CC: Freedom of Espresso

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What's a Coffee Commentary?

Subject: Freedom of Espresso
Location visited: Syracuse, NY
(various locations)
Free WiFi ? : yes
Rating: 4+ [see key]



Giant corporations bullying small businesses seems to happen so often, especially in the coffee world. One prime example was when a small coffee business opened in Syracuse, NY called Federal Espresso. The story goes that soon after Federal Espresso's inception, package goliath Federal Express takes them to court basically because their name sounds similar and after extensive litigation, Federal Espresso changes to Freedom of Espresso.

So for anyone who's heard or read of this debacle, it's only natural to visit Freedom of Espresso when in Syracuse. FOE has several locations (three in Syracuse and one in nearby Fayetteville), all of which I've had the opportunity to visit. The Franklin Square location is by far my favorite, set in a lovely location with decent parking and a sharp dual level loft-ish interior (though the purple-ish ventilation pipe looks way out of place). The other three locations either possess a somewhat drab interior or challenging parking/exit options.

FOE roasts their own coffee and seems somewhat bullish on blends (not a bad thing if done well). Of the many blends, I've had the House Blend and the African Blend most often. The African tends to be darker with a nice sweetness while the House demonstrates a subtle bright smoothness overshadowed by darkness. Neither are a favorite but better then mediocre. On a side note, they do have a few single origins such as the ever popular Ethiopian Yirgacheffe.

In my experience, the espresso usually delivers somewhat disappointing. My most recent visit produced the best doubleshot to my recollection; the shots were pulled decently, tasted fairly sweet, and possessed a velvety texture but the back end had a good deal of char. Overall, nothing fantastic. Of their tea, they serve a variety of bagged teas.

Overall, FOE does a decent job as a local coffee operation but with all of the initial Fed-Ex publicity and multiple locations, it really seems like the business could be so much more of a quality and cutting edge coffee operation then it is (I mean, they don't even have a website!). Maybe I'm missing something, but I can't say that I'm too impressed.

Whether your curious to try some coffee from the coffeehouse that took on Federal Express or your looking for a halfway decent place in Syracuse to grab some coffee, give Freedom of Espresso a sampling.

CC: Ebenezers Coffeehouse

What's a Coffee Commentary?

Subject: Ebenezers Coffeehouse
Location visited: Washington DC
Free WiFi ? : yes
Rating: 3+ [see key]

Breathing new life into old structures, especially in an urban area, almost always comes off as a welcome sight. Not only are you being sustainable, but in most cases you're preserving a piece of history from days gone by.

Tis one of the things that I had heard about of a coffeehouse called Ebenezers located right near Union Station in DC. The building had prior been a diner for early AM passengers but in years since had fallen into neglect. Then recently, a local church bought it and renovated it into a coffeehouse and meeting space.

Standing outside it on a sunny day, Ebenezers stands out as a gorgeous stone corner property complimented by a beautifully bustling patio. The interior also stands out as a nice work of interior design with warm colors, some nice furniture, and a large amount of free space for traffic.

The coffee comes from a Fair Trade-centered roaster called Larry's Beans. The Mocha Java wasn't half bad; a bright honey flavor though it had bit of underlying char. The espresso was a sad story, as not only does Ebenezers not have any ceramic cups (important for espresso) but they also operate an automatic espresso machine (where's the love?). The espresso hence had some nice acidity but little other character. The tea was Mighty Leaf.

While I really like what Ebenezers has done with the place, I would say they still have some renovation to do on their coffee practices. If you happen to be near Union Station and in need of a place to meet people or to grab some coffee, give Ebenezer's a heave-ho.

CC: Spruce Street Espresso

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What's a Coffee Commentary?

Subject: Spruce Street Espresso
Location visited: Philadelphia, PAFree WiFi ? : yes
Rating: 6+ [see key]



*UPDATED 1/29/14*

Location is CLOSED

Like a spoiled, sugar-driven child that impedes normal social interaction, so was the heat this past weekend. Lots and lots of soupy steaming air sure made me thankful for air conditioning (though I'm not at the point yet where I wish it was winter again). But as it was one of the free weekends in June, the wife and I made sure to utilize the most of it despite the oppressive heat by meeting up with some friends to grab lunch in Philly.

We found reasonable parking north of Market and after some brief indecision, settled on Profi's Creperie at the Reading Terminal Market (my one friend seems to love crepes almost as much as she loves her husband, but that's another story). The market was bustling with patrons but no matter the volume, it's always lovely to stop in. My crepe was by far one of the better I've ingested, though I felt the sauce in mine just a touch too rich.

After lunch, we logically decided to go get coffee. I suggested a new place that had sprung up a few months ago called Spruce Street Espresso. My compatriots agreed to go only if they had iced coffee, so I assured them if for some reason the place lacked that I could acquire them some speedily (the area has a good deal of coffeehouses).

When we arrived outside of Spruce Street Espresso, I realized that I had been to the spot a year prior when the space was another coffeehouse called Mochasmo or something like that. The exterior was much more inviting then it had been, with a nice blue sign and open blue-trimmed windows complimented with four tables to recline at amidst the heat. Walking inside, the place was well-organized and decorated for such a tiny space, though at the time an air conditioner would have made the place a little slice of heaven (I guess they get good cross breezes).

They serve Counter Culture (what seems to be a growing trend in Philly) and seem to be sticklers for the basics (i.e. they have a small traditional menu and take cash only). Given the extreme heat and the barista's recommendation, I ordered an iced coffee instead of the usual drip (also because I've had Counter Culture several times; I don't need another cup of drip to assure me it's good coffee). The iced brew was definitely made a la Japanese, a method I had just tried a couple days before in my own kitchen with similar positive results. The coffee was bright with a tinge of earthiness and proved very refreshing.

The espresso was also a wonderful beverage. The espresso was pulled well, provided a super-sweet chocolatey crescendo, and was served with a glass of water (usually one must ask for one). The tea is of the free leaf variety.

Looking back on the day, Spruce Street Espresso provided a wonderful accent to the day. After we left, we took at leisurely walk through LOVE park where we encountered an old friend of mine who told me about an event she was spearheading called Swing for the Cure (swing dance with a live band to support breast cancer research) that sounds like a wonderful time. We parted ways (she gave me a million fliers to pass onto friends) and the wife and I made our way to my sister's graduation party. Now that I think of it, Spruce Street Espresso made the rest of my day possible (my family still buys pre-ground grossness).

If you're in the area of Spruce and 11th, give SSE a stop.

CC: Misha's

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What's a Coffee Commentary?

Subject: Misha's Coffee Roaster and Coffeehouse
Location visited: Alexandria, VA
Free WiFi ? : yes
Rating: 3+ [see key]



Dinner in a really nice town rarely seems to bode well, especially when I am with family or friends. Why you may ask? Well besides no one ever springing for reservations, I would have to point out three factors that I always notice: indecision (shall we eat here, what about there, or let's do three more hours of searching and then we'll decide), fear of crowds (there's always one, even if he/she doesn't pipe up), and the ever-so-common virtue of impatience. That formula, contributed from all sides mind you, seems to always equal a mediocre dinner at a place that no one really likes anyways.

A recent dinner in Alexandria had similar luck, mainly due to a tight schedule and a wicked over-saturation of folk near the water. Yet despite a quick dinner of half-decent Asian cuisine, spirits were still high as we walked back towards the metro. At about 3/4 of the way there, we halted and lo, there we beheld a coffeehouse dubbed Misha's sitting on a perpendicular street.

Needless to say I took advantage of our high spirits and we walked on over. The exterior was sharp; a white brick building with the name neatly emblazoned across the front in black script. As one walks in, a gargantuan counter and a menu of magnet letters greet you along with at least three baristas. In almost every direction, one finds a colorful orange and yellow space as well as a decent amount of seating, especially on either end of the establishment.

Misha's roasts their own coffee (the drum roaster sits in the seating area to the right of the counter) and they seem to have a wide spectrum of shades in which they roast, ranging from light to super uber-dark (or as they say on their site, "oily oily oily"). Discouragingly, I noticed the coffee is brewed and stored on a fleet of hot plate drip brewers (the ones you see in 7-Eleven or WaWa) which either means they're able to really move their coffee and they dump the remaining brew every half hour, or they let the coffee burn...

I happened to have a coffee called Caravan, a lighter roast that sampled deliciously sweet and chipper, with a small hint of berry. The espresso inversely seemed over-pulled with a harsh though sweet taste with the distinct hang of cardboard. The tea was from Stash Tea.

Overall, my Misha experience didn't really keep my spirits up, nor did it so for my patiently waiting friends. I did enjoy my cup of drip coffee and with such a large number of coffees (they had what seemed to be about 30 or so), I'm curious as to what the other coffees hold (minus the ones labeled "oily oily oily") and to see how they utilize their hot plates.

If you pop in (especially if you're a regular), I'd be curious to get your thoughts.

CC: Murky Coffee

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What's a Coffee Commentary?

*CLOSED*
Subject: Murky Coffee
Location visited: Arlington, VA
Free WiFi ? : yes
Rating: 6+ [see key]


Update 6/26/09: Murky is closed for good, though owner Nick Cho has new ventures in mind.

I would have to admit that being 2 hours from DC most of my life has only resulted in a surprising three visits, most of them when I was a youngin. For some reason, DC seemed so much farther away (probably because of the traffic). So recently, the wife and I decided to make the trek down to DC with two friends as well as to meet up with a friend who happens to live in Arlington, right near Murky Coffee.

Now my friend, who happens to be a fellow fanatic, has often teased me with his wondrous proximity to such a quality establishment by sending me text messages as he worked from their shop or with tales of his encounters at their facility. So needless to say, I begged my fellow travelers to make our first stop Murky Coffee to which they so gracefully acquiesced.

Murky's 2 story converted house sits right at the junction of what appears to be a fork in the road, the exterior outfitted with a lovely dark greenish-gray paint job and has plenty of outside seating in the front. The interior looked welcoming but also a bit like a cute gutted house; the ceiling beams were exposed yet decorated, the floor had a chic concrete look and aside from the furniture and the bar area, the rest of the structure seemed to be a bit shack-ish. My friend later informed me that they had been improving the building periodically, so I guess the building is going through a slow makeover.

The coffee is actually Counter Culture, though all the bags are repackaged with a Murky Coffee label (a practice I'm not particularly fond of as it gives the impression that the retailer had a role in the coffee preparation). Murky does take a unique stance on their coffees, not serving anything anyone would consider a "dark roast," which I must concur that usually I'm not really a fan of oily beans and I've had about five dark roasts in my life that I would drink again.

I sampled a lightly roasted limited-offering Peruvian coffee which tasted smooth and sweet, with a hint of marinara, but overall seemed to be a very light coffee (very similar to a coffee I recently sampled the day prior at the Spin Caffe).

The espresso is where I expected Murky to shine, as they've hosted numerous barista competitions as well as taken home a few awards. It was easy to see that the baristas definitely know what they're doing after watching them prepare a few drinks as I waited for mine. The espresso was wonderful, with a beautiful citrus tang and a nice zest. My friend got a macchiatto that he enjoyed greatly, though we both agreed that the macchiatto seemed to be more of a strong miniature latte then a macchiatto (that is, if you traditionally define macchiatto as being "marked" with a 1:1 milk to espresso ratio). Overall, an impressive espresso operation.

The teas were free leaf but I failed to discover from whence they came.

Since Murky has definitely been on my radar for a while, I was truly glad to finally have made it down to try the place out. In the end, I would say that I even more envy my friend's location and look forward to making a return trip.

If you happen to be in the area or near a Metro stop (as Murky is right off the Clarendon station), definitely make a stop at Murky.

PS: My condolences with the loss of the Capitol Hill location