Srinivasa Kumbakonam Degree Coffee Shop

Our shop is right on Gadi Street in Rajampet, at 3-6-921. It’s not a place you’d go for a fancy date or to sit with a laptop, but it’s where you come if you want a real cup of coffee. We focus on that traditional style that people around here have grown up with. The morning starts early, long before the sun is really up, because we have to get the decoction ready for the first customers. The kitchen area is small and stays pretty hot all day. We use these old-fashioned brass filters and there's a certain way you have to pour it to get the froth right. It takes a bit of practice, and even after all these years, I still spill a bit every now and then when I'm in a hurry. The shop walls could probably use a fresh coat of paint, and the stools aren't the most comfortable, but nobody seems to mind much. They come for the coffee and the quick chat before they head off to their jobs. We don’t do any of that modern marketing stuff or have a website. Word of mouth has always been enough for us to keep the lights on. It’s a simple life, mostly spent measuring out coffee powder and pouring hot milk for neighbors. Sometimes the street gets flooded when it rains and we have to put out sandbags, but we usually manage to stay open.