MY TRIP TO…
WAS
A city with such a high pace needs coffee to keep it going – and a lot of it. Luckily, several of those fuel stops serve some really high-octane stuff from around the country. And to mend all those over-caffeneited dwellers the city offers very decent spots to tank in some delicious calories and wash them down with crafty beers.
Before the trip I promised myself two things. First – I will drink more really good coffee in one week than ever before. Secondly, I’ll enjoy more gourmet burgers than, well, ever before. I succedeed in both and therefore it must have been a good trip.
The North-East Regional Barista Competition took place in New York City right in the beginning of my trip. On Saturday night there was a huge Latte Art Throwdown with 48 participants. For the winner there was a decent prize – a trip to Brazil. NYC coffee scene meets M&M’s. I particulary like the Grumpy ones.
Somebody knows brewers with good biceps.
I did my homework and compiled myself a map with all the coffee places marked on it – seven pages with around 20 spots to sample New York’s coffee scene.
One of my favourite spots in the Big Bean was Stumptown’s roastery and brew bar in the old Red Hook harbour area in Brooklyn. No fussying about espresso and very few people meant that there was a lot of time to chat with the baristas and sample the somewhat comprehensive coffee menu. The roastery was beautiful, the wooden floor really emphasised the feeling of craftmanship. Red Hook is so called “up-and-coming” area, not yet completely populated with hipsters but in a few years time it probably will be. I think it’s worth a visit anyway.
The popularity of Chemex in the States still amazes me. I have never had a cup I still could recall. Cleanliness is a nice thing but I don’t really like the way it kind of strips everything else from the coffee. Nevertheless, this Burundi was completely enjoyable.
Inconsistency seems to be a problem even in New York. I had very high expectations for some shops as I had heard only positive things talked about them. Unfortunatelly when you have high expectations it is very difficult to beat them. Amazing shops that serve supposedly beautiful and delicious coffee but the barista fails to deliver up to the expectations. I know that each and every barista has a bad day time to time and it is therefore unfair to judge the establishment based on a single coffee served by a certain barista. But it’s that one time that counts. Why would I return to give them another try and prepare for disappointment? A “normal” customer probably wouldn’t.
It may be that I just don’t really understand the style of brewing coffee in the States1. Some of the espressos were just undrinkable – salty, burnt, tar and lack of sweetness. If that’s the way you want your espressos to be brewed then fine. I get it as long as it’s justified (huge mouthfeel) but don’t expect me to be back, I can eat salty liquorice candies at home, too.
Luckily I managed to find a coffee bar serving espressos more to my taste – lots of sweetness, clarity and bright acidity but lesser body. RBC in TriBeCa was in my opinion the best coffee experience in New York. I ended up going the four times. What I really made me go back there several times was the fact that RBC is pretty much the only coffee place in NYC to serve coffee from different roasteries – some variety in a scene dominated by the two big ones, Intelli and Stumptown.
The baristas pulled some incredibly tasty shots with the aid of NYC’s only Slayer. The Über Boiler + V60 -combo worked did the trick too, I loved tasting all the different offeringsthey had from both coasts and even from in between. We had some great discussions and every time I left well-caffeineted. They were also interested in getting some coffee from Finland, all New Yorkes stay tuned…
Ninth Street Espresso in Chelsea food market. Where’s the orange?
Cafe Grumpy in Park Slope. They brew all their filter coffee in Coava Kones and do it well.
In general I think that the level and amount of great, freshly roasted coffee in NYC is very good. I haven’t been to any other city where there are more coffee spots than I can go through. The plethora of roasteries makes is very interesting – I counted that I tasted coffee from around 15 different roasteries. Trying some beans through different roasters is very exciting. Based on my observation in the barista party the coffee community is fairly strong although one thing surprised me. Almost none of the baristas I spoke to had visited all the shops I had on my map, many had only been to the ones in their local area. How can you aspire to serve great coffee if you don’t have general understanding and knowledge of the coffee scene?
Bluebird Coffee Shop
Oh yes, the burgers! There’s something utterly satisfying when it comes to burgers. Maybe it’s about what I most love in food – simplicity and the very best ingredients. That’s the recipe for a perfect burger and I recon that The Spotted Pig, a Michellin-starred gastro pub, did best job. In general eating out is a breeze compared to other cities. There’s no need for an hour-long search to find a decent establishment for dinner. If you’d like you can spend a lot or very little money and still eat very well.
Pork trotter at Northern Spy. The best dish I’ve had in ages. Incredibly delicious and satisfying.
Don’t settle for any less. The almost-legendary Mast Brothers chocolate.
Alchemy at South Side Coffee.
Lever machine for single origin espressos at Blue Bottle Coffee in Williamsburg. I just couldn’t comprehend why would somebody roast an Ethiopian coffee so that it tastes like an Indonesian…
- This is especially true with espresso [↩]