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Kiwi coffee connoisseurs have long claimed New Zealanders make the best brew, but now - in London at least - we might be about to prove it.
London magazine Time Out is an authority on what's hot in the city, and its annual eating and drinking awards are
followed closely.
So it's something special that this year, three of the five nominees in the "Best Coffee Bar" category are Kiwi cafes - Flat White, Sacred and Bullet.
The winner will be announced on Tuesday.
The cafe scene in London was seen by many as in dire need of a shake-up when these three set up shop. Many a New Zealander in London has been dismayed by the homogenous high-street chains serving bland coffee and overpriced food.
Among the New Zealanders who decided to do something about it are former Wellingtonians Tubbs Wanigasekera and Matthew Clark, who opened Sacred 18 months ago.
Mr Clark came from a marketing background and Mr Wanigasekera was in motor sports management in New Zealand. They both loved London but missed New Zealand cafes.
Sacred, just off bustling Carnaby St in central London, is a little piece of home serving excellent coffee and New Zealand cafe-style food.
The Sacred scrambled eggs with feta and spring onions, and Nelson-made Anathoth jam on wholemeal toast, have an especially loyal following.
Why Britain is behind New Zealand in cafe culture is puzzling, but London is fast playing catch-up.
"The progress in London over the past couple of years has been phenomenal," Mr Clark says. "Five years ago your typical English bloke wouldn't have been caught dead ordering a latte, but not anymore."
Mr Wanigasekera agrees. "They've witnessed an awakening.
"It's like they come in and say, 'Oh, is that what a coffee should taste like'?"
The two believe that as people's tastes evolve, they are turning away from the international chains.
So why is New Zealand coffee so good?
The cafe owners say most important is the freshness and quality of the beans.
Sacred uses coffee from Bullet - an organic fair-trade roastery run by Phil and Vicky Ross - whose Covent Garden cafe, also called Bullet, is one of the Time Out nominees.
Bullet supplies cafes and restaurants throughout London, as well as selling coffee on their website.
Mr Ross is passionate about the quality of the product, and says his roastery puts the effort into roasting and blending to perfection, rather than corner-cutting.
Although it's a difficult market to enter, Mr Ross says it's great to see New Zealanders taking control.
"It's really good to see we're all in there," he says of the awards.
"We've got to stick together and support each other."
Another finalist is Flat White in Soho. Like the iconic drink after which it's named, both New Zealanders and Australians lay claim to flat white.
More importantly, a New Zealand accent can nearly always be heard where it counts - behind the machine.
Flat White's beans come from Monmouth, a London company whose roasters are mostly New Zealanders.
Skilled staff, particularly roasters and baristas, are also crucial to the success of Kiwi cafes.
At Sacred, all the staff are New Zealanders or Australians, with the owners on the lookout for baristas from New Zealand coffee companies such as Supreme of Wellington and Allpress of Auckland, because they know they'll be good.
As the English coffee enlightenment grows, Mr Wanigasekera and Mr Clark plan to have six or seven branches in London.
- NZPA
