Venues that double as coffee shops by day and cocktail bars by night are no longer hard to find in Toronto, but the latest to open in Little Portugal takes the concept a step further, adding a third space designed for community gatherings.
In the three months since opening at the corner of Dufferin and Dundas, Nile Coffee Club has quickly become a vibrant social hub serving specialty coffees, African-inspired cocktails, and no shortage of fun events. Open daily from 7:30 a.m. to midnight, it’s a gathering place for artists, coffee lovers, community seekers and everyone in between.
“I always find that you can create a business with a plan for what you think it’s going to be, but it ultimately depends on how the community uses the space,” says Sandrine Somé, who owns the business alongside Taher Elsheikh. “We knew that going into it, so we said we’d build something we have a strong vision for, but ultimately how it gets used and benefits the community will be up to them.”
Though the coffee shop is new, Nile Coffee Club has been building a loyal Toronto following for years. Originally launched with a third partner, Somé and Elsheikh created the brand out of a desire for more diversity in the city’s coffee scene.
“Coffee is something that is predominantly from the African diaspora. That’s where the origins are from, but we weren’t seeing the same level of diversity in the actual service of coffee in the space and so that was something that was really important for us,” says Somé.
“We are also very tapped into the creative community in Toronto, and we just wanted a place or a brand that spoke to the things that we all were very interested in and could bring people together.”
The coffee beans are sourced from Africa, including Burundi and Ethiopia, as well as the African diaspora, including Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, and beyond. The coffee is ethically sourced and slow roasted in small batches with a focus on building relationships and learning the stories of farmers that have been producing for generations.
“We wanted to make sure that we were never pretentious in a way where we dictated to people how they could have their coffee,” Somé says. “I think some people are very much purists. We’re more so just open and approachable to everyone. It’s an approachable palette so that everyone can find themselves in our array of beans.”
While Nile began with pop-up events with music or a DJ component, the new coffee shop offers space for more innovation from Nile. From a Brazilian limeade served with an espresso shot to a NiceCapp (a house-made twist on the classic Iced Capp from Tim Horton’s), and the mango sticky rice and coffee jelly, there’s something for even those who aren’t coffee drinkers.
“It’s just flavours from different places that we really love. It doesn’t stick to flavours from the African diaspora, but really finding global flavours and things we love from elsewhere and bringing it to Toronto,” Somé says. “We tried to bring the best of the things that we love from coffee culture around the world and ingredients from around the world and then did it our own way.”
The night menu introduces similarly global tastes, including specialty cocktails made using ingredients like bissap, okra, and scotch bonnet. The food menu consists of baked goods and light fare like sambusas (East African versions of a samosa).
It’s not just the coffee keeping people up at Nile. The communal tables are constantly taken over by events hosted by local community groups, from chess and domino clubs to craft and music nights, FIFA watch parties and even Love Island screenings.
“We just have a lack of spaces in the city for people to really do things and try new ideas and express themselves without having to pay a crazy bill to be in there,” Somé says. “That’s why we’re a coffee shop but then it turns into this whole evening bar element.”
Just as Nile pays homage to the origins of coffee, the Four Stars Café signage that continues to hang above the shop pays tribute to the iconic café that came before.
“I’m the first person to admit that gentrification is obviously rampant, and so that was our way of honouring the group that was there before us and a place that everyone is aware of,” says Somé. “So we thought it was really cool to just keep the sign of what came before but then add our own twist.”
