4/27/15

My Week in Coffee


As many of you know, I love good coffee. I'm all about the locally roasted, organic snobbery because I really think it tastes better than anything else. I've gotten to the point where I can note the subtle taste profiles in the espressos from different roasters/shops. Some are nuttier (hey oh!) while others are more acidic.


How far I've come since considering this mocha slushy with a chocolate cookie straw coffee...and this shot as a decent photo. Seriously Alex?

Anyway, I'm dubbing this past week my week in coffee. I scored some delicious craft coffee six times in eight days. I only displayed one of them on instagram, which is honestly a huge deal, because I have a visceral urge to share pretty coffee with the internet every single time I enjoy it. Hence this post.

Saturday

UC Davis had it's annual Picnic Day celebration on the 18th. Brandon and I didn't know exactly what Picnic Day entailed and I definitely thought it was an afternoon event, so we ventured downtown to our favorite coffee and tea spot: Mishka's Cafe.


Mishka's is a total study spot, but since Picnic Day is basically a holiday, there was plenty of seating. I did some blogging while Brandon caught up on some work for the literary magazine he's working on for one of his classes.

Sunday

Brandon and I were able to sleep in on Sunday and I chose to celebrate with a new coffee spot called Journey Coffee Co. on our way to church.


The coffee is great, but unfortunately the barista was less than friendly. Also I felt like a total hipster walking in to church with my independent coffee shop coffee instead of the ever popular Starbucks, but that's not really a bad thing to me.

Monday

I had the longest day at work, which is kind of ironic since I got to work an hour late thanks to some absolutely terrible traffic. It was the first time I've ever crumbled (and by that I mean cried) due to the stress of everything. But I did some confined space yoga in a closet and calmed myself down. My cousin Rachel pointed out how yogi of a thing that was for me to do, and I totally agree.


I treated myself to some solo decompression time at Mishka's that night. I wrote in my journal, I got on Pinterest, I read some blogs and listened to music. It was the perfect way to drown out the day's negativity.

Tuesday

I got coffee with Barbara at a recent Davis find, Common Grounds Coffee. I found this coffee shop on Yelp and have really enjoyed the couple of times I've been there. The coffee is incredibly well priced and well roasted. Plus this time I got an elephant!


Fun story about this night: I'd pumped gas the night before and put my debit card into my pocket, then forgotten to grab my card before leaving for work the next morning. So I show up at the counter and order my drink only to realize I still don't have my card (even though I'd swung by my apartment to change my shoes and grab a few things) and no cash. I stumble through letting the guy behind the counter know I can't pay them and before I can say "let me ask my friend if she can pay," the barista -- who looks nothing like what you'd expect from a local coffee shop -- tells me not to worry about it, that they'll still make the drink for me.

Thursday

I was particularly sleepy this morning and I figured the best cure would be some pre-work, pre-commute caffeine. I chose to give Journey coffee another try, thinking that maybe I caught them on an off day and they'd be cheerier this time around. I was wrong, this time was worse. I think the barista said hi to me. She definitely didn't smile once. From there the only times she opened her mouth were to tell me how much my coffee and scone cost and then to call out my order when it was on the bar.


Keep in mind, I was pre-caffeinated here. How in the world was I more friendly sans coffee than the girl working surrounded by caffeine?! I even went as far as to thank her for my coffee when I picked it up and she didn't respond. Not a smile, not even a nod. She just turned around.

I'm giving that place one last chance before I decide to write a review on Yelp...and I never write reviews on Yelp!

Saturday

I closed out the week in coffee with Mishka's, of course. It's sort of become my Saturday tradition with Brandon. We wake up slowly, stay in our pajamas extra long, then get dressed specifically so we can get coffee and tea at Mishka's then walk around the Arboretum. It makes for perfect Saturdays.


On a similar note, I was lucky enough to get an espresso machine that was being replaced by a Nespresso at work! Now I can actually brew espresso and steam milk in my own home. I'm simultaneously excited and intimidated by the legitness (not a word, I know) of this thing!

Stay caffeinated, amigos.
♥ A

4 comments:

  1. You know a place that has a million coffeehouses filled to the brim with delicious independent coffee? Portland ;)

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    1. Right?! There are just too many places to live! ;)

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  2. I love this. Those rude baristas are probably just way too hipster to care about being nice. And whoa, yay for espresso machine!!

    Also, I think you should just post all the coffeegrams your heart desires.

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    1. I'm happy to report I took your advice and posted a coffeegram today. And if we ever get to see each other for longer than a few hours we'll enjoy so much craft coffee together!

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