Words by Jaimi Shields: jaimi@ragandbone.co.za
Images by
Adrian Shields
Field Office
34 Salisbury Street Woodstock
021 447 1911
Barista :: Amo
So there are three, soon to be four
field office cafés in Cape Town and each one is special in it’s own way. We visited the gorgeous cafe on the corner of Salisbury and Fairview in Woodstock to catch up with Amo and find out a bit about his adventures as a Barista. I love this café for both its simplistic inside seating with an exhibit wall as well as the small café tables on the sidewalk set against the colourful collage of houses on Salisbury Street. The whole vibe is unbothered with locals catching up on local news, checking email on their notebooks or grabbing a couple of coffees and a simple sarmie before heading back to work.
Amidst the fog of egos and pretentiousness that consumes many art forms like coffee, wine and fine dining once in a while you meet a real person who breaks the mould and really shows you what it should be about. My Dad often judges a man by their first handshake and often rightly so, and while shaking Amo’s hand I thought – “I bet this guy can make a worthy cup of coffee with a handshake like that!” I am sure my Dad would agree.
Amo is actually a mural artist and he found his way down the road of coffee needing something to support his first love. Amo started out as a waiter, practicing his skills in restaurants making beverages, he then did his formal training with
Deluxe and then had the humility to ask some of Cape Town’s best if he could purely stand back and watch them. From these humble beginnings has emerged a young person who is easy to talk to and makes a MEAN cup of coffee. Order a Cortado and if you are lucky he may share something a little more off the books with you that involve butter and coconut oil. Since June of last Amo has been making coffee at Field Office and makes an office feel like a home with his friendliness with patrons and his general vibe that puts you at ease.
Although there are no airs and graces with Amo and although he will deny that he is in any way a master of his art he makes a beautiful Flat White, perfect drinking temperature as soon as it hits the counter and encourages any who dare to join him during coffee “happy hour” at Field Office between 7-8am for just R12 a pop.
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