Beat Root is one of those cafes that could be the front room of a hipster mate. Located on Lower Park Row, it’s also not the kind of place that immediately feels that it should belong on this side of Bristol, where Clifton becomes the city centre. With its bohemian outlook and run by a cooperative, Beat Root has more of a Stokes Croft vibe to it.
In what used to be an art shop but before that was a popular vegetarian restaurant, Beat Root is spread across two rooms, three levels and a courtyard, after which the restaurant was named.
The upper room houses the bar and a small kitchen; the lower room the standard mismatched tables and chairs, including a comfortable white chaise longue in one corner.
I was the only patron on Wednesday lunchtime, but enjoyed a well made flat white served in a china cup for just £1. The food choice is just cakes at the moment, but there should be more choice in the new year.
Items scattered around that your hipster mate would love include two ghetto blasters with tape decks, a milk urn and some knitting. There are also T-shirts and fudge for sale, Japanese posters on the walls and reggae on stereo.
Beat Root, 20-21 Lower Park Row, Bristol. BS1 5BN. 0117 376 3714.
