Blair Patterson
DARRIAN TRAYNOR
Café
James English and Peter Knowles met at Trinity Grammar in Kew when they were in year 8. Mr Close was their geography teacher. English had worked in corporate marketing, while Knowles followed a hospitality path, determined that he and his friend would one day own a café together.
The city location was a gamble that English says has paid off over the past seven months. “We were a little unsure as we thought it was such a daggy arcade, but it’s a struggle to find good coffee in this immediate area,” he says.
The adjoining Midtown Tower office block brings regulars from design, recreation, travel and environmental companies who are grateful for noodle, lentil, rice and vegetable salads, quesadillas, curries, savoury tarts, imaginative sandwiches and quality espresso.
Sydney roaster Campos Coffee supplies the beans – about 50 kilograms a week – in a daily house blend, a decaf and a rotating weekly single origin.
The Campos Superior house blend as a piccolo latte is a bold, chocolate-bodied brew with a PNG coffee-bean base that finishes with a mellow rush of malt and butter.
Barista
Kiwi-born Blair Patterson began making coffee when he was in high school, but he says his arrival in Melbourne just under a year ago was the start of an inspiring coffee education.
Patterson, who worked for cafés in Tauranga and Wellington in New Zealand and for chains including Columbus Coffee Company, said his training background was solid and dependable. But at his first Melbourne gig, at Degraves Espresso, he met head barista and mentor Ben Morrow.
“He taught me more about specialty coffee than I had ever imagined was possible,” Patterson says.
“Making coffee is a very personal thing. A lot of my skills have been self-taught and there are little nuances and quirks that make each person’s coffee very individual.”
Patterson joined Mister Close in August, increasing his knowledge further through the “brilliant” Campos trainers.
Mister Close
Shop 13, Midtown Plaza,
246 Bourke Street, city
Phone \ 9654 7778
Barista \ Blair Patterson
Coffee \ Campos Coffee
Barista’s choice \ Espresso
Open \ Mon-Fri 7am-4pm;
Sat 9am-4pm
www.misterclose.com.au
Tucked behind a large telecommunications shop and in an arcade that cuts the corner across frenetic Bourke and Swanston streets, this city café exudes a surprising tranquility.
High black ceilings are softened by blond timber sails that reflect the light above the big classroom-size world map and hint at travel adventures. The same timber in tables, offset by pale chairs and stools, adds uniformity, while native blooms sit cheerily in glass bottles at each setting.
There’s a slick barista’s station, an impressive kitchen and well-stocked display windows containing a daily offering of house-made tarts, curries, salads, sandwiches and cakes.
