Broadcast Partner
Tuesday 22 May 2018
Caffé Mobile
The aroma of freshly brewed coffee and plates laden down with perfect home baked cakes, have secured Caffé Mobile a place over the years as one of Cambridge’s best loved Festival caterers. Queues of people, happy to wait for a cup of Ben Jones’ delicious beverages and fresh moist bakes, created by his partner Caitlin and owner of The Little Bakery, are testament to the quality on offer.
Instantly recognisable, Caffé Mobile operates from a cheery three wheeler Piaggio Ape (‘bee’ in Italian), bedecked in the green, red and white of the Italy’s colours. First manufactured in 1948 by Piaggio, makers of cult scooters Vespa, the three-wheeled vehicles played a key part in Italy’s economic regeneration after World War II and are still used throughout the country.We caught up with Ben ahead of the Festival to find out more…
A popular fixture on Cambridge city’s market square, Ben was inspired to take the plunge and set up his own business in 2001, after several years working in corporate coffee bars: ‘My inspiration for starting Caffé Mobile, was to open up a mobile coffee bar that could be part of a market community, offering people excellent coffee and homemade cake slices. We then used this philosophy to branch out into event catering.’ And, after 18 years of honing his skill and knowledge on all things coffee, Caffé Mobile is a long established success.
Brewing those famed coffees at the Festival for 14 years now, Ben loves the event: ‘It’s a wonderful setting for a fantastic family friendly festival, the trees and friendly people make it a great place to work!
‘Our stall is situated next to the Main Stage so we hear it all! (In fact our spot is directly next to one of the main speakers!) Highlights for me have been John Butler Trio on Main Stage 2015. But I also like to nip into the Club Tent to have a listen when I have a break.
Any interesting Festival statistics Ben? ‘We serve hundreds of coffees every day and use around 50kg of coffee and 700 pints of milk over the weekend - soya milk has become more and more popular. Caffé Mobile trades from 8am until 11pm’ish every day and we’re offering a discount for re-usable cups, so come and talk to us!
Most popular coffee? ‘Americanos are the most popular coffee at Cambridge Folk Fest, but tea and cake seems to go down a storm around 3pm!’
Caffé Mobile cakes are legendary on the site! What makes them so delectable? ‘Our homemade cakes are locally made, less than a mile away from the Festival site. We use free range eggs and good quality butter from local supplier. We haven't changed our range much over the years, mainly because what we do is so good! Although we are constantly tweeking recipes to keep them tip-top.
‘An interesting stat to finish with…over 2,000 eggs are cracked to make enough cakes for the folk festival weekend!’
That’s a lot of cake.
