13 June, 2017
Onboard Surf & Coffee
Last Saturday I was invited along to Onboard Surf & Coffee to sample the coffee (& doughnuts!)
Onboard Surf & Coffee is situated at 464 Gower Road, Killay. Although originally just a Surf shop, early last year owner John decided to add a Coffee shop and late last year a Barbers also opened in the building. Thus making Onboard the only Barbers, Surf and Coffee house in the UK! What a genius idea!
Onboard Surf stocks a huge range of surf wear, snow wear and skate wear, as well as boards. They are open Monday to Saturday (0800-1730) and Sunday (1000-1600). The Coffee shop is also open during these hours.
It was of course the coffee that I was most interested in. Barista Chloe set about making me my usual Flat White on a La Marzocco machine, which she described as the Ferrari of coffee machines! Chloe has been making coffee for 10 years and she certainly knew her stuff! At Onboard they use Clifton Coffee Village House Espresso which is a blend of Colombian, Brazilian and Ethiopian Arabica beans. It’s a well-balanced espresso, with a subtle sweetness, cocoa and nutty notes with a good body. This blend is Clifton’s most popular and has proven a big hit with customers. Organic milk is used in all beverages. There’s also a range of homemade cakes and snacks to choose from, sourced from local producers (Little Valley Bakery, Killay Butchers, Homebird Bakery). This brings me nicely onto the doughnuts! Every Saturday morning a delivery of Gower Doughnuts arrives at Onboard Surf. These fresh, handmade, gourmet doughnuts are highly sought after! They are only available at Onboard, Rag & Bone in West Cross and some of the Local Produce Markets. They come in a variety of flavours and are rolled in vanilla infused sugar. I tried the Nutella and Raspberry & Coconut and they were delicious!
Onboard Coffee has a relaxed vibe (as you might expect in a surf shop!) and there are several seating areas to sit and enjoy your coffee (and good coffee it is too!) I’m delighted to have found such a cool coffee shop that is fairly local to me. I will be back!
The Barbers shop, Salty Beards Barber Co is a bespoke gentleman’s emporium, run by Charles Fencott. Charles specializes in traditional haircuts and hot towel straight razor shaving. He was a finalist at UK Barber Battle 2015. Salty Beards is open Monday to Saturday. Thanks to Charles & his wife Amanda for inviting me along to try the coffee 🙂
