Kaya Ridge
Kenya · Nyeri · washed SL28
- Cup
- Blackcurrant, cane sugar, a tomato-leaf edge as it cools.
- Best as
- V60. Sharp and juicy — the one to order if you normally find filter thin.
- Milk
- Not recommended.
Fern Verge Cafe — slow brew bar & all-day kitchen
Four filters on the bar, and a kitchen that starts at daybreak.
We keep espresso built for milk, a rotating single-origin filter list, and a short menu cooked from whatever came in that morning. Long tables at the back, planted courtyard through the green door.
-
- Open every day
- 7:30 — 16:00Later on Friday and Saturday
-
- Brew bar
- Four rotating filtersPlus cold brew on tap and 250g bags to take home
-
- Kitchen
- Last orders 45 minutes before closeBakery counter from 7:30, sourdough out at 11:00
On the bar this fortnight — roasted in-house on Tuesdays
Three coffees, and what each one is good at.
Filter positions change as bags run out, so the list moves. Anything here can be poured as a V60 or pulled as espresso, and all three go home in 250g bags, ground to your method.
Monte Azul
Costa Rica · Tarrazú · honey caturra
- Cup
- Apricot, praline, dried fig. Rounder and sweeter than the Kenya.
- Best as
- Batch filter, or a single-origin espresso if you like it syrupy.
- Milk
- Works in a cortado.
Beacon Hill Blend
Brazil & Colombia · natural and washed
- Cup
- Cocoa, malt loaf, orange peel on the finish.
- Best as
- Everything with milk. This is what lands in your flat white by default.
- Milk
- Built for it, oat included.
The rooms — front room, back bench, courtyard
Pick where you sit before you arrive.
Three quite different spaces under one roof, and they suit different mornings. Nothing is reserved except the long table at the back.
Visit — hours and the house rules, briefly
When we are open, and what to expect.
Walk in for any table of five or fewer. Six and over, send the enquiry below so we can hold the long table and print a short set menu.
Opening hours
- Monday — Thursday7:30 — 16:00
- Friday7:30 — 17:00
- Saturday8:00 — 17:00
- Sunday8:30 — 15:30
- Kitchen last orders45 min before close
Closed on the first Monday of each month for roast training and a deep clean. The brew bar stops hand brews ten minutes before close so the kit gets stripped properly.
Good to know
- Quietest windows. Straight after opening until about 9:00, then again after 14:00.
- Laptops. Welcome in the front room until 11:30, and in the courtyard whenever you like. One power rail along the back bench.
- Weekend tables. Two hours at a time when there is a queue, so everyone gets a turn.
- Access. Step-free entrance from the street, level route through to the courtyard, and an accessible toilet past the back bench.
- Dogs. Courtyard and back bench, water bowls by the green door.
- Prams and small people. Two high chairs, room for prams beside the long table, babyccinos free with any coffee.
Group bookings — six people or more
Hold the long table, or take the courtyard.
The back bench seats eight comfortably and ten at a squeeze. The courtyard can be taken on its own outside peak hours for anything up to eighteen.
Tell us roughly when and how many, and we reply with what is free plus a one-page set menu: a pastry course, one kitchen dish each, and filter coffee brought to the table in carafes.
Tables of five or fewer are walk-in only — there is nothing to book, just come in and we will find you a spot.
Good questions — asked at the counter most weeks
Things worth knowing before you come.
Do you take reservations?
Only for six or more, through the enquiry form above. Everything else is walk-in, which is why the quiet windows listed under Visit are useful if you are bringing a pram or need a big table for four.
Can I work here for a couple of hours?
Yes — the front room until 11:30, and the courtyard any time. After 11:30 the front room goes over to people eating, so if you are settling in for a long stretch, take the courtyard or the far end of the back bench. There is one power rail; a fully charged laptop is the safer bet.
What are my options if I don't eat dairy, gluten or meat?
Every kitchen dish has a vegetarian build and most have a vegan one. Oat, soy and lactose-free milks cost the same as whole. Gluten-free bread is baked daily and toasted on its own board, though we share one kitchen, so we cannot promise a coeliac-safe environment. Ask for the ingredient sheet and we will read it with you.
The filter I liked last week has gone. What now?
Bags run out and the position rotates to whatever is next off the roaster. Tell whoever is on the bar what you enjoyed — sweet and rounded, or sharp and fruity — and they will match it from the three currently listed. Roast dates are chalked on the bar so you can see how fresh each one is.
Can I buy beans, and will you grind them?
All three coffees go home in 250g bags. We grind to order if you tell us the method — espresso, V60, Aeropress, cafetière or moka. Whole bean keeps better, so take it whole if you have a grinder. Bags are on the counter beside the till, not behind it.
Is there decaf, and anything for children?
Water-process decaf runs on the second grinder, so it is a proper double shot rather than an afterthought, and it can go in any milk drink. For children there are free babyccinos with any coffee, plus cascara fizz, hot chocolate and warm milk with honey.
Is the courtyard usable in bad weather?
Mostly. An awning covers about two-thirds of it and there are blankets in the crate by the door. In heavy rain or a cold snap we move courtyard tables inside where we can, which is one reason the long table gets held for booked groups.