What I found when I discovered Edinburgh has joined global 'Coffee Outside' movement

It all started last November when I went on my first-ever bike ride in Scotland. On a cold winter evening, my friend and I were on the train to Glasgow for a gig at the OVO Hydro when she suggested we take city bikes from the station.

Previously, I had said that I would never cycle outside the comfort of the Netherlands and the safety of the red cycle lanes there. I suspect the bike ride had been her idea all along, but she revealed it only at the last minute, knowing she would catch me off guard.

Soon after arriving at Queen Street station, she handed me a bike. I wrapped my long coat around me so it wouldn’t get tangled in the bike wheel. Had I known we would be biking, I would have picked a different outfit.

A Coffee Outside gathering at Edinburgh's Lochrin Basin | Christine Geiger

Good friend for zombie apocalypse

My friend took off before I could hesitate, and away we went into the night. I cycled behind her under the full moon in the Scottish drizzle. The pavement was wet, and cars drove past us as we weaved our way around the city.

The snapshot of my friend cycling in front of me, under the spotlight of the bright city lights, got me thinking about our friendship. She’s a barista. We met when I was a regular at a cafe, and now I cannot think of a time when we were not friends.

She’s the kind of girl who presses flowers between books, cycles cross-country, runs marathons, and forages. To my city-girl background, she’s the person you want on your team when there’s a zombie apocalypse.

That night, somewhere intertwined with the music, laughter and conversation, my friend mentioned “coffee outside”. I had never heard of it and could have easily confused the concept with a new way of saying “takeaway”. But ‘Coffee Outside’ is yet another underground coffee community in Edinburgh.

Creating something with your hands

Every Wednesday at 8am, cyclists gather at Lochrin Basin to share a cup of coffee. Attendees bring their own coffee-making equipment, such as mini espresso makers, AeroPresses, small French presses, hand grinders, firelit stoves, and thermos flasks.

Everyone brings their own mug, and every Wednesday, a mug of the week is chosen. A meaningful part of coffee outside revolves around making a cup from scratch, providing an appreciation of the tactile feeling of creating something with your hands and sharing it with others.

I was determined to go with my friend and discover what it was all about. So, we set off one Wednesday morning before sunrise. It was still dark outside, but the promise of light peeped from behind the bare tree branches. At peak rush hour, the traffic was chaotic, with cars lining up bumper to bumper. Queues of morning coffee customers painted the windows of the local cafes.

Nearing Lochrin Basin, I heard the chatter before I saw anyone. Tucked away from the morning hubbub, a group gathered around a bench by the canal's edge. Bikes lay on the floor, encircling them. Approaching them felt like being a kid again, walking over to a new playground, hoping to make some new playmates. And so it was.

A coffee club that cycles?

Coffee Outside has a long history in the cycling community. It began in California with a simple social media hashtag, #coffeeoutside, and soon expanded all over the US before being brought to London, Glasgow, and now Edinburgh. The gathering has communities across the globe, from Canada to Japan. You can find the nearest one on an online map.

It is either a coffee club that cycles in or a cycling club that happens to drink coffee. In any case, community building around coffee is not new. Look no further than the numerous running clubs that gather at cafes at the weekend, either pre- or post-run.

While specialty coffee and cycling are two unique cultures, both communities’ common attention to detail and dedication to the craft meant they were bound to overlap at some point. Many cyclists also enjoy a good cup of coffee, and many coffee lovers enjoy a good cycle.

Positive effect on well-being

Both drinking coffee and cycling offer an opportunity to slow down and reflect during a busy day. It is no surprise that Coffee Outside positively impacts mental health. It is like a bubble where time stops, offering attendees an opportunity to connect and share as much or as little as they want before tackling the day. It is a mindful practice that builds community, and some attendees have been open about the community’s positive impact on their mental well-being.

Mental health awareness has been on the rise in the UK for a number of years. With the 2023 Scottish Health Survey finding mental well-being at a “record low", it is no surprise that, in 2024, online searches for “how to feel better" occurred roughly once every ten minutes.

I met the organisers of Edinburgh’s Coffee Outside, two cyclists and travellers who recently moved to Edinburgh from London. It was during this conversation that I realised, had it not been for my relationship with my friend, I probably would not have found this underground community.

Coffee outside is part of the cyclist culture, and though everyone is welcome, it is not widely advertised outside of Coffee Outside’s Instagram page. The culture in the group is focused on building a strong community, rather than growth and expansion. It is truly a quality-over-quantity approach.

After an hour of chatting with everyone, sipping good coffee from the cat mug I had brought, and witnessing a swan take on a dog by the canal, I was on my way back home, my heart feeling slightly lighter. Like a fleeting coffee shop pop-up, the group of cyclists disappeared into the morning air, promising to reunite once again the following Wednesday.

Lisa Simonis is a writer, artist and art historian currently based in Edinburgh