If you are like me you will need a strong coffee first thing to get your day started.

Well, many countries claim the title of producing the world’s best coffee. In my opinion Ethiopia might just have a worthy claim to this.

With much of the country at a high altitude, conditions are perfect for flavour development, alongside fertile soil and plenty of sunshine of course.

Tomoca has the oldest coffee shop in Addis Ababa, a compact standing only cafe in the city centre. It is a constant hive of activity with locals popping in all day for a shot of perfectly brewed caffeine.

It was established in February 1953 and is famous for its Italian-style coffee made with Ethiopian arabica beans. The name Tomoca derives from the Italian Torrefazione Moderna Café or “Modern coffee roasting”^.

I visited two branches with my travel buddy Hamish and Emmanuel, a taxi driver we befriended for our stay in the Ethiopian capital. The aforementioned city centre branch and one located in the old main train station where trains used to run to Djibouti.

The coffee was indeed wonderful, brewed by smiling baristas who seemed to love what they were doing. Take a look at the gallery below.