I recently joined the rest of the civilization by finally upgrading to an Android Phone. I love it. No longer will I have to write post-its to myself with directions to my next destination or stare angrily at the tracks wondering when the next CTA is coming. No longer will the burning question “Do I have any unchecked emails?” bother me and cause me great distress. Now I can check my facebook in line instead of awkwardly staring at the tabloids and gum, avoiding eye contact with other humans. I feel reborn.
Oops, I forgot to take a picture of the outside until I was at the platform.
To kick off my rebirth- new blog, new phone, new cafe. With the help of the YP app, I found Safari Cup Coffee, located right off the Southport Brown Line Stop in Southport Corridor. For those who hate walking, this cafe is a literally a walk downstairs the platform (unless you’re like me and didn’t see it right away and circled around the block). I think I dismissed it at first because the store signs look like posters advertising stuff, and I’m ad-burned-out.
For those interested in exploring, Southport corridor is home to a bunch of boutiques and other establishments such as Galleria Liquere across the stree, and Southport Grocers and Cafe a few blocks east.
Ambiance and Seating
Don’t let the store front deceive you. Narrow fronts run deep. There is plenty of room in this cafe.
View from my table near the back of the cafe.
I appreciate their diverse seating options. There are some cozy couches for groups and plenty of small 2 seater tables for singles/couples. It’s conducive to conversations, reading, or doin’ computer work. All important qualities of a good cafe. However, if you need to reference your textbook and type at the same time, you’ll procrastinate for another half hour finding a comfortable arrangement unless you nab the center couch and table set-up. The tribal/Safari theme is pretty strong here and the chairbacks (not pictured) have tribal mask designs on them. Plenty of good juju all around.
Drinks
All the goodies.
Safari Cup offers a full service coffee and tea bar. In addition, they offer fruit smoothies, pastries, and sandwiches. Their coffee is all of African Origin, hailing from the “highlands of Ethiopia, Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, & Tanzania” and independently roasted. Each roast/brand of coffee has its own Swahili name and animal patronus, which is pretty cool. In addition, someone who knows a lot more about coffee than me has reviewed and scored their blends here. I won’t even try to compete with that guy’s wordsmithery in describing the coffee. I had the Tembo house blend, and it was pretty damn good. I drank it black (gotta be objective here) and didn’t wince at all or feel the need to add cream or sugar.
The barista/owners were friendly and had delightful accents (Australian? South African? Not sure) and we chatted briefly about the unusually strange warm weather. They also had pictures of themselves from their travels to Africa, adding a real mom-pop personal touch to the cafe. Hopefully next time I’ll be brave enough and ask them about their adventures. I chickened out this time.
How romantic.
Safari Cup Coffee is a shining gem of a cafe. Easily accessible, close to other shops/places, plenty of seating, friendly folks, and good coffee make it a sure repeat. Plus, I was blown away that they had fresh flowers at each table! Flowers in the middle of January? Welcome to the jungle, we’re not in Chicago anymore. Safari, you’ve won me over. I’ll choose you over Starbucks any day.
Check out more about Safari Cup Coffee at their website: http://safaricup.com/
rosie the rambler 