If you’re someone who can’t form a complete sentence until you’ve had your morning flat white (and you know who you are), there’s a new pop-up in town that might just give your usual caffeine fix a bit of an identity crisis.
At this year’s Taste of London, illy—the coffee brand that practically invented the phrase “bean-to-cup” before it became something your local café started printing on brown paper menus—has launched Live HapILLY, a chic, coffee-forward experience for those who like their espresso with a side of espresso martini.
And yes, there will be espresso martinis. Plural. Free-flowing.
But first, let’s talk about the real star: a Michelin-starred soft serve (yes, you read that right), crafted in collaboration with illy’s UK chef ambassador Chantelle Nicholson, the Green Michelin Star-winning chef behind Apricity and The Cordia Collective. It’s creamy, zero-waste, and infused with the kind of culinary ingenuity that makes you rethink every sad cone you’ve ever ordered from an ice cream truck.
In other words, it’s the kind of soft serve you’d cancel a dinner reservation for.
So Why illy?
It’s easy to forget that coffee isn’t just a beverage—it’s an agricultural product, and a wildly complex one at that. While most of us are still bleary-eyed pressing a button on our Nespresso machine, illy has already considered the soil quality, bean variety, roast profile, and yes, even the packaging (their pressurised tins are patented, because of course they are).
Only the top 1% of Arabica beans make it into an illy blend, which is a fun fact you can casually drop at brunch the next time someone says their flat white tastes “a bit acidic.”
Sustainable, But Make It Luxury
If you’ve ever thought of sustainability as a vaguely annoying word used to justify £9 granola, illy might change your mind. In Brazil’s Cerrado Mineiro region, the brand has worked with local producers for over 30 years to develop regenerative agricultural practices. The result? The world’s first 100% certified regenerative agriculture coffee, the Brazil Cerrado Mineiro.
This isn’t just sustainability for the sake of it. It’s farming that actively improves the land—restoring soil, reducing carbon emissions, and helping ensure your future grandchildren won’t be drinking synthetic espresso-flavoured energy drinks.
Oh, and the Brazil Cerrado Mineiro blend tastes as good as its credentials sound. Smooth, complex, with just enough character to stand up to oat milk.
Come for the Coffee, Stay for the Culture
At the Live HapILLY experience, you’ll find more than your usual caffeine buzz. There are masterclasses on how to make the perfect cup at home (because you really shouldn’t still be using that Moka pot from university), interactive tastings, and more photo ops than a Notting Hill brunch spot.
Whether you’re shopping for your next signature roast or just want an excuse to sip espresso martinis at 2pm while calling it “research,” this is the kind of pop-up Londoners will tell their friends about... just after they’ve posted it to Instagram first.
