A friend of mine sent me an urgent email the other day. “New coffee spot that neighbors should know about” was the subject line, and in the message, she told me all about Eastside Espresso, a new cafe in Park Hill. Opened three months ago by owner Azeb Leul, who is originally from Ethiopia (the birthplace of the coffee plant), Eastside Espresso is a bright, airy cafe with incredible coffee. About 10 minutes from E. 29th Avenue Town Center in Central Park, the location may ring a bell—Leul ran a restaurant there for many years (it’s since closed) called Africana Cafe. For those of you that love exploring new, off the beaten path spots…read on!
Always up for checking out a new place, we went to give it a try and share our experience with you. Investigating all new food and drink spots in the area is our duty as neighborhood focused Realtors! The iced coffee was bright, refreshing, and didn’t leave me feeling jittery or overcaffeinated, while a hot cappuccino was rich and creamy. We also tried a blueberry scone, which Leul heated up, and it was soft and muffin-like and packed with berries. Leul couldn’t have been more friendly and welcoming.
There’s one extra special element that I hope to check out for myself one day soon: The cafe does a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony every Sunday at 11am, which involves roasting coffee beans in a pan (as Leul is demonstrating in this photo!) on the spot, then immediately drinking the brew from the freshly-roasted beans.
As you may know, there’s a lot of construction on Colfax right now, but don’t be put off by that—there was plenty of street parking, the entrance is well-marked, and the inside was serene with no trace of construction noise. Give this new place a shot!
You can find Eastside Espresso at 5091 E Colfax Ave, Unit E.
