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After a fair old break I found myself back East and had the pleasure to
visit a stall I wanted to cover months ago. The Giddy up Hackney stall AKA Giddy Up Floripa (they have 3 other locations, Fortune Park, Islington and
Islington Memorial Green and Guild Yard, City of London.) is a stones throw
from Old Street round about.
It sits at the corner of Great Eastern Street and Rivington street under the canopy of the Brazilian bar and restaurant Floripa. Look out for the Giddy Up rocking horse to help you find your way.
It is a stall but does benefits from the external seating of
Floripa. It also has a notable coffee machine; a Kees Van de Western, Mirage
Veloce, 3-group lever operated machine. To be honest I don't know much about machines but I read it was the only one of its type around (happy to be corrected). It is also incredibly sexy looking as you can see above.
I was joined (in reality she sat near me) by the actress Vicky McCLure (Lol from This Is England) but through sheer gutlessness I didn't tell her how awesome she was in that role. The barista was friendly, quick and informative which is always a boon at any cafe and made me feel very welcome on this sunny but windy afternoon.
Shortly after ordering the coffee arrived with a thick crema made of fine bubbles and a few different layers of colour. It was quite windy as I said so it was hard to get an aroma fix but on tasting it immediately and generously gave up a rich, golden flavour. It was deep and earthy in tone, quite broad and had slight acidity.
It was however a little muted overall, the true spark of flavour was struggling to get out after the initial warming broadside was delivered. The barista did inform me that he was having some issues dialling it in and balancing brightness and bitterness so I assume this is what he meant.
Further down the cup some strong cherry notes emerged with a little more clarity. It was generally sweet on the after notes and although a little too bitter it was still clean and not at all muddy.
It sits at the corner of Great Eastern Street and Rivington street under the canopy of the Brazilian bar and restaurant Floripa. Look out for the Giddy Up rocking horse to help you find your way.
I was joined (in reality she sat near me) by the actress Vicky McCLure (Lol from This Is England) but through sheer gutlessness I didn't tell her how awesome she was in that role. The barista was friendly, quick and informative which is always a boon at any cafe and made me feel very welcome on this sunny but windy afternoon.
Shortly after ordering the coffee arrived with a thick crema made of fine bubbles and a few different layers of colour. It was quite windy as I said so it was hard to get an aroma fix but on tasting it immediately and generously gave up a rich, golden flavour. It was deep and earthy in tone, quite broad and had slight acidity.
It was however a little muted overall, the true spark of flavour was struggling to get out after the initial warming broadside was delivered. The barista did inform me that he was having some issues dialling it in and balancing brightness and bitterness so I assume this is what he meant.
Further down the cup some strong cherry notes emerged with a little more clarity. It was generally sweet on the after notes and although a little too bitter it was still clean and not at all muddy.
- Black Americano, drink in
- £2.00
- Strong
- Small (short)
- Rich full flavour with earthy tones and cherry notes
- Thick crema
- Beans: Square Mile Red Brick seasonal espresso blend
- Machine: Kees Van de Western, Mirage Veloce
A very good coffee, professionally made and with very much going right for it but on this occasion it struggled to shine to its fullest potential. Despite this Giddy up is still hitting high and well worth a visit, enjoy.
