Down a laneway beside the famous Matt The Thresher pub, this delightful roastery, shop and café in the ever-so-tidy village of Birdhill is a new departure for coffee guru Alan Andrews, founder (in 2009) of the Dublin training, advisory and coffee wholesaling company Coffee Culture.
Nine years later, Alan - who appears to eat, sleep and breathe coffee - created a stylish 'destination for coffee curious adults' here, in a former garden centre. Much has been made of the fact that children are not permitted, but once you see the impressive coffee roasting kit in action, you'll probably agree that it's not the safest place for kids.
There is some outdoor seating that could conceivably be used by families, but the ambience is calm and grown up - and, underlining the sense of it being an adult refuge, they even offer yoga and pilates classes on Saturday and Sunday mornings. So, once potential customers get their heads around the slightly unusual child policy, they can relax and enjoy it for what it is.
There's an air of purposeful calm and quiet, thoughtfully selected indulgence. The range of cakes displayed on the counter is carefully restricted (and all the more tempting for that) and, although wide-ranging, the coffee menu is also restricted - in this case by season, which may perhaps seem strange to coffee ingénues.
And there is much else besides to learn here, even on a short visit. The computer-controlled roasting process is intriguing, for example, and simple facts - such as the length of time required between roasting the fresh beans and grinding them - can be surprising.
After enjoying a perfectly brewed coffee anda slice of cake in the atmospheric café, it would be hard to leave without a bag or two of the current stock of beans displayed near the till - and regular customers are encouraged to experiment, with cards supplied giving details of the season's best.
An ideal journey break off the M7 Dublin-Limerick, or a destination in itself, this is a must-visit place fdor coffee lovers - and the lovely lakeside town of Killaloe is only down the road.
