Catalyst

Catalyst is both a roastery and a cafe on a bright corner of Gray's Inn Road, with two big picture windows facing each street and a corner door set at an angle. It opened in late 2016 and roasts on a 12 kilo Diedrich in the basement, turning out blends and single origins that appear on espresso, batch brew and pour over. The team says its blends combine origins, processes and varieties to unlock complexity.

Every Catalyst offering is built to support two different farmers, a collaboration idea the roastery makes central to its identity. The cafe is weekday only, closing on Saturday and Sunday, and a row of short benches under the window on Gray's Inn Road gives you somewhere to sit outside if the weather allows. It sits across the road from Gray's Inn Square.