Posted by TheShot on 03 Apr 2011 | Tagged as: Barista, Café Society, Quality Issues, Restaurant Coffee
We’ve been lamenting the sorry state of restaurant coffee in these pages since 2005. But let it be known that, as of this moment forward, we have officially given up on the possibility of ever being reliably served good coffee in American restaurants. Sure, there have been a few successes and battles won along the [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 18 Jan 2011 | Tagged as: Beans, Local Brew, Restaurant Coffee, Starbucks
Let’s hear it for counter-programming. Starbucks made good on last year’s Plenta threat this week, announcing a new beverage size that targets the gluttony market, called the Trenta. As in Godzilla vs. the Trenta. Taking advantage of a news lull, Starbucks’ press onslaught has the media lapping it up. So naturally, we’re going to talk [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 05 Jan 2011 | Tagged as: Barista, Local Brew, Machine, Restaurant Coffee
This more informal, osteria sister to the Quince restaurant next door (its name is Italian for “quince”) offers a mighty fine, albeit still somewhat pricey, Italian meal. (The old Quince relocated to Pacific Ave. here about a year ago.) The space showcases many wide glass windows, exposed woods (everything seems brown in here), and a [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 22 Jul 2010 | Tagged as: Add Milk, Consumer Trends, Quality Issues, Restaurant Coffee
We’ve previously lamented the abuse and overuse of the term “perfect,” particularly when it comes to espresso. For this, and for injecting the term into the media vernacular for anything we consume, we have justifiable grounds to send Martha Stewart back to prison. Until we again see Martha in an orange jumper, today our inboxes [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 08 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Barista, Beans, Café Society, Consumer Trends, Quality Issues, Restaurant Coffee
The mainstream media barely understand that qualitative differences exist between really good coffee, good coffee, and average coffee — let alone that some of the differences might be worth shelling out a few extra bucks on. CNN is one of the more recent outlets to ponder the differences: $13 coffee worth the brew-haha? – CNN.com. [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 19 Feb 2010 | Tagged as: Beans, Consumer Trends, Foreign Brew, Restaurant Coffee
It’s the kind of statement sure to earn protests from many a New Yorker: some consider Yountville, CA to be the culinary capital of America. An outrageous assertion? Not necessarily. At the heart of the Napa Valley wine country, Yountville is home to what many call the nation’s greatest restaurant in The French Laundry. It [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 09 Nov 2009 | Tagged as: Local Brew, Restaurant Coffee
This small-bite Italian eatery and wine bar on Lower Haight arrived on the scene in the Spring of ’08, taking over what was frequently a campaign office for local politicians. They have limited seating in front and plenty more in back, with both dining areas separated by a large, accommodating bar with stool seating. Despite [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 22 Oct 2009 | Tagged as: Beans, Home Brew, Local Brew, Restaurant Coffee, Roasting
San Rafael-based Equator Estate Coffees has long been a major enigma for us. They have heavy distribution among high-end restaurants in town — and quite a few on the low-end. But despite the occasional accolades among tastemaker chefs, we just didn’t “get it.” Over the years, we sampled the espresso at well over 30 different [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 07 Sep 2009 | Tagged as: Beans, Café Society, Consumer Trends, Local Brew, Machine, Quality Issues, Restaurant Coffee, Starbucks
For the better part of a year, a running gag from the casual coffee lovers who know me is to ask, “So have you tried McDonald’s espresso yet? How does it rate?” Mostly they ask as a curious, sick joke — knowing that I subject myself to the worst kinds of coffee punishment. But now [...]
[view full post]Posted by TheShot on 21 Aug 2009 | Tagged as: Local Brew, Restaurant Coffee
In the Mint Plaza, right across the Blue Bottle Cafe mothership, this café provides some pretty good outdoor dining options — albeit without much shade on sunny days. There’s also a but of limited indoor seating upstairs and a homier cellar below. Alberto Avalle, a founder of New York’s Il Buco, partnered with others to [...]
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