The Coffee Crate

The Coffee Crate isn’t exactly the sort of place you expect to find behind a car wash at the edge of a light industrial estate, but it’s right on the pulse, turning a spare plot of unused land at the edge of Tiptree into a small business haven using converted shipping containers.

The mini-complex is festooned with fairy lights, clad with wood and decorated with potted trees, and you’ll find coffee in the corner unit (opposite the refill shop). Light floods in through the large sliding doors, with a handful of seats at the front and counter at the back. Coffee is barista standard with a range of plant-based milks alongside standard cow’s, tea is by Tea Pigs and hot chocolate devilishly good (try the Black Forest).

Sandwiches are freshly made in-house and ready to take away if you’re on the fly, and the cakes are varied and delicious. Although seating inside is limited, there’s a gorgeous decked area beneath the boughs of a tree just outside for sunny days, though it’s worth swinging in here for decent take-away food whatever the weather.