Woofing them down: Perth's 'smallest cafe' serves up puppacinos
Is there a dogfight brewing among Perth's burgeoning hole-in-the-wall espresso bars?
A North Perth 'micro cafe' is claiming to be Perth's smallest but the local competition has been, err, growing of late, mirroring trends in The Big Apple, Italy and over east.
The folks at Boo Espresso say their 2m x 4m fit-out is Perth's smallest. When they opens the doors - sorry, window - on Friday it will join a growing list of tiny espresso bars that have proved a hit with with Perth coffee lovers and helped erase the stain on our coffee repuation, which is seen as overpriced and under quality.
One thing we know for sure that makes Boo unique is its clientele - dogs.
Yep, owner Christian Simone is selling 'puppacinos' to cater for the K9s who hang at the dog park across the road.
Puppies can lick their lips on frothed-up goats milk, with sprinklings of beef and chicken liver treats, served in take-away cups for around $3-4.
We're not sure even New York has this.
With more hole-in-the-wall coffee bars popping up around Perth, good cheap coffee is being brewed more frequently, as businesses spend less on staff and rent and more on quality coffee, machinery and baristas.
But is Boo our smallest? WAtoday.com.au can think of others that could stake a claim and we're sure there's many more out there.
Just across the road from our shared office with 6PR is Higher Grounds, housed (aptly) within the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, whose employees are enjoying robust brews from a two-man team operating in a corner of the lobby, like some poor charity trying to sell raffle tickets.
Around the corner from the author's house is the recently-opened Cleaver Street Cafe, another two-person operation set up in a small old space next to a Chinese deli that used to house a few tradies on chairs, stuffing down sausage rolls (we hear nearby West End Deli is none too impressed).
Then there's Bomba in Leederville, which has trimmed down to a micro cafe on Oxford Street, and Ristretto Wall Coffee in Northbridge, whose name says it all.
But perhaps the legitimate claim to Perth's smallest coffee bar belongs to Bookend, across from the State Theatre on William Street.
Even Clarke Kent would struggle to get changed in here but the place somehow pumps out some pretty super brews, and it's much, much cleaner than a phone box.
Brewhahas aside, Boo Espresso, on the corner of Fitzgerald and Stuart Street in North Perth, is a welcome addition to the hole-in-the-wall coffee bar scene and is offering coffees from $2.50 on Friday as a special opening price.
With tastes evolving among Perth's coffee crew, left-field offerings such as Nutella hot chocolate and cold-brew coffee (big over east) will be on the Boo menu, with coffees available from $2.50 on Friday only (100 per cent of Boo's opening day sales will go to a charity picked by its customers).
Boo Espresso owner Christian Simone said he had gone for a smaller space for his new coffee business because it was his first.
"I thought I'd start very, very small and put a small investment in it," he said.
"But the hole-in-the-wall coffee bar is catching on in Perth... Melbourne has it. Italy has it. New York has it, why not us?
"The good thing is we are starting to set up a trend in Perth."
Source: WA Today, David Prestipino, 21st August 2015
Originally published as: Woofing them down: Perth's 'smallest cafe' serves up puppacinos
