If you have spent any time hunting for a proper coffee in Norwich, you have likely come across Strangers Coffee Company. It is one of the city's best-known independent speciality roasters, set up back in 2009 by Alex Sargeant and Samuel Maddocks, with William Maddocks joining the fold in 2014. Since then it has built a reputation on responsibly sourced beans and espresso and filter drinks that are frequently ranked among the best in the UK and even Europe.
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The first thing worth knowing is that there are actually three places to get a fix. The roastery itself sits at 10 Dove Street, open Monday to Saturday 8:30am to 4:30pm and Sunday 10:30am to 3:30pm, and it is takeaway only. If you want to sit down, the Coffee House at 21 Pottergate has both inside and outside seating, open Monday to Saturday 8:30am to 4:30pm and Sunday 9am to 3pm. The third site, over on All Saints Green, opens at 8am on weekdays, 8:30am on Saturdays and 10:30am on Sundays, and is also takeaway.
What sets the coffee apart is how much thought goes into it. Everything is 100% Arabica, and nothing makes the cut unless it scores 80 points or more on the SCA quality scale. Each coffee is tasted before the green beans are bought, profiled in the roastery to get the flavours right, and every roasted batch is analysed before it goes on sale. The selection follows the harvest cycles, so the single origins rotate throughout the year, with a few all-time favourites staying put. It is a light-roast programme at heart, and recent offerings have leaned into carbonic naturals, anaerobic naturals and red honey-processed Ethiopians.
If you want to brew at home, the whole range is available online as whole beans or ground for espresso, filter, French press or moka pot, in 250g, 500g or 1kg bags. A few examples give you the range: the Brazil Fazenda Bom Jesus Natural, with chocolate, hazelnut and praline notes, starts at £10.50; the Colombia Anserma Natural, leaning into black forest gateau, liqueur chocolate and cherry, is from £14.00; and the Ethiopia Idido Anaerobic Natural, all mango, papaya and honeydew melon, from £16.00. There are also blends like the Fine City Blend at £11.00 and a decaf Colombia San Lorenzo for £11.00. Orders placed before 6am on a working day are shipped that day via Royal Mail, with free Tracked 48 delivery on UK orders over £45.
On the ground, the feedback is consistently warm. The All Saints Green site is known for its nerdy baristas and what some call the best hot chocolate in Norwich, with filter coffee and chai lattes as the go-to orders. The Pottergate cafe, sitting at 4.6 stars across more than 600 reviews, is described as a small spot with a view over the lanes and bustling Norwich life, and cheap prices for good coffee and cake. Between the three sites, there is a place whether you are in for a quick takeaway or a proper sit-down, and the roastery keeps the whole thing grounded in the beans themselves.
