The Vancouver Indy Coffee Scene

For this review I decided to say a little closer to home, in fact this is the closest café to my house on The Drive.

Bump and Grind is a saucy joint that has been open for a couple of years on the northern most edge of the Drive. The café is run by Audrey and Joe ( Christine sold the cafe in May, 2008 ) who are business partners and can usually see most days behind the counter.

Front of Bump and Grind

The surroundings of Bump and Grind give away that this is a little more counter culture then your usual fair. The café boasts a couch full of vocabulary one large table and a few smaller ones with art that changes on a monthly basis. The café has one of the most interesting art installations a while back where the entire café was covered in “2000 pages of handwritten study notes from a Doctoral Candidate” in political science. It was one of the best art displays in a coffee shop, I had ever seen.

DJ can now be seen in the cafe spinning vinyl on the turn tables in the back on the weekends and during the week Joe and Audrey seem to always have something funky playing in the shop.

There is wifi at the shop, but they had taken away all but one power plugins away due to abuse by some loitering customers.

If you just want to sit in a cafe for six hours and nurse one cup of tea go find a Waves.

Sleeves are for wimps

A while back I dropped in to ask if I could have a sleeve for my coffee, (I didn’t bring my own mug ) and it was a bit of a struggle to get one. Apparently Josh and Christine have something against sleeves of the world, Actually they are just trying to reduce the impact on our environment and they are pretty militant about it. But instead of just bitching about something they decided to do something about it.

At Bump and Grind if you want a sleeve you’ll have to pay a buck for one, and they’ll want you to keep it too. It is a cool concept and I wish them the best of luck with it.

Since selling the Cafe Audrey and Joe sell the Coffee Cuff

A little sauce with your coffee

What I really enjoy about the drive is the fact that you can a huge variety of people and viewpoints. I think it is what makes people come to the drive. Bump and Grind is no different. Just don’t ask for a sleeve. Josh and Christine sold the cafe to Audrey and Joe in May, 08. The coffee is still the same quality but is lacking the saucy and somewhat abusive attitude. Dam I will miss that.

Since purchasing the cafe last year Joe and Audrey have really captured the attention of coffee drinkers in Vancouver and it has become one of the top cafes in Vancouver, When some of the top Barista in the country go to Bump and Grind to enjoy an espresso you know they must be doing something right.

Faces and Places

Where this Blog was written: Bump and Grind
Drink ordered: 12oz Costa Rican Roast
Discount of own to-go cup: 10 cents
Barista Knowledge: Top notch
Barista Friendliness: Awesome
Café website : none

Well I figure it was about that time, yes time to do the impossible, time to review Caffé Artigiano. But what can I say that hasn’t already been said, and if your reading this blog then maybe your already a fan. . .

Cafe Artigiano Howe Location

A few notes in point form:

• They always have a line up
• They are always busy
• Their barista’s are always really friendly (This means you Jacqueline & Arielle. sad note: both have now left Artigiano)
• Yes you will have to wait more then 30 seconds for your latte.
• Yes it really is worth the wait. . . .

Why has this micro chain of five cafes done so well and so popular, well that is a bit of a longer story, one I really don’t know all that well, but I give you what I know.

As the story goes the Piccolo brothers, (Vince, Sammy and Mike) wanted to create a different type of cafe in Vancouver, one that completely centered around quality, comfort and lively atmosphere regardless of how busy they where. It wasn’t meant to combat the huge trend of cookie cutter cafes in the Vancouver region, we don’t need another Waves or Blenz or Starbucks do we? But more to show what quality a café really can achieve.

They don’t have wireless at any of their cafes, but then what are you coming for the coffee or the Internet?

“If you want the Internet go to Blenz” One of the Barista said to me jokingly.

Barista Arielle and a Artigiano Latte

Back in the summer of 2006 when I was an actual barista and working for Seattle’s Best Coffee (in the Bental 5) I heard about the five dollar cup of coffee, how they weren’t even making a profit at that price and how it was the best coffee around.

Jen, a fellow SBC co-worker, and I had decided to check out this roast. It was the best coffee I have ever had in my life, it was a light roast, but rich in flavour amazing in texture and had this amazing lingering aftertaste that made you feel like it you were still drinking it, without a hint of burnt or bitter flavour, this is what coffee was suppose to taste like.

The cup was also made with a special brewer called a Clover, which uses a system like a French press, but instead of a plunger they use a vacuum to separate the water and the coffee. It really is an ingenious way to enjoy coffee and it’s more precise then a normal brewer. It is also $10,000 plus dollars, which is why most cafe’s can’t afford the machine.

I have heard some stories about bad service or long waits for service, but I have never had a bad experience in these cafes, especially the one off Georgia and Howe. When it is busy this cafe is quite noisy, so it is not for the studying kind.

They were using intelligentsia coffee at the Initial start up and it was the Piccolo brothers goal to always roast their own beans. They started to do that with the incorporation of 49th Parallel Coffee and in 2005 and have never looked back.

The café was sold in December 2006 to Willie Mounzer, former VP of operations for Earls. But the front end will always serve 49th Parallel Coffee, it is just a different owner behind the till.

Arielle Latte Art

Where this Blog was written: Caffé Artigiano on Hornby
Drink ordered: 12 oz latte to stay (pictured)
Discount of own to-go cup: You get nothing
Barista Knowledge: Extremely knowledgeable
Barista Friendliness: Awesome
Café website : www.caffeartigiano.com

Just because I’m leaving “The Drive” doesn’t have to mean I have to give up on good independent coffee does it?

Not in Coquitlam. I had the opportunity to check out Cornerstone Coffee.

Walking in your met with tastefully painted concrete floors that look like title, wood tables and chairs, and the most comfortable leather sofa chairs I have seen in any coffee shop.

Drinking my vanilla chai I got nice and comfy and realized these sofa chairs were much too enjoyable for doing any type of homework. This was true I barely got a thing done.

Cornerstone comfy area

Twice baked, once enjoyed

Like an olive in a martini, or a drink umbrella in a mai tai no specialty drink is complete without a small biscotti. I have seen this as not much more then a gimmick at other chain shops, but at Cornerstone I welcomed the addition, it was a real biscotti, and tasted dam good.

The walls are decorated with quotes and photos about coffee and cafes. Again I have seen this done very poorly elsewhere as marketing ploy but Cornerstone has a nice collection that doesn’t pat themselves on the back, these phrases are also duplicated on their website.

Beans are provided by 49th Parallel coffee roasters and were not just chosen for their quality beans, but because Cornerstone is social conscience about their affects on the developing world.

Afternoon Tea?

What surprised me the most was the 39 different varieties of organic tea you could choose from. They are supplied by not one, not two, but three different tea companies:

• Cuppa Joe
• Numi Tea
• Two leaves & a bud

If this selection leaves you overwhelmed, ask the barista behind the counter. I found Leah bel to be extremely knowledgeable about the teas and coffee served.

After seven years in the business it is no surprise that Cornerstone has stood the test of time and carved out a niche for itself. I’d highly recommend anyone in the area check out this jewel of a café, it will certainly be worth it.

Faces and Places:

Where was this blog written: Cornerstone Cafe
Drink ordered: Vanilla Chai
Quality and swiftness of service : Excellent
Barista Friendliness : Excellent
Café website : cornerstonecafe.ca

Prado Cafe circa 2007

Prado, which means open spaces in Spanish, hangs out on at 1938 the drive (right on the corner of east fourth) it’s has a minimalist appeal too with it’s all wood tables, metal chairs and a simple chalkboard menu with brick columns reaching to the ceiling. But don’t let this laid back appearance fool you. This place is all business behind the counter, with coffee from the local 49th Parallel Roasters and loose leaf tea from the very hip Metropolitan Tea company of Toronto. Their barista’s are also some of the most knowledgeable around, but this jewel of a café never seems to be too busy but yet busy enough that it sees a cast of characters through out the day. It is owned and operated by Amy York who is the delightful blonde (brunette?) behind the counter most day. Ask her anything and she’ll fill your head with coffee knowledge. The only suggestion I would currently make about Prado is that their washroom could be more attended to through a busy shift.

This place is also awesome local for some scooped dry cappuccino’s. Ask Leaf to make you one!

Faces and Places:

Where was this blog written: Prado Café
Drink usually ordered: Americano
Discount for own mug: 20 cents
Barista Knowledge: Top notch
Barista Friendlyness : Excellent
Café website : www.pradocafe.com

Here is my first entry to my first ever blog. I am a Vancouverite and I live just off coffee central. . . Commercial Drive. (known henceforth as” The Drive”)

Ever since my mother said I could make coffee in the morning for me and my father, I have been addicted to the stuff. I love it, nothing wakes me up more or gets my ass into gear come 3:00 pm or 3:00 am depending what I am up to. . . .

Since that time I have become a bit of an aficionado and revel in how it is made and what taste good and bad.

In future episodes of this blog you’ll read my rant’s and rave’s about different coffee shops and chains, and any industry information that tickles my fancy. I’ll also write reviews of cafes I have been to recently and if they have wireless internet. I will be adding my reviews to Caffeinated and Unstrung which is apparently back up and running, Aug, 09.

A double shot