here…..

More flat white coffee in the news……

Times Business

Telegraph

Flat White Coffee History

How to make a flat white coffee?

Flat White Coffee in the UK