The boutique coffee roastery Badger & Dodo was set up in 2008 by the highly experienced and coffee-educated Australian Brock Lewin who relocated to Fermoy, Co Cork with his wife, who is from the area - Brock is the 'Badger' and his father-in-law the 'Dodo'.
Although they now have retail outlets, their unusual range of quality fresh roasted coffees first gained recognition through the high calibre cafés and restaurants they supply and they are listed on many of the country's most provenance-aware menus (including ‘Just Ask’ Restaurant of the Month winners) and their professional baristing and coffee services at events invariably attract favourable comment.
In 2014 Badger & Dodo opened their first Coffee House, here in Galway. Next to one of the city's most famous restaurants, Loam, and just around the corner from The Radisson Blu, it's set slightly below pavement level and has a huge glass frontage allowing passers-by a good view inside. And it's an intriguing spot, with bags of beans set casually around, gleaming machinery doing its thing and counters with high stools beckoning, so it would hard to resist popping in for a closer look.
It's not pretending to be a food destination - they just offer soup, gourmet sandwiches and toasties packed with some of the best Irish artisan foods, along with coffees, of course. But coffee lovers will be in heaven here thanks to the expertise and advice on hand, and the wide range of their own coffees available to enjoy on site or to buy in 250g bags.
You can opt for your favourite espresso or filter coffee style, of course, but it might be more fun to have a sample tasting board made up, so that you can experience different coffees and methods prepared by an expert.
Badger & Dodo also offer classes, and a carefully selected range of accessories can be purchased from their cafés and online (weekly deliveries). Their mobile coffee cart is a familiar site at at events and farmers’ markets: Midleton, Co Cork (Sat, 9-1); Douglas, Cork (Sat, 10-2);Wilton, Cork (Tue,10-2)
Also at: Badger and Dodo's Dublin Café, 59 Francis Street, Dublin 8. Tel: 085 875 5400.
