Amidst the chaos of cranes and trucks busily constructing the new Harwood Bridge, a refuge has popped up in the form of Two Bridges Espresso – a mobile café just to the south west of the Harwood Bridge.
Out of the back window of the coffee trailer barista Ed Goode has one of the best views in the Clarence to watch the second Harwood Bridge take shape.
But Ed’s focus is primarily his customers who roll in off Yamba Road for a quick coffee, a combination of highway workers, locals and passers-by.
Two Bridges Espresso may have appeared to pop up overnight, but for Ed it’s been a labour of love that has taken years to achieve.
Ed has lived in Maclean for five years, with his partner Tiffany and son Milo, 3.
He’s been a familiar face making coffees around the Lower Clarence, and at the Yamba Farmers Market where he ran Ed’s Little Boy Brisket food stall.
‘I’ve always wanted to have my own coffee setup, so I made a plan to buy a second-hand food trailer and renovate it in my spare time,’ Ed said.
Ed spent 14 months grinding, cutting and welding the trailer himself, converting it into the roadside café that has now opened for business.
Two Bridges Espresso has obviously tapped into the lucrative market of highway workers working just metres away, but Ed said he had no plans to pack up once the new bridge was completed.
In fact he’s already arming himself with the necessary skills to continue building his roadside coffee empire.
One night a week Ed traveled to Grafton for a welding course at Tafe NSW.
‘I want to do a shipping container cafe, that’s the next stage,’ he said.
If you’re driving along Yamba Road on the south-western side of the Harwood Bridge, stop in at Two Bridges Espresso and check out Ed’s handiwork and the amazing view of the bridge going up…he makes a really good coffee too.
