Pony Express O
So you’re fresh from your Christmas holidays with the crisp white pages of 2010 to unfold. Your desk is eerily vacant and suspended in time from the last joyous hours of 2009. You’re back into the daily grind till the cooling days of Autumn brings Easter (with more festivities). You also know what’ll help you along the days is coffee. Bitter, sweet, luscious and hot. And if you’re lucky enough to work in West Perth and be in need of the bean, there may be a little (coffee) house right up your alley (literally).
Pony Express O is a coffee house in reverse. Like me, you could be forgiven to think you’ve come through the rear, or heaven forbid, behind the bar. But you’d be wrong. If you’re trying to be smart and go on the other side of the bar, you’ll be faced with another expresso machine. Clearly the function of this coffee house is bring you to the steamy face of coffee. You get to see the extraction as clearly as the barista. This used to be the Ashton Stables, the building is now heritage listed. The space has been transformed. Art hangs from the walls, high airy ceilings upon to a faux-grassed lane-way under umbrellas. The only equine link is the rib-nudging name, Pony Express O. Get it. Hah Hah.
The brain-child of Garret of Blink in South Fremantle, it carries some of those elements. Smart use of space, clear access to expresso machines, a funky coin payment system and above all else, fine coffee. Crema is his choice of bean. Get to know it. It’s the new Fiori. His attitude is casual, inquisitive and friendly. It’s a communal joint, where you’ll see regulars popping in, picking up conversations where they left off, and others lounging about reading books and eating their lunches. There is a bring-your-own-lunch policy here. Pony Express O plays its cards well, limited sweet pickings in favour of BYO. Bring your books too or read the paper, and use the foot massager. Yes that’s right. A foot massager.
Pony Express O
21 Mayfair Street West Perth
Tags: Café, Coffee, Perth, Pony Express O, West Perth
January 5th, 2010 at 10:56 pm
You went behind the counter / bar and no one told you off because you’re a second class citizen who doesn’t know anything about cocktails or coffee?
A communal and friendly place? That’s just crazy talk.
What sort of business is this?! I can’t expect a business like that to last long with all that customer service and satisfaction crap.
They need MORE pretentiousness and less customer focus!!
[Then they can open their own little bar in Northbridge and be all up themselves about it.]
January 12th, 2010 at 10:56 am
Based on my experiences with Blink (all delicious), I’ll be hopping in my vehicle and paying these folks a visit, STAT. Grazie!
January 28th, 2010 at 1:01 pm
I reckon I’ll be heading up the hill from work to check this out – as a West Perth worker I am always looking for coffee!
Funny that you should say that Crema are the new Fiori – are you aware that Crema bought Fiori’s original roaster?
And there are further ties!
February 9th, 2010 at 8:45 am
Pony Expresso has all the charm and desirability of it’s secret location, tucked away and “special”, then when you get there the coffee is excellent and the barista is, well, chatty- couldn’t do better in Perth