Coffee shops are a standard stop among the locals of Zim. Every tea time, morning and afternoon, coffee shops fill with women, children, and occasional families eager to take advantage of delicious desserts, outdoor space, and play equipment impossible to find in the country's very rare public park spaces. Desserts after a meal tend to be very rare here-most locals intake their sweets during tea times instead. During after-school hours (most local schools end their day by 1 pm!) these hubs are packed with customers looking to spend a relaxing afternoon sipping tea and enjoying sweet treats outside.
It took me over a year to get some of our American friends to visit a coffee shop; the concept here is entirely different than what the term indicates in America. In Africa, coffee shops are frequented by the upper and middle classes as places for children to play while adults enjoy a restaurant-like setting. Some coffee shops charge entrance fees as a way of making money off their grounds and outdoor spaces. Others only serve breakfast or only serve lunch. Most hold strange hours, entirely dependent upon their owner's preferences. And most have dreadful service that can take days to bring their customers menus or edibles. (Over and over we find humor here in the lack of dependable businesses. They close and open when they want, and take holidays when they like. In a country where individuals are complaining about economic challenges, little differences like having steady days and hours and being open on weekends would certainly help!)
Whatever the concept and make-up of the coffee-shop, it is easy to feel their popularity. I am told the concept of the modern coffee shop came to southern Africa only within the last fifteen years, when new concepts like cappuccinos and lattes began spreading through nations still modernizing. Most of these businesses are highly successful, offering expensive food to coffee shop junkies while paying extremely low wages to their employees. All one needs is a large yard, a dependable generator, and some good recipes. Finding people desperate to work for next to nothing? And dilapidated play equipment? Piece of cake! Literally....
Above and below, Jonas enjoys taking in a coffee shop with a zipline, fishing ponds, and hiking paths that offer some natural beauty within the city.
Though each coffee shop is unique, most are well manicured and offer the standard trampoline, sandbox, and wendy house (a playhouse named in reference to Peter Pan) in addition to other play equipment.
Like many businesses, most coffee shops are run out of a residential property that has been converted into a business. Our doctor's office looks the same way...
My favorite coffee shop (The Bottom Drawer) has an upscale home-goods shop inside and divine desserts like these pavlovas (below) that I will introduce you to someday!
