A few weeks ago, I went out to new york with a few college buddies for the US Open and whatever other shenanigans that presented themselves. The trip started when we found this price-war between american, united, and virgin america. It was a one-day sale for SFO-EWR, so we booked it in a hurry. Good thing we were able to get it on the same week as the Open semi's and finals. And hey, while I'm in new york, why not try out the coffee? Now, most of the 3rd wave coffee hubs are in the west coast (portland, sf, seattle); however, micro-roasters have sprung up in new york, because, well, why not? It's a huge market with international residents, so someone's bound to appreciate good coffee right? So here's part one of the NY coffee crawl...these are all non-NY based coffee places that have set up shop in NY. The next trip (whenever that is...) will explore the local ones.
Blue Bottle Coffee – Rockefeller Center
The first full day in new york, Gaj and Alex were on their way to Rockefeller Center to check out the view from the observation deck. Since I had already been up there before, I decided to head on over to 5th ave to get my watch regulated at the boutique (the NY has an onsite watchmaker) and was planning on meeting the others when they were done with Top of the Rock. When I got to Rockefeller Center, they were still on their way up, so I decided to hit up blue bottle in the basement of the building and wait for them in the square below (read: people watch).
The shop was pretty small, but they managed to have two separate registers/lines. Even though they have pretty much the same roasts (e.g. hayes valley, 17ft ceiling, giant steps, etc) as the ones in SF, there was still a decidedly new york flair to the coffee shop. As it turns out, blue bottle opened a roaster in Brooklyn, and are now operating three shops in manhattan. Since it was a bit warm outside, I figured it’d be perfect for some new orleans iced coffee (cold brew, milk, and chicory).
The coffee was as expected, the chicory adding just the right amount of sweetness. The barista adds the coffee for you, and in my opinion, added a bit too much milk. Aside from that, the coffee was perfect. I parked myself on a bench outside and just watched people walk by, which was pretty entertaining. It’s funny to see just how many different types of people cycle through new york on a daily basis. I heard so many different languages and accents, saw people from all walks of life, and even eavesdropped on two attorneys next to me who are apparently defending an underground art dealer. **sigh** only in new york...
Intelligentsia Coffee – Highline Park
A coffee roaster that hails from Chicago, Intelligentsia coffee has also now set up shop in new york, with a shop in the highline hotel, and a training lab over by NYU. Located on the side of an old brownstone building, they, like blue bottle, have two separate brewing areas. The first, being a small shop inside the building, the other being a coffee truck outside – very much like a taco truck, but filled to the brim with tasty coffee.
Since we were based in midtown (51st and Lexington), this was quite a trek for us (lower east side). We had an entire day of tennis ahead of us, so Sean, Alex and I took the E train down to Chelsea and hoofed the 5 blocks to hit up Intelligentsia for some brew before making our way over to Arthur Ashe in Flushing. Gaj and Bo were meeting us there (Gaj waited in line for 3.5hrs to get us some original cronuts).
Since it was the first time I’ve seen a coffee truck, I figured I gotta try it right?? Once again, I opted for cold brew (hey, why mess with a good thing?). The brew here is a lighter roast that what blue bottle offered for their new orleans iced coffee. It’s a fruitier taste, and pretty much renders cream and sugar unnecessary.
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| another blue bottle sighting |
After getting our coffees, we decided to take a walk down highline park before heading over to Flushing. Highline park is an old elevated train track that runs 20ft above the city streets. After this route was retired, a plan was put in place to turn the tracks into an elevated park. It was pretty cool, they have lawn chairs out there, some benches, even some coffee places (blue bottle has a stall here too). We even saw the place where my roommate Arian proposed to his wife. It’s pretty unique to new york, and a good way to repurpose obsolete equipment.
Stumptown Coffee – Chelsea
This coffee roaster, originally from Portland, established its presence in new york by setting up shop in the ace hotel, followed by another one further downtown. The midtown location was a few blocks away, so we decided to swing by on the way to the Met.
The location was much smaller than Intelligentsia, and had a line that went all the way around the corner. Unlike Blue Bottle and Intelligentsia, there was only one line and one place for them to make the coffee, so it sort of held the line up. Aside from that, the place was pretty cool. They sell all kinds of hipster coffee equipment and coffee supplies.
Since I didn’t want to break my cold brew streak, I opted once again for the cold stuff. The coffee here was quite similar to the cold brew at Intelligentsia. It too was a light roast, and the coffee was quite enjoyable.
After picking up the coffee, we headed back uptown to the Met, which featured some pretty cool 19th and 20th century impressionist paintings and 16th century Americana (e.g. George Washington crossing the Delaware). I think I’m going to come back here the next time I’m in new york.
The espresso itself was pretty tasty, it mitigated my concerns about freshness; however, the roast was a bit dark, especially compared to the lighter roasts that I’ve been getting accustomed to at some of the 3rd-waved cafés, though, still way better than any shot I’ve seen pulled at starbucks though. The crema is just right, which makes me think the capsule is probably rigged in a way that will generate the foam when it comes in contact with the oils (not 100% sure though). Overall pretty decent considering it was probably roasted and ground 3-5 months ago.
