Rochambo Coffee & Tea House

1317 E. Brady St., Milwaukee

Their website indicates it’s been around since 1995, which is a long time for a coffee shop or any business, and I’m glad they survived the pandemic (a couple of others in the vicinity didn’t). Really, though, Rochambo feels like it could have been around for much longer than that—like from any number of earlier decades—and I mean that in a good way. I hadn’t visited in a while (only because I’m cutting way down on coffee and spending, out of necessity—and also, I’m trying to hit all of them). In a way, it felt no different than the last time I stopped in for coffee. But on the other hand, it felt really different, like something has been revitalized. I’m not really sure which hand to believe, but I guess there’s no reason not to let both of those feelings exist. I had a very good espresso and checked out the various sitting options—there’s an upstairs, which is nice. It felt kind of like everyone here knew each other, which I like—it feels like a real hangout. There must be every day regulars. If I was going to be a regular at a coffee house, this might be the place. They’re open relatively late (7pm), so that’s good, and every day.

11.15.23