hoboken's new spots -- d a m e s & s w e e t

update: sweet is now open for business! cupcakes and mini cupcakes, cookies, brownies, red velvet cake, ganache cake and more... as well as many hot/cold coffee drinks. sweet has a warm, friendly vibe & enjoyable "mom's kitchen" decor. there are some tables to sit at and enjoy your fresh from the oven treats.

___________________________________________________________________
oh also another new local goodie on the horizon, sweet, a bakery opening on garden and 4th streets (in the old rue de jardin spot)... we spoke to the owner, angela. her staff bakes everything on the premises.


at last, my prayers answered... just when my green tea habit really set in... no more running to joe the art of coffee on the weekend or missing the old mola vibe...

dames coffee espresso bar set up shop early in july on first (the street with no chain stores) near clinton street. finally had a chance to try their drinks. dames did not disappoint. we tried a frozen mocha and a vanilla latte (with simple yet elegant latte art). yum. better than joe since the baristas are not as rushed. i've had a few mediocre drinks and because of a crowd one time some dude swiped my drink from the bar.

dames has a serious, new & shiny la marzocco espresso machine. the decor is minimalist, black & white, with some small works of art on the brick walls, and a fancy chandelier adds a fancy touch. some limited counter space to sit and drink. too bad the space is not bigger for a few tables. dames serves counter culture fair trade, organic coffee. hopefully dames can counter the spread of starbucks in hoboken.

read more about dames on the road to epiphany and check out temp tamp!

hoboken still has a soul... help support these local businesses!

COFFEE FIX

having started a new work gig today and losing some of my freelance freedom, i already am jonesing for my "eli special banana mocha coffee drink." i miss it terribly, the taste, foamed milk design, bittersweet aroma, the warmth of the cup, ah! see one of eli's masterful creations above...

well i just might have to get this book to cheer myself up...

from the joe newsletter: CAFE LIFE NEW YORK

There have been several books released this fall in which Joe has been mentioned, as well as a number of great books written by Joe regulars. Last week, a very special book came out and anyone who loves coffee bars in New York will want to check it out: Sandy Miller has published Cafe Life New York, a comprehensive guide to the many cafes of the Big Apple. Organized by neighborhood, the book includes a full chapter (with beautiful color photos) about Joe, as well as many other stellar Gotham coffee bars: Gimme, Ninth Street Espresso, Grumpy, and Gorilla, just to name a few. We'll be selling the book at our shops, or you can also purchase it through the publisher: http://www.interlinkbooks.com/.

and, joe goes green!!!!!! hurrah!

We've been working hard in recent months to make sure that we are running as environmentally friendly a business as we can. We took a great step last month with our new composting program--that's right, now instead of throwing away coffee grounds, fruit rinds, boxes, and old pastries, hundreds of pounds are collected from us every night by a special company that converts the compost into fertilizer. We've started the program at Waverly and will add the other shops on January 1st.

...barista boy's new work-in-progress: look away...

barista boy has created a new installation, his latest work in progress: look away. check it out. (by the way, i'm there too, looking away.) support barista boy's work, stop by 517 washington street, emack & bolio's, to get involved.

the coffee & the poet

since i'm drinking alot of espresso these days (thanks to eli), i wanted to see more about the process of making coffee. the new york times posted an article & slide show yesterday, "From Cherry To Cup". also see counter culture coffee for more on high quality coffee and cupping. the photo above: A cherry, the fruit that contains the coffee bean, at Las Golondrinas farm, in the mountains of Nicaragua.

wanna learn more about coffee and take classes? check out the fall curriculum at joe in nyc.

and because i'm drinking a wonderful cappuccino right now, here is one of eli's poems. we were discussing the movie the nanny diaries and his reaction to it... et voila:

Dog Walkers

It's amazing

How many people

Are making a living

Walking dogs in this town.

The principle is simple:

People get dogs

So they will be less lonely

So they can show them off

So they can play parents for a while

But most of the time

They pay other people

To walk them, feed them

And baby-sit them

Every time they are going away.

It's amazing

How many people

Are doing the same

With their real kids.

read more of eli's poems on his website.

Barista Boy wonders...

From The Coffee Front:

"It is one thing to know how to ask questions,
It is another thing to know how to listen to the answers."

i h e a r t J O E S!

it's that time -- summer in the city -- when you need a frosty iced drink to help combat the humidity. while i still mourn the slow but eventual death of mola coffee shop in my town (i can still get my favorite banana mocha but now the place is an ice cream joint and most of the coffee lovin' regulars are gone), i'm trying to find a new place. nothing much in hoboken that fits the bill, except if you love starbucks. there are 2 here in our mile squared city, plus the mini one in the barnes and noble (the only bookstore). everyone seems to walk about, touting a wasteful to-go cup. the main one, housed in a beautiful old building in a key location sits across the street from a tiny independent coffee shop (too small for seating so not ideal for me), landmark coffee. they have a regular following it seems, but i know one day sooner not later, i might find it closed, another casualty of the starbucks machine.

while fuming about starbucks, i stumbled upon starbucks gossip, a blog "monitoring america's favorite drug dealer." while i didn't find anything new or earth shattering related to corporate whoring, i did read about their latest cultural appropriation... hip, indie music.

recently, sonic youth guitarist thurston moore mentioned that the band needed to record a new song for a starbucks compilation, "Hits Are for Squares", a limited-edition CD that features sonic youth songs hand-picked by chloe sevigny, dave eggers, michelle williams and other enthusiasts. thurston recently responded to fans' cries of SELLOUT. i'm not sold on his reasons... but i guess everyone has a price.

but i can celebrate the existence of a wonderful coffee shop (at 3 nyc locations), joe the art of coffee. the baristas are the best, the environment is casual, simple yet cozy and you can sign up for coffee classes or join their running team for folks that want to train and run together for charitable causes.

check out barista erin m's blog about what happens when journalism meets coffeeism, and assistant manager's anne n's blog that documents travels to different coffee destinations around the country.

happy caffeinating!