Why do you think our lovely coffee  shop will be a good venue for your gig?

Because it’s got a great feel to it, a modern use for an old building (which I always like).

Who would be the worst famous person to get stuck in a lift with?

Tough one – probably Aunt Bessie because she scares me! Or maybe Joe Swash purely because of his voice!

What is your favourite flavour muffin in the whole wide world?

Arrgghh!! That’s solid, I don’t eat cakes! sorry…..biscuits rock though…

If you could only listen to one artist for the rest of your life who would it be?

ooh….probably The Swell Season.

What can our coffee fanatics expect  from your performance this evening?

Some great heartfelt songs from Panico Panayi, me singing my heart out and a couple of special guests (wink wink). It should be a fun evening :)

http://www.myspace.com/motorcyclestunts

The second coffee is the Malawi Panwamba Estate. This is AA Graded which is the highest graded coffee and the Panwamba estate is between 1700 and 2000 meters and has an optimal coffee growing climate between 10-22c. This one is very soft on the palate with hints of vanilla and hazelnut with a short intense aftertaste. Brew it similarly to the previous coffee and adjust to taste. To all those people that haven’t yet signed up… just click here-you won’t be disappointed!

(Oh, and throw away the instant!!!)

Rich – Coffee Connoisseur

So anyone in/passing by/nowhere-near-but-really-loves-pancakes- the Jewellery Quarter, come and visit our lovely Emporium… we’ll be waiting!

For all of those lucky people who are coming along to film night tomorrow; just a quick note to let you know what’s going to be on the menu. Oh, and everything is home-made by the way in our very own little kitchen *blush*.

A Brief Encounter at the Jewellery Quarter Staring;

The retro delight that is, Miss Chicken Chasseur.

The couple everyone’s talking about Mr & Mrs Pork and Mushroom Stroganoff

The  exotic(ish) Signor Spicy Bean Cassoulet.

And, after the success of ‘The Artist’ who can forget… Madam French Onion Soup with her entourage, the unforgettable Goats Cheese Croutons dance band!!!.

We will of course have our rather special cakes and other goodies for you as well…

For more information on film night see our blog posted on the 30th of January….

Based in Moseley her cakes use  free range eggs, ethically sourced & (where ever possible) local ingredients to create good old-fashioned delicious treats.

Beth started her baking career as the in-house baker at Kitchen Garden Cafe in Kings Heath before going solo.  This week Beth’s baked us a very special Chocolate and Rose frosted Triple Layer Chocolate Cake and a sumptuous Red Velvet Cake. This Valentine’s Day grab a slice for that special someone,whether it’s an ‘I love you’, a last minute ‘Sorry I forgot… again’ or even a little treat at lunch for the most important person in the world .  YOU.

And, we use little in the loosest possible term here. Beth’s not in to “slivers” of cakes after all.  Come get your piece, just £4.50 for a large drink and a real grown up’s slice of cake.

There really are worse things to fall in love with than a good local cake you know! To find out more about Baker Beth check out her website.

What is important to you in your art? …  I love people, trying to capture their personality in pencil or paint. I’ve sketched people all my life.  I used to pick on my parents and friends at school or on holiday and the habit has persisted ever since. Of course sometimes I just spot an interesting face and am compelled to draw them. I might only have a few minutes then they get up and walk away and I am left wondering who they were and what their life is all about.

What are your most amazing art moments?… As an innocent nineteen year old I took myself to Amsterdam and the Rijkstz Museum and saw Rembrandt’s Night Watch – it was thrilling, so vast and dark; possibly even more exciting as I was on my own in a strange place with my nerve endings tingling!

Then I went to Italy. I thought I knew about the Renaissance as I’d studied it in my first term at Uni, but when I got there I felt so small and naive, the Italians have such a head-start they eat, breathe and smell art through every pore, its hardwired into their pysche, and I had only just scratched the surface. So inspiring.

Why pick on the sixties?… It’s such an era of optimism and excitement – Mary Quant, Vidal Sassoon, David Bailey, Jean Shrimpton, The Beatles, Michael Caine, Andy Warhol, the Avengers – the list just goes on!  The world changed in the sixties but the sixties influence still keeps its irresistible, up-beat  appeal. I know its nostalgic but it just makes me smile and I think we all need a bit more of that today. . .. .and afterall I am a child of the sixties.

 Dogtastic – how does that fit in?…. Dog lovers would rather have a picture of their four-legged friend (or friends) than they would their closest relatives.  I’m almost as bad! Charlie, our Springer with extra bounce, has bewitched us all. Our attempts to discipline him are overturned by his ridiculous winsome ways!  For me, trying to reflect a dog’s personality in a painting is challenging enough but getting stuck in to the texture of their coat is something else: wiry, silky, shiny, flat or wild it’s really fun.

Why Coldplay? …The biggest rock band in the world – need I say more? I am completely smitten. I was blown away by their gig at Glastonbury. The whole production was sensational: music, lighting, lasers, different colour sets, mood changes and such charisma! A true feast of the senses, jam-packed with material for an artist to work on.

What’s the connection with Urban Coffee? … My friend Nicky Dowd introduced me to Urban Coffee Company in the Jewellery Quarter. It’s a fabulous melting pot of people. It attracts so many different characters all with their own agendas and yet everyone seems perfectly at their ease. It’s a great place to people watch for my portraits!

Is there anything else you want to add?…I hope people enjoy seeing my paintings at Urban Coffee. They are for sale, so if anyone loves them so much they want to take them home, then they can. Cherry Paintings are good to go!  You can see more of my work here. I hope that Peter and his team of Urbanistas will let me carry on exhibiting my work in this great social space, while I keep coming back for more Urban coffee shots!

Fairy tales, folk tales, myths and fables; our oldest stories have long been brought to life by entertaining storytellers. Birmingham Storytellers’ Studio is dedicated to the practice and presentation of this ancient art form. Headed by experienced storyteller Graham Langley, Storytellers’ Studio entertains audiences of all ages with performances of traditional tales that create sheer magic, taking you on flights of imagination capable of surpassing JK Rowling and Philip Pullman in one swoop. This combination of timeless stories delivered in a lively contemporary setting is a sure-fire recipe for a great night out with Storytellers’ Studio at the Urban Coffee Company.

Food served from 6.30pm. Stories start at 7.30pm. (Tickets £7.00)

We are going to be showing David Lean’s classic “Brief Encounter” where in a café at a railway station, housewife Laura Jesson meets doctor Alec Harvey & although she is already married, they gradually fall in love. They continue to meet every Thursday in the small café, although they know that their love is impossible.

So why not join us in our own small café on Thursday the 16th of February. And, don’t worry, it’s not on the big day itself so come with friends, come with loved ones,  come on your own, hey – come with your teddy it really doesn’t matter…. we’re very free and easy.

Pop in to either of our emporiums to pick up your £10.00 supper ticket which will get you a delicious supper and a glass of wine, beer, soft or  hot drink.

And, because we’re just that civilised there will even be a little interval during the film where you can pop to the WC or pick up a piece of cake from the bar.

Date Thursday the 16th Feb. Doors Open 6pm. Food served form 6.30. Film Starts 7.30.

Email peter@urbancoffee.co.uk  or pop in to either of our Emporiums for more information.

Why do you think our lovely coffee shop will be a good venue for your gig?

Urban Coffee Co will be perfect for our gig with its relaxed, friendly, sophisticated ambience, plus the acoustics are really good!

Who would be the worst famous person to be stuck in a lift with?

The famous person we would least like to get stuck in a lift with would be Mr Motormouth himself – Jeremy Clarkson!

What is your favourite muffin flavour in the whole world?

Bernie’s favourite Muffin would be a traditional yummy Blueberry – while Mike goes for chocolate, double choc, triple choc or any higher multiplication of choc that you can cram into a single Muffin!

If you could only listen to one artist’s music for the rest of eternity who would it be?

Only one artist for the rest of a lifetime! Bernie would opt for the majesty of Nina Simone – whereas Mike’s caught up in the intimate, human portraits woven by the Americana singer-songwriter, Mary Gauthier.

What can our coffee fanatics expect from your gig?

Red Bird Sky will be bringing their own unique sound to the Urban Coffee Co on 3rd of February – a wonderful melding of words and music with Bernie’s gorgeous vocals, Mike’s sublime guitar playing and songs of real depth, substance and beauty!

Find out more at www.redbirdskymusic.com

Our New Year’s resolution to keep fit as you will know by now has turned our thinking to crafting some exciting healthy options here in the JQ kitchen (we hope it might even steal your ravenous eye away from that delicious slab of cake but perhaps more realistically, you could have both!)

You may have already experienced the potentially life changing tropical fruit pots in our emporiums We’ve had them on since the beginning of January, but now I’m going to tell you all about just HOW good they are for you and why you’ll feel invincible even when it is 8am and you only staggered to bed 5 hours earlier after one too many bottles of red…!

Tropical fruits are high in antioxidants which help to neutralize the free radicals that form during the normal process of oxidation. Free radicals can damage healthy cells and have been shown to promote cancerous growths, asthma attacks, heart disease and joint pain. Our pots contain 6 free radical fighters including the kiwi, orange, melon, grape, pineapple and, a fruit that various studies have suggested can even rejuvenate those precious brains of yours, the amazing blueberry.

Some of these studies have shown that blueberries help alleviate the cognitive decline occurring in Alzheimer’s disease and even lower brain damage in stroke victims. They can also help with high blood pressure as anthocyanins, which are found in blueberries, cause blood vessels to relax and increase production of nitric oxide that helps in maintaining normal blood pressure (grat if you in one of those stresfull meetings). Perhaps most intriguing of all, a study soon to be published found supplementation of diets with wild blueberry juice enhanced memory and learning in older adults while also reducing symptoms of depression.

So when you’re taking a break from work, replace your blackberry with a blueberry and recharge yourself to 100% with the best coffee in town and a pot of colourful fruit that will do all it can to compensate for those indulgent evenings!

Lyndon, Latte 2 sugars.