I’m not sure what it says about a person
when one of their main concerns when moving cities is whether there’s going to
be a decent cafe nearby. That person being me, of course. In Cardiff I had it
good - two Coffee#1’s located within close proximity to my home and the coffee
was so damn tasty. The pressure was on to find somewhere that could match
Coffee#1’s epicness and initially I was a little disappointed with the cafes in
my local vicinity. That was until a friend recommended a new cafe that had just
opened up called STAN’S, a mere 5 minute walk from my home.
STAN’S was described to me as a combination
of cafe and art studio, which intrigued me. Located on Alexandra Park Street, just
over the road from Alexandra Parade train station, the cosy little joint is
very unassuming and it is possible to miss it completely if you spend life
walking around in a zombified state like I do. Admittedly, the opening hours
are between 10am and 5pm Wednesday to Saturday so if you happen to pass by on a
day it isn’t open then you’ll be greeted with the black shutters of death. How
bleak and lonely those days are.
The lady behind this cool venture is Sarah
Stanley: an artist, a musician and all round awesome person. She’s also a dab
hand at building stuff, the funky chipboard interior is a testament to her
ingenuity with a set of power tools and a small budget. For all the time’s I’ve
been to STAN’S I’ve never actually taken a picture of Sarah – I could have
taken one discreetly but, you know, that’s kind of creepy and I’m far too
awkward to ask her. Seriously, I have a knack of making normal things sound suspicious...
“it’s for my blog”... sure it is. So I have instead created my own artistic
impression of the coffee making goddess. I think she’d quite happily hibernate
through the winter months if she could. She is always cold.
The cafe is a compact little place but, as
the saying goes, good things come in small packages, right? This is true of
STAN’S and I think the petite size only adds to its quirky charm. Okay, so,
let’s cut the poetic rambling crap and get down to business. Why is STAN’S so
awesome? Well, one reason could be that it’s Glasgow’s first ‘Pay What You Want’
cafe – if you’re poor or just a tight arse you can shuffle your loose change across
the counter and grab yourself a hearty soup or homemade ginger ale.
Personally, I couldn’t live with the guilt of paying less than the suggested
minimum prices – they are, after all, very reasonable and you can feel all warm
and fuzzy inside because your money will be helping an independent artist run
her studio. Definite karma points right there. I mean, what could be more
awesome than that?
WELL LET ME TELL YOU. The coffee. Provided
by Edinburgh based roaster extraordinaire ‘Mr Eion’ who has got some seriously
good flavours going on. The house blend, lovingly titled ‘Get Up Stan Up’, is a
full-bodied and rich blend that really hits the spot. There’s also decaf
available for caffeine averse folks like me. Having said that, I have tried
most of the blends at STAN’S because who can resist delicious coffee? Who also
needs sleep?
IF THAT WASN’T ENOUGH. The cakes. Made by
the magical entity known as ‘Bakery 47’ - these moreish sweet treats are
something else. Bakery 47 is a local Glasgow baking business run by Sam and
Anna Luntley who apparently also do a mean sourdough too. The cake selection
changes weekly but you can regularly pick up a chocolate brownie, a slice of
carrot cake or my new favourite a cheeky cherry jamaretti.
THERE’S MORE? Hell yes. Exhibitions and
events are held frequently – at the moment you can have a gander at a selection
of STAN’S in-house badges circa 70s-90s. Prior to that there was a zine launch
with accompanying prints on the walls. Make sure you follow the STAN’S facebook page for details of upcoming events. If you’re musically inclined there’s also music
tuition available too. Time it right and you might even be able to have your
nails painted by STAN Jnr a.k.a ‘Nails by Qez’. Take that other coffee shops
with your pretend rustic furniture and book clubs and room for prams and stuff.
This is where the real art is at.
So the next time you’re in the East End of
Glasgow get your good selves over to STAN’S because I like it there and I think
you will too.
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