Coco Veranda turns 5

Saturday, 21 March 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Dear Colombo, Five years. I remember a piece in the Sunday Times of 28 March 2010 by Smriti Daniel. It spoke of a small place, all wood and warm colours, where the scent of fresh coffee mingled with the taste and texture of chocolate, and the girl with the cup of Filicori smiled knowingly at customers out of a framed portrait on the wall. It spoke of fresh bread, free Internet and a warm welcome to anyone looking for a cuppa. It was talking about me. Has it really been that long? I have been here, sitting by the side of Ward Place, for five years. In that time I have seen thousands of smiles, hundreds of laughs, and uncountable dozens of late-night conversations played out over an espresso. I have seen lovers meet for the first time, for that tentative, hesitant, butterfly of a first date. I have seen families giggling over chocolate cake. I have seen partners shake hands and dream of new ventures ahead. I have seen old friends reunited, stepping back to look at how much they’d changed, then embracing when they realise they haven’t changed that much. I have heard laughter and joy; wise words and counsel; business pitches; cricket talk; so much, in so little. And I have seen my team, my children. I have seen their lives unfold. Sarath pausing to welcome a new customer before bustling away. Amith in his crisp white shirt, lost in thought, dreaming of new ingredients for a new recipe. Isuru squinting in concentration, drawing Lionel Richie’s face on a cup of coffee. Ragul fiddling with his camera, his coffee cooling as he hunts for the perfect angle. All of these and a thousand more, each moment passing, in its own time. Five years, thousands of cups of coffee, millions of little Coco moments. As small as I am, I have grown – and I say this with pride- from an almost unknown coffee shop to a brand rivalling juggernauts here in Sri Lanka. And yet it seems like yesterday that I watched the first of my customers walking in through that door. It wasn’t that long ago when we cut the first slice of Death by Chocolate and the perfecting of the Seventh Heaven. None of this would have been made possible if it weren’t for you. I, by myself, am just a building, an idea cast into a logo, a name on the lips of a boy asking a girl out for a date. My staff are my ears, my eyes, my heart. But you, dear customer, are my lifeblood; it is your business that makes me – us – able to serve you that next cup of coffee and that next slice of glorious seven layered chocolate-coated heaven. So thank you. Thank you for an amazing five years. Thank you for all of the time you’ve spent inside my doors. Thank you for coming back with your friends, your partners, your family. It’s been a pleasure knowing you all. And do drop by again sometime. I’ll always be here when you want me. With love, Coco Veranda 32 Ward Place, Col 07.