Coffee heads listen up…There’s a brand new coffee house in town and you’re going to have to get yourselves down there!
Ouseburn Coffee Company have opened up their first flagship coffee house, Harvest Canteen, at 91 St George’s Terrace, Jesmond.
OCC is Newcastle’s first independent roastery, established in 2012 by “by a small band of Artisan Coffee Roasters & Baristas dedicated to offering a highly selective range of coffee beans from around the world…” (taken from the OCC website).
Harvest have been open for just over a week, so when my lovely friend suggested we met at the new place she’d spotted, I packed up my camera and kept my fingers crossed that I’d be able to find parking in Jesmond. (Incidentally, I got a spot right outside, so the pre-parking worry was unnecessary). The aroma of freshly brewed coffee as soon as you walk in is something you have to experience for yourself and I can’t do it justice in words. Why does coffee smell so amazing?
Inside, Harvest is bright, much bigger than I expected and has a minimalist feel to it but is certainly not lacking in atmosphere. Baristas are friendly, helpful and the service can’t be faulted. They didn’t even mind me sauntering around the place with my giant camera. (Why oh why didn’t I take a photo of the board showing the coffee on offer?).
We both ordered a latte and had a quick look at the food on offer… one of the baristas brought over our drinks and let us know that they’ve been focusing on the coffee so they were still working on developing a food menu – absolutely fine by me as he also let us know that they had poached eggs, spinach and seeded bread. That’s what I ordered, and my friend ordered avocado on toast.
The latte was served in a short glass, with black saucer (I don’t know why the black saucer is important to me, but it is). Good attention to detail and immaculate presentation makes a difference to the whole experience. I was hooked from the first sip. All OCC coffee is hand roasted and bagged up fresh the same day – it’s so refreshing to know that the delicious coffee that you’re drinking has been roasted locally by people who really love what they do (and really love coffee – you can taste it!). 
We ordered more drinks before our food arrived, I had a cappuccino and my friend ordered fresh mint tea. I love mint tea, but the coffee was so good I couldn’t contemplate having anything other than coffee! The cappuccino obviously did not disappoint, even talking about it now makes me want to pack up and tootle over to Jesmond – but this would be insanity because I haven’t even brushed my hair today and guess what, I don’t intend to!
Here come the obligatory photos of food which was delicious by the way… (oh and also photos of the mint tea, cappuccino and the place itself).
I’ve already made plans to go back in a few weeks, but I’m definitely going back for coffee before then – if you’re in the area, you should too! Open 8am-6pm daily, it’s up by Paul Bryan and Subway… the opposite end of the street to Starbucks, in both the literal and figurative sense. Apologies for the lame joke, but ha! If you’re down by the Quayside, pop into the OCC roastery where you can buy coffee by the cup or the bag.
Local folks – let me know if you decide to pop in to Harvest – would love to hear what you think.
Those out of the area, tell me about your favourite coffee houses 🙂
Cloud in a Teacup 
looks sooooo good! i swear you are like my guide website for things to do on my day off haha
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Haha! It’s a great place to go on a day off – such a lush atmosphere & so many great photo opportunities. My photography skills are still basic but slowly improving! Let me know what you think if you decide to go!
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Oh my, it all looks so yummy!!
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So so happy I’ve found your blog, I’m always excited when I stumble across another North East lifestyle blog, especially one of full of food. You’ve already blogged about lots of interesting places I’ve never been to as well, so I’m extra excited 😀
You should think about putting your blog onto bloglovin. I was going to follow you but couldn’t find you on there 😦 I don’t want to miss your updates!
Chloe x
newgirlintoon.co.uk
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Hi Chloe! I’m so happy you like my blog 🙂 there are so many nice places up here! Ohh I’ll have to look into bloglovin, can I have it as well as WordPress?! That’s probably a really stupid question. Thanks for stopping by! Shivani x
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This looks like a lovely place to visit, going to have to pop in next time I am passing
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It really is lovely Alison, let me know your thoughts once you’ve popped in!
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I LOVE a good coffee shop so I am over the moon to read about this place – I like a strong black Americano or espresso – not as pretty as your latte but I bet it will still taste amazing! The only thing that worries me about Jesmond is like you say – the dreaded parking! Might leave the car at Jesmond Dene and walk over one day in Spring. Thanks for linking up with #LoveNorthEast
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I think you’ll love the coffee Samantha – it is undoubtedly my favourite coffee in Newcastle. I have been lots of times since my first post and have always managed to get a parking space without a problem – I am such a drama queen where parking is concerned 🙂 x
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Will have to try it!
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This looks amazing! (But isn’t helping with my coffee detox!)
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Definitely worth a visit – but not if you’re on a coffee detox! 😊 x
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Hi, I am writing an article for sr-news.com on the best independent cafés in Newcastle. Would it be possible to use a few of your pictures when writing about Harvest Canteen? Full credit will be given. Thanks!
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Hi Samantha, yes that’s fine with me! Please could you send a link when your article is live, would love to read about the other places you’re featuring! Thanks 🙂
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