Happy Saturday SteemFam. Today I want to share with you a coffee shop I visited while in Howick, Kwa-Zulu Natal.
I must say that I didn't know much about Howick when we decided to visit @morkrocks brother a few months ago. I was kinda expecting a sleepy little town where not much happens. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised.
Besides being one of the most lush and green places I have ever visited, Howick is a busy small (dare I say) touristy spot in the Durban Midlands. Being roughly an hour outside of Durban, it's close enough to visit for a quick weekend break for those living on the coast. For us Capetonians, two hours on a plane, plus the hours drive and we were there.
I am used to the small towns of the Karoo (the rural/farming area outside of Cape Town), where English is hardly spoken and most people don't go to high school, and a good coffee is hard to come by.
Howick is famous for it's large dam, the Midmar Dam, where every year they host the Midmar Mile, a swimming competition. There are plenty of nature reserves and everything is just so open and green. I kinda fell in love with the place and can totally understand why my husbands family lives out there. There is a current of enlightenment flowing through the town, with lots of art and poetry evenings. And a LOT of hippies. 🤓
Knowing what a coffee nut I am, Steampunk Cafe was the first place Mork's brother took us to. I loved the location too. Kind of in the middle of nowhere, not in the main town, but rather on a road out to ... somewhere. I felt like I was at a truck stop in America, surveying the great outdoors.
The vibe was eassssy. Super chilled trip hop was playing while a dog lazed in the sun. There was a lot of steel, copper piping and repurposed pieces of furniture, which just felt so right out in the middle of nowhere.
There was some amazing, almost psychedelic art on the walls. In particular, a cat with riveted goggles and an industrial style background full of cogs. I was under the impression the art was for sale, and of course, was SUPER BUMMED when I found out I couldn't purchase the cat painting. ☹️
The coffee itself was tasty as all hell, with perfect micro foam, and a good, strong roast of espresso. A coffee bar like this would not be out of place in Cape Town.
The name Steampunk Cafe of course alludes to the Steampunk movement, but had all kinds of what I would call anarchy flavoured details. Spot the "Throw Away Your Television" scrawled on the dark wall (an ode to a RHCP song, I'm sure). "You Can Revolt" is written under the clock. They even accepted some sort of cryptocurrency - I can't remember which now, but it wasn't Bitcoin or Steem, which I of course thought would have been perfect there. Pay for your Steampunk coffee with your Steem. Steam on! (or as I like to say - Steem on!)
Since we were with Mork's brother, who knew the owner, we got a quick tour of the small roastery in the back. Quite an impressive little set up.
Mork's brother told me how the owner had started as just a little coffee shop, selling coffees made with another roastery's beans, and slowly progressed over five years to be the small little roastery/cafe he is now. Yes! I love to hear stories like this.
I loved the vibe, I loved the decor, and I LOVED the coffee. If you are ever on a Midlands meander, be sure to stop at Steampunk Cafe for some good coffee and even better vibes.
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