Chic Espresso is an owner operated cafe located in Spring Hill on the corner of Upper Edward and Leichhardt Streets. I made an unscheduled stop at this cafe after hearing from 3 different people in the space of a morning that I needed to check this place out, and now I know why. When you first walk into Chic your greeted by a very friendly barista named Dean who is behind a very shiney new Synesso. Chic runs two grinders so you have your choice of their house blend which is the 24/7 roast from 5 Senses in Western Australia. The Single origin in the second grinder changes every few days. I really like cafes that make the effort to run two grinders, it shows they are serious about coffee and serious about offering their customers a chance to break away from the house blend from time to time or all the time depending on your preference.
I predict that Chic Espresso will quickly become one of Brisbane’s top coffee spots in 2010. If you are keen to check them out owner Dean tells me they will be open through the Christmas holidays when most cafe’s are shut down, so its a good chance to head in and check them out. Chic’s website will be online in the new year so add http://www.chicespresso.com.au to your favorites bar and check it out in 2010.
More to come .. stay tuned.
Categorized in Cafe Review
Ok I know this is BNE COFFEE aka a Brisbane based coffee blog but this past July I was in New York for a few days and in our travels I stopped at a few different cafe’s .. most of which I was not impressed with. In fact the worst espresso I had was in Little Italy. Then on my last day in the big apple I was getting ready to give up on finding a decent coffee when I stumbled upon Macchiato Espresso Bar in midtown. After all the bad experiences I nervously entred to what was a surprisingly very cool modern vibe. I had ordered a piccolo and was amazed at how good this coffee was.
The service was fast and the staff were very friendly. They seemed to attract the business crowd but there were a few tourists lurking as well (inlcuding me). I loved the whole look of the cafe. It was bright, modern and classy and it fit perfectly into its midtown location. You’ll find Macchiato Espresso Bar a few blocks east of grand central station on 141 East 44th Street.
Before we left I had a double shot latte and I was again very impressed by the quality of the coffee. The pour was pretty close to perfect and the over all taste was strong with no bitterness to be found. So .. if you find yourself in New York and can’t find a decent coffee these guys are worth a visit. For info check out http://www.macchiatocafe.com
Categorized in Cafe Review
One Drop Specialty Coffee is located at the base of the Cardno building / Green Square on St Pauls Terrace in Fortitude Valley. Owners Ben Graham and Blaine Swanborough are seriously passionate about coffee. One Drop sources its beans from a local roaster located in Brendale on Brisbanes North side.
The boy’s have two grinders running at all times so you can choose from the house blend which is a multi origin FTO bean .. It’s origins are Honduran, Ethiopian and East Timor or there current single origin direct trade bean which at the moment is Cuban. After being here nearly every morning since they opened the doors last week I still can’t decide if I like the house blend or the Cuban single origin more. This morning I am leaning towards the Cuban. I’d describe the house blend as strong and smooth to the taste while the Cuban single origin is on the stronger side.
Quality control is very high here and the staff are super friendly. Since opening its doors last week I have watched it get busier and busier as office workers and locals catch on to this hidden gem. Having lived and worked in the valley area I can tell you that there are plenty of cafe’s but very little decent coffee. One Drop is already standing out in the crowd as one of the serious coffee spots in Brisbane so if your in the valley make sure you drop in. Just don’t sit on the stool in the corner .. thats my seat!
Wanna know more? Check out there website @ http://www.onedrop.com.au
Categorized in Mobile Blog
Tags: One Drop Specialty Coffee
When I started this blog the first cafe I planned on reviewing was Caffeine Espresso in Teneriffe Qld. Well all I can say is .. better late then never. Caffeine Espresso was the brainchild of Mark Pearce who opened the cafe in the trendy suburb of Teneriffe just as the suburb was making a name for itself. Last year Mark sold Caffeine Espresso in order to focus on his new roasting operation “Cleanskin Coffee Co”. Caffeine Espresso still uses its in house bean “krank” which is still roasted by Mark Pearce via Cleanskin Coffee Co. I have to say I do miss the days when the roasting machine was sitting at the front of the shop as it added a real vibe to the place. That being said the coffee is still amazing the staff are still very friendly.
I ordered my usual double shot latte and as usual it was flawless. The pour was near perfect which is what makes the krank blend so great. Its smooth and strong all at the same time with no hint of that over bearing bitterness sometimes found in some the locally roasted beans. Between the great service and the quality locally roasted krank blend Caffeine Espresso should be on every coffee lovers list of cafe’s to visit in Brisbane.
Cafe: Caffeine Espresso (Teneriffe)
Web: www.caffeineespresso.com
Category: Locally roasted
Beans in use: Krank
Wireless Internet: none
Date: Wednesday, July 1rst 2009
Categorized in Cafe Review
Chocolate Soldier Espresso Bar – 275 George Street ( initial stop in review )
I stopped into Chocolate Espresso Bar on its second day of operations and was promptly met by very friendly staff who were happy to have a chat inbetween customers which straight away gets one thumb up from me because we all know a good cafe is about more then just a good espresso. I will do a full write up in the next week or so but for today I had a wicked take away latte .. tripple shot ristretto style .. yeah thats how I roll! They use Campo’s beans and they know there stuff so be sure to stop in next time your on George Street. Check the pics for now and stay tuned for the full write up.
275 George Street Brisbane
chocolate soldier espresso bar inside shot
Categorized in Uncategorized
When the former owner of one of my favorite cafe / roasters (caffeine espresso) decided to open up his own roasting operation I had high expectations. When I sat down with owner Mark Pearce and a few other espresso addicts for some sample shots of his new espresso blend “re:hab” I was blown away. Seriously, it was the best kick in the face double shot latte I have ever had. The standard of quality in this blend alone has raised the bar of what I consider a quality cup of coffee.
Cleanskin Coffee Co have many different blends on offer including my favorite single origin of all time their direct trade cuban blend which you absolutley must try. For more info check out http://www.cleanskincoffeeco.com.au
Categorized in Mobile Blog
Tags: Espresso, roasters
[ This blog was updated on December 16th 2009 ]
I started going to Cremosa the day they opened their flagship Queen street location 2 years ago. Since then Cremosa has gone through some changes, after closing its Spring Hill location owner Fabio Strati quickly opened a new location at the Adelaide Street entrance to Broadway on the mall. The Adelaide Street Cremosa has quickly become a well known coffee hot spot in the area. Barista Blake Stretton serves up continually consistent high quality coffee everyday of the week.
For me a good cafe is 50% great coffee and 50% great service. If either one is lacking too much it’s just not worth it to me. If I don’t feel comfortable spending time and just hanging out in a cafe it wont matter how good the coffee is, I simply will not stick around. Cremosa is owned by Fabio Strati who is a local Barista who has been on the coffee scene for years. He is also one of the best barista’s I know. Fabio and all of his staff always make you feel welcomed and they always remember your drink of choice. Fabio takes great pride in his coffee and in making sure the rest of his staff are well trained before they are even allowed to serve espresso to the public. In my experience a lot of cafes fall down when they try to maintain a high standard of great coffee day after day. Cremosa excels at quality control and I can easily say I have not once been served a bad coffee at any of the three Cremosa Espresso Bar locations.
A few months ago Cremosa opened its newest location at 79 Albert Street. Fabio now works out of the Albert Street location while the Queen Street and Adelaide Street locations continue maintain a very high standard of exceptional coffee and outstanding customer service.
Become a fan of Cremosa Espresso Bars on Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cremosa-Espresso-Bars/202595679513?ref=ts
Categorized in Uncategorized
Its not often that you find a quality cafe in a shopping centre but lately I’ve been very impressed with the coffee being poured at Cibo Espresso in Westfield Chermside.
I’m noy usually the type to frequent chain shops being the coffee snob that I am. But i thought this particular Cibo deserved a shout out. I’ve found myself here quite a few times in the past month and the qaulity control has been flawless so far. The staff are always friendly and you even get some pretty decent coffee art to look at.
So if you find yourself at Chermside Westfields and your in need of some quality brew but you make sure you stop by. Lets just hope Westfields managment gives up on the idea of charging for parking.
Categorized in Mobile Blog
Tags: Cibo Espresso
