The interior décor at Slowak Coffee Roasters in Maina, Guam, resembles a coffee museum or a collector’s hoard of coffee paraphernalia. (Joseph Ditzler/Stars and Stripes)
Finding a new place to coffee up will become an urgent priority as increasing numbers of U.S. service members and their families make their way to Guam.
They could do worse than Slowalk Coffee Roasters near Maina on Route 1, about 11 minutes northeast by car from the gate at Naval Base Guam and just across the highway from the Guam governor’s complex. It’s in a recently repurposed bank building and makes good use of the space.
Outside it’s a Brutalist piece of modern architecture, a concrete pillbox elevated to three stories. But inside, it’s warm and welcoming, with accommodation ranging from intimate two-seat tables and a café table to comfy couches and big community dining tables.
One section of wall that reaches the second story is given over to a collection of coffee grinders and pots, spaced and lit like a display at the Smithsonian Institution. It’s the perfect backdrop.
Catch up on some light reading while savoring your dirty coffee at Slowalk Coffee Roasters in Maina, Guam. (Joseph Ditzler/Stars and Stripes)
Upstairs is more library than coffee shop. Long tables appointed with green-shade desk lamps cry out for more grad students. A wall of books sets off the academic atmosphere.
Outside, the second-story balcony, set with stylish tables and chairs, overlooks what appears to be a scrapyard. A gas station occupies the corner across the street and busy traffic flows on the island’s main west-side highway.
The space inside is put to an eclectic set of uses. A young couple played cribbage near the long table where we camped for a working lunch. Behind us, another young couple convened to talk business over pour overs. Downstairs a large group of young people filled a community table for a boisterous late lunch.
It’s a popular spot, and lively. The baristas and counter clerks seem to rotate on a short timeframe, so the same person who took your coffee order may be serving you a refill a half-hour later.
The Japanese influence on Guam is evident here. The menu display at the front counter consists of familiar, lifelike plastic models of food of the type ubiquitous in Japan. My choice, a chicken katsu, or cutlet, on toast, at $4 would find a good home in any Tokyo café.
Lunch is as light or complicated as you can make it at Slowalk Coffee Roastes in Maina, Guam. (Joseph Ditzler/Stars and Stripes)
I found it a bit dry but nourishing alongside a $7 cherry (real cherries!) smoothie.
For $6, the Slowalk will serve up its signature drink, its own “dirty coffee,” a shot of espresso in a layer with hazelnut syrup over chilled milk in a glass. I downed a glassful, enjoyed the warm sweetness resting on a deep chill, then stayed amped the remainer of the afternoon.
Busy as the day was, and with a plane to catch, we had no opportunity to explore the mysteries of the third-floor art space. But we’ll be back to Slowalk on our next foray to ever-popular Guam.
Slowalk Coffee Roasters
Location: 123 6, Maina, 96910, Guam
Hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Saturday
Prices: Range from about $5 for appetizers to $9 coffee drinks
Dress: Casual
Directions: About 10 minutes northeast of Naval Base Guam on Route 1, Marine Corps Drive.
Instagram: @slowalkcoffee
