Coffee

Coffee is a very personal thing. You can get coffee served in a variety of ways. Decaf, full on caffeinated, espresso, cappuccino, additional flavorings, etc. I could go on forever. Who would have thought that coffee bars have changed the world?

I grew up in a household where coffee was taken seriously. We fresh ground the beans each morning and used the Melita drip pot. You woke up smelling the coffee aroma circulating through the house. Also, we all learned to drink our coffee black.

I have gone through a variety of methods of making coffee in the morning. I prefer the french plunger. I think the coffee tastes the most intense and robust. I have recently purchased an electric drip which grounds the beans for you. I only bought it for when we have more people over for breakfast than just us. The biggest plunger is only 8 cups and that’s not enough for Saturday and Sunday mornings.

I admit, I am not a fan of Starbucks. I like their chai tea but not their coffee. It tastes burnt to me. There are a variety of good coffee places in my neighborhood. Porto Rico on Bleeker not only sells every bean known to mankind but they do make a pretty good cup of coffee too. The other hotspot is Jack’s on West 10th Street. Not only does he make a good cup of coffee by stir brewing, he sells good side sweets. That is an important feature for the afternoon cup. I prefer the biscotti but it is always fun to see how good everything else looks. Today I went to a new place, Joe’s on the corner of Waverly and Gay. This place has the best coffee so far. Each cup is self made in some new fangled way of brewing it. Very impressive taste. Rich and incredibly full of taste.

So, as I amble around the village, on the search for the perfect cup of Joe…I will be going back to Joe’s to have my next afternoon fix.

Comments (Archived):

  1. Jonathan Greene

    Do you brew at home as well?

    I’ve been converted to espresso myself… My wife got me a Francis Francis machine for my birthday and it’s really great. You can use it with either ground espresso or the illy PODs which are perfectly measured servings.

  2. jeff lang

    I’m actually a big Starbucks fan, but I’m going to drop by Joe’s for a cup on my way home this afternoon on the strenghth of your reco. Thanks!

  3. Barrett R. Brodersen

    I visited Havana, Cuba recently and thought I had tasted the best coffee in the world; that is until I stepped into Jack’s Stir Brewed Coffee shop. It is phenominal coffee, and the staff and patrons are unparralled.

    I am now in Minneapolis for a few months, full of Starbuck’s and Caribou coffee, which without exception tastes like you’re injesting the cup itself, bitter, burnt and only digestable when clouded with cream and sugar.

    Lately I arranged to have my coffee shipped by the pound from Jack’s and have been preparing it in my French Press. Still not home but as close as I can manage until late November. Visit cupajack.com to order or stop by the store; be sure to say hello to Francois, Doug and Duke stationed outfront.

  4. ryan yun-pröhl

    Hi, I am normally a teetotaller and never found coffee to be ‘my cup of tea.’ But this all changed last week. My husband and I went to Vienna for my birthday. Since we were in the city that gave birth to the Kaffeehaus, I thought it was the least I could do to order a cup. I ordered a mélange which is coffee with steamed milk (Nobody orders a ‘coffee’ in Vienna, each kind has its own name.) and lol what a potion it was: rich, deep and smooth, followed by a liquer-like aftertaste that was both intense and mellow. I have never had such an experience – not even with chocolate. The Viennese serve their coffee with a glass of fresh mountain water. You take a sip of it to clear the palate so that the taste is even more intense.

    Another thing you must know, for anyone planning to visit Vienna, this mélange was ordered at our hotel the Schloss Wilhelminenberg (a restored 17th century palace located atop a hill surrounded by the Viennese Woods). During our stay I ordered coffee at some of the city’s most celebrated coffeehouses (Hotel Sacher, of the eponymous chocolate cake; and Cafe Demel, Vienna’s former royal konditorei and leading confectionary maker) and none of their brews could match the one coming from our hotel’s own kitchen. The Schloss Wilhelminberg is located on 20 acres of woodlands and with an amazing view of the city and kilometers of vineyards it is very affordable – we paid €70 (about 100 dollars) a night and this comes with a big scrumptious breakfast buffet.