By Tiaan Booyens
The youngest café in Stellenbosch is very self-aware about being a new coffee shop in the student town famous for its everchanging caffeine landscape, but Platō Coffee seems like it’s hitting all the right spots for locals. This minimalist-design café, comfortably situated outside of central town and next to Revel Self-Care Salon on 15 Krige Road, is the perfect place to find some peace and quiet. The latter, paired with great coffee served in pretty cups by charming baristas, is a winning formula for those dealing with hustle fatigue.
“I’m happy with how we’re growing at the moment,” said Thomas Dreyer about their word-of-mouth approach to getting new faces in while still maintaining the calm atmosphere of the quaint café. Dreyer is the owner of the Stellenbosch Platō Coffee, which is the twelfth coffee shop in the franchise consisting of about twenty national branches, and is the second Platō Coffee in the Western Cape after Hermanus’. The local Platō opened in November of last year, but it took Dreyer a bit longer than those three months to get to this point.
Dreyer studied business management and got an office job as a business analyst, but after realising it wasn’t for him, decided he needed a change of pace. Dreyer spent all his savings to get his qualifications to enter the yachting industry and set sail over the world – as a deckhand and boat engineer for four years, and a captain for two more.
“I’ve been everywhere,” said Dreyer about where he’s sailed, “I was on one boat for the whole six years, which is very unheard of. People usually hop between boats, but ja nee literally everywhere: Mediterranean, Caribbean, Bahamas.”
Dreyer said that the plan was to continue with the seafaring life for a few more years, until the perfect professional endeavour, and a yearning for a home and a dog – in his words – made him decide to find his land legs in Stellenbosch again. With the help of some proudly South African venture capitalists he met on a hunting trip with his dad, he decided to delve into the coffee market.
“Everyone welcomed us with open arms,” said Dreyer, “but there was one guy who came and said he gives us three months and then our doors will close.” According to Dreyer, this customer commented that some people don’t see the point of another café in a town that’s already full of them, much less one that doesn’t roast their coffee beans here in the Western Cape among other pessimistic opinions. Platō Coffee Stellenbosch, however, is growing more popular and Dreyer is even looking to potentially expand to Durbanville and Tygervalley next.
“Something that’s very dear to my heart is the fact that half of our profit goes to non-profits,” said Dreyer, who’s always had the desire to give back to the community. According to Dreyer, 50% of the profits of Platō Coffee Stellenbosch go towards supporting the Direct Transact Foundation and NIKA Capital. Dreyer decided to become an entrepreneur to ensure that most of his money goes towards a worthwhile cause.
It’s easy to believe that Dreyer values family after a visit to his café, which has a welcoming atmosphere that makes you feel at home. Platō Coffee Stellenbosch brings a wholesome addition to the coffee scene in the town of oaks and seems to be an oasis to its owner too. His next endeavour is to find a four-footed friend. “A golden retriever without a shadow of a doubt, and she’s coming this year,” said Dreyer.
Stop by Platō Coffee Stellenbosch to say “hello” to Thomas and his team of friendly baristas and try it out for yourself. You might even meet the owner’s future dog one day if you become a local.
