Café-Guide #3: DOPE Roasting Co., Athens, Greece
I don't believe it is even possible to sum up and rephrase the coffee culture of a city such as Athens, and a country, such as Greece. Much like in Italy or Turkey, coffee is a cultural pillar of the local community. It is therefore all the more difficult to present any kind of 'guide' or recommendation for Athens, but we do try to write a little about the places we did visit. Together with our reviews from the bars there, it can be pieced together as an imperfect mosaic of the depth of food and drink.
Our first stop was Dope Roasting Co., which opens its post-industrial storefront and counters early when the streets are still wet from cleaning. If you have already read our impressions from Clumsies or have visited the city itself, you are aware of how much the connection to the city means to people. Sitting and sipping your morning coffee for locals means watching the street and greeting all of your acquaintances starting their day as well.
I was trying the Flat White, which I feel Greeks are a bit skeptical about. Maybe only due to the name though and the fact that it is served warm. If they gave it a different name and poured it over cold milk (which I tried at another café in Athens) it would be a great alternative to the classic Freddo. There are of course hundreds of variations for that type of coffee, but it is usually served only over ice or with milk foam, while the Flat White is usually understood to have less foam. The fresh beans were as pleasant as expected, possibly a bit closer in flavor to Italian roasts than contemporary Third Wave espresso roasts. The website names their Espresso blend as 'part Brazilian, part Guatemalan, part Honduran, part Ethiopian', but I’d say the Brazilian notes of dark chocolate are the most prominent when served as a Flat White. The overall number of offered roasts is rather small, but that speaks to how 'dialed in' they are.
Together with the fresh bread, the tiled decor and the people picking up ingredients for their late weekend breakfast, Dope can be seen as a neighborhood café, even if the branding has elements of Franchising. They have three locations in total in Athens, each of them visually distinct. It helps to be located in a part of the city where people work from cafés, travel and buy whole beans for their coffee machines at home. You can check out some stunning views of the building and some background information on the architectural concept here. Aesthetically, especially, I am a big fan of the white coating of the cups mirroring the tiles of the café. The sitting areas at their Vissis shop consist of a lot of single row with narrow tables, but often with an open space on the other side, so that a single person sitting with their laptop can have a conversation with the aforementioned acquaintance passing by.
Let us know about the coffee spots we need to visit next time in Athens, and keep an eye out for our next articles.
/jf
