Considering how hip and trendy the Wash(ington) Park area of Denver is, it's always been amazing to me that there's no within my particular neighbourhood (West Washington Park). My favourite - Stella's - is walkable from the house, but does involve crossing the I25, the bridges over which are all being worked on (so little or no sidewalks) as part of the T-Rex project.

Recently, however, I spotted a tiny little coffee place, called the Washington Park Coffee Company, has opened two blocks from my house. As I drove by, it looked like it was a gap between two buildings, with a door on the front.

So tonight, when Miles and I popped out for a walk, we headed in the direction of Pearl St. I thought I'd see if this place was open late. It was. Not only that, but the owner was outside with his kids. We got chatting, and the kids got friendly with Miles.

Barry, the owner, is a fellow jazz fan, and into the same sort of jazz as myself (Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Dave Brubeck et al). He's also an IT guy. It transpires, that it won't be long before he has an open Wi-Fi network up and running, providing his patrons with complimentary high-speed wireless internet access. Could it get any better, you ask?

Well, yes. The coffee was good too. My benchmark coffee these days is a Grandé Latté. It might sound poncey, but you can't beat a drink that comes with two or three shots of espresso in it! Remember, as I said yesterday, I'm a geek and proud of it. Geeks exist on a lot of caffeine. Anyway, Barry's Latté hit the spot, pretty hard. I drank that coffee 3.5 hours ago and I'm still buzzed as I write this!

Miles was also impressed with their fare. They had a large barrell of dog biscuits, and thanks to Barry's young son, Miles was able to acquire at least three of them, just for giving the lad his paw.

The inside of the was a lot bigger than it looked from the outside. Perhaps they used trans-dimensional engineering? It turns out that the premises were an alleyway between two shops, that has been converted into a building. The walls are all exposed brick. In the course of removing external plaster from one of the two buildings either side, old painted advertising was discovered. This has been preserved, as is now part of the 's décor.

So, as soon as their Wi-Fi network is up, you can expect Englishman In Denver to be brought to you live, from the sidewalk, outside The Washington Park Coffee Company*!

*I am in no way affiliated with this company, I just liked the guy who's started it. I guess my one bias is that I'd like the place to stay open, as it's near my house, serves damn fine coffee, and will have wi-fi access for customers soon.