Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Black Swan Espresso




Subject: Black Swan Espresso
Location: Newark, NJ
WiFi?: yes
Rating: 5+ [see key]

Having driven through Newark hundreds of times this past decade, it has been a constant pang of grief that the city possessed little (if any) in the way of great coffee. Yet despite my fruitless searches, I never gave up searching for a long-lost caffeinated diamond in the rough, and finally after ten years of combing the internet, I found Black Swan Espresso.

Located near the Prudential Tower and Rutgers Newark, Black Swan is a small shop with a pearly white exterior located on a bustling portion of Halsey Street. Inside the shop has a few tables along their brick wall as well as a lovely window seating area. The coffee bar, outfitted with a nice array of coffee gadgetry and beautiful pendant lamps, provides a beaming nexus for shop activity.

As for coffee, they purvey both Intelligentsia and Toronto's Propeller Coffee and in the spirit of sharing I split my order, getting an espresso of Intelly's Black Cat and a pourover of a Costa Rica micro-lot from Propeller. The espresso, pulled short/medium with brown crema, delivered notes of lemon, chocolate, corn chip, arugula and cherry soda, proving to be bright, full and overall pretty good. The pourover delivered an explosion of smooth sweetness, with lots of honey, toffee and sugar cookie as well as some nutmeg, pear and mango as it cooled. 

Delighted to finally have found a superb coffee outfit in Newark, I would have skipped to my car were it not icy that morning. If you happen to be near Newark, definitely stop by Black Swan Espresso for some great coffee. 




These wonderful folks made this visit possible in part. Make sure to check them out!



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