Nestled in a hipster area in Norway’s capital, Tim Wendelboe is a ‘famous’ micro roastery, a coffee training centre and an espresso bar, run by the eponymous World Barista Champion and World Cup Tasters Champion. The hype monster had already chased us around the carousels (via posters and a few social media messages) at Oslo airport before we’d even collected our bags so it was at least on our minds if not top of our sightseeing to-do list. But could I resist having a beak at this ‘Coffee Showroom’ as they call it?

After having exhausted the main drags of the city, done the Munch museum and jumped from a sauna into the Oslofjord (before stuffing yourself with Fårikål if you can find it), most visitors wander around the trendy Grunerlokka district. Some will decide (i.e. us), reluctantly perhaps, to enter this unassuming caff and see what the fuss is about or if it is a bit of tourist trap of purist pap.

I say unassuming – maybe in its appearance but according to their vid on Youtube, punters come from far and wide to sample their wares. This was not evidenced by us being the only two non-locals in there. Mind you it’s not like they could fit a coachload of tourists in this gaff. Interior-wise, there’s not a lot for the eyes to get moist over – maybe this is so you can concentrate on the coffee experience, though the counter looks like the kitchen design counter at Ikea. There’s a shiny wooden floor and some exposed brickwork behind shelving of t-shirts and beans from the usual El Savador and Kenya plus some brewing paraphernalia, natch.

There is no food on the menu and only coffee to drink though you can have a tap water if you can’t handle the bean juice. There are four beans available for espressos and you can have lattes, cappuccinos etc or have it iced.  There is also a seasonal menu of coffees brewed to order but we went for the lattes. The staff were OK – knowledgeable but not exactly jumping around with enthusiasm, but this is Norway I suppose. The drinks were fine but I can’t help thinking I can get better or as good in Manchester or even Chester and I’d not need to go through the duty-free section and passport control.

If getting your drink to-go, there is a couple of ‘waiting chairs’ as if you are at the dentist, though the only extraction is having to get out your wallet and part with plenty of NOK. I realised, after returning from the minute latrines, that my flies and shoelaces were undone but nobody noticed or seem to care. People seemed to be in a trance or dream-like state like they were imaging that they’d won the lottery and were wondering what to spend the winnings on.

We noticed a couple had appeared from somewhere east of Bratislava and were now sat behind us nursing their drinks. Expressionless and semi-mute, their espressos were obviously having some profound effect. The man, late-thirties with a planetoid head atop a pipe cleaner body, rose, seemingly for no reason, and then sat firmly. He obviously could not take the excitement or was struggling to maintain his centre of gravity.

Still to be fair, there wasn’t much atmos. The wifi was fine so it’s a better place to revise for your A-Level Physics exam than to hold a small birthday party. The coffee was strong so you’ve more change of that giving you a heart attack than the excitement of the venue itself.

Verdict: 3.5/5

Good: Decent coffee.

Bad: Not so cosy, over-hyped, not exactly exciting.