Exploring Fairfield's Shearwater Coffee Bar: A Classic Motorcycle Ride

The Ride

The beginning of spring often means the first blooming buds on trees, April showers, birds chirping, and creatures emerging from winter slumber.  Another reasonably warm spring day was perfect for my 50-year-old carbureted air-cooled boxer twin to emerge from its slumber and grab some coffee.

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From the start in Cross River, the Beeline Moto compass indicated I would have 20.3 miles as the crow flies to the Connecticut coffee shop, Shearwater Coffee Bar in Fairfield County, Connecticut, aboard the 1972 BMW R75/5.  See our article on discovering new roads with Beeline.

I headed east on Route 35 toward Ridgefield, CT.  At the intersection with Route 33, I turned right, heading south.  At Wilton, the road joined Route 7 for a few miles and continued southwest.

In Westport, I turned west at the urging of the compass off Route 35 and onto some side streets.  Before I found Cross Highway heading northwest, I had to navigate some one-way streets, none of which headed the way I needed.  It wasn’t ideal, but at least partially, it was in the right direction. Sturges Highway headed southeast.  It started to feel like I was sailing and having to tack my way.  While annoying as to making forward momentum, I did have some fantastic scenic roads passing many of the local farms.

Bronson Road got me heading in the right direction for a bit before it wanted to continue its gentle curve back to the southwest, so I grabbed Sturges Road.  This was another road named after Jonathan Sturges, a businessman and patron of the arts, who commissioned a house to be built in Fairfield.

I joined up with another road with signs leading to Fairfield University just before I passed under Interstate 95 to reach Route 1.   The entrance to the parking for the coffee shop is right on Route 1, alternating names between Boston Post Road and Post Road for much of its length.  Route 1 was the original route between NYC and Boston but has since been replaced by Interstate 95, leaving Route 1 more of a business route.

Fairfield, located in the eponymously named county, was established in 1639 by Roger Ludlow, so the town has some history, at least by American standards.  For much of its history, the town was predominantly agrarian, unlike its neighbor, Bridgeport.  Though with the beginning of the automobile and the Connecticut Turnpike, it evolved to its present suburban character.

Suburban sprawl often brings strip malls along large thoroughfares, and Route 1 in Fairfield is no different.  It is easy to miss the shop in the back of a shopping strip called the Brick Walk, with a small sign near the entrance.  The driveway leads to a large lot by the shop with plenty of parking.  I grabbed one of the “compact car only” spots right in front.

As I closed the fuel petcocks providing gas to the twin Bing CV carburetors, Rever reported that I’d traveled 29.1 miles to arrive at Shearwater Coffee Bar.  See the route below.

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The Coffee Shop

As I approached the coffee shop, I was greeted by a charming white metal fence that led to a deck with a ramp, making it easily accessible. The deck was adorned with outdoor seating, perfect for enjoying a cup of coffee on a warm spring day, much like the day I visited.

I was greeted pleasantly by one of the two staff behind the counter.  On a Monday mid-morning, it was quiet with only two other customers inside and a small group outside on the deck, so I had no wait to place my order.  Reviewing the menu, I noted Espresso, macchiato, cortado, cappuccino, flat white, americano, latte, pour-over, drip coffee, and cold brew, including nitro for coffee options.  Other drinks included teas, lemonades, and hot chocolate.  A few pastries, Bagels, muffins, croissants, and other baked goods rounded out the offerings.

With the pleasant weather, I took my order to one of the tables out on the deck.  My cortado was served in a short round glass on a ceramic saucer.  I also got a blueberry muffin.

The cortado was perfect in color, with some espresso art on top of the milk. A caramel hint was evident in the smell. It was a smooth milk and espresso blend, as you’d expect in a cortado. The hint of caramel I noted by smell was also in the flavor, with an almost chocolate hint: a wonderful cortado, and the serving of the proper drinkware added to the experience.

The muffin was moist and filled with many berries. It had a brown exterior and not too much sugar. I thought it complimented the cortado well. The clear skies and light breeze made enjoying the outdoors even better.

While the space is well hidden from the road, there is more than enough parking for your bike & the coffee was well worth the trip.