Well the word is in. Washington DC baristas took the top 4 spots at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Barista Competition. The top prize was won by Peregrine Espresso’s very own Jeremy Sterner. He’ll go on to compete in the US Barista Championships.
Mega congrats to our contingent who went. It’s kind of awesome to see the region recognize the immense amount of talent that we have in DC’s growing indie coffee culture.
w00t!
The New York Times is reporting that Blue Bottle Coffee is going to be opening up a coffee bar and roaster in Brooklyn, NY. I’m SOOO jealous. I love Blue Bottle. (Peregrine Espresso, don’t get jealous. You’re still my first love.) All of the San Francisco Blue Bottle locations consistently draw a crowd. I’m confident that this new location in Brooklyn will as well.
Tomorrow (Saturday) night, at 8pm, Washington DC coffee shop Peregrine Espresso is going to be throwing a send off party for their baristas that are headed to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Barista Competition.
At the party, you’ll be able to try their signature competition drinks, which will be pretty awesome.
Here’s the tweet about the event.
Hey, DC coffee lovers! Come join us Saturday night for a MARBC send-off party. Taste their signature drinks, drink some beer, etc. 8-10 PM
I plan on going. Hope to see you there.
Over the last three or four years, I’ve been to San Francisco many many times. One thing I’ve definitely noticed is a strong independent coffee shop culture. Every few blocks, tucked in an alley or around some corner is some cool independent coffee shop where the locals gather to hang with friends or suck down some free wifi on their Mac Books, always while sipping a highly caffeinated beverage.
In my journeys to San Francisco, there are three coffee shops that have become my favorites. I’m sure there are more that I’ve yet to discover (If you have recommendations, put them in the comments.) but there definitely three that I’ve especially grown to love.
Blue Bottle Coffee Co. – 66 Mint Street (corner of Jessie)
When my friends from San Fran heard that I was into coffee, they were all like, “you have to try Blue Bottle.” When you go to this cafe that’s South of Market, your first impression is that you’ve just entered a science lab. Behind the counter, you’ll see tons of different glass doodads that are used to make different coffee drinks.
At Blue Bottle, you’re struck by the equipment, the attitude of the staff, and the beans that they roast, the extent that they just really have a profound respect for the product that they’re making, coffee. They don’t want to give you some overly washed out sugary coffee drink, which there is a time and a place for. They really want you to be able to taste the coffee. The end result is pretty amazing. When I went with my bro-in-law, it was funny how blown away he was by the latte they made him. My reactions were equal and am now a regular there every time that I’m in town.
Unlike other coffee shops, you don’t see people sitting at Blue Bottle with laptops and parking for hours. This is a place that you go to see people or be seen.
Epicenter Cafe – 764 Harrison St.
http://www.epicentercafe.com/Epicenter_Cafe/Home.html
This became my preferred place when I wanted a really good cup of coffee and check e-mail. (Man, I love free wifi.) Thanks to my buddy Thomas, I got hooked on their espresso drink The Cubano. I’m not really sure how it’s different but it was good and after two of them, oh man I was wired. Ha.
This place is a bit of a more full fledged cafe. They serve breakfast, lunch, and even some alcoholic beverages. It was very chill. There is more room here so you don’t feel crowded, like you would at Blue Bottle.
Sightglass Coffee Bar & Roastery – 270 Seventh Street @ Folsom
For the time being, this is more of a coffee stand than a coffee shop. They’re currently amidst construction of the cafe and the roastery so right now they’ve got a coffee stand that’s open in what looks like a garage of the building.
Regardless, the coffee was phenomenal. There isn’t a whole lot of room to chill. This is more if you’re looking to get a quick hit on your coffee break at work.
One of the highlights of going here was getting to pay with the mobile payment system Square.
As I mentioned in my last post, one of the initial reasons I darkened the door of the Sacrificial Lamb Kebob and Pizza was the clever name. I like clever names for restaurants, cafes and shops, and I’ve often thought about what I would call my coffee shop, if I owned one. (admit it – you have too)
I especially like names with local flair – here in D.C., Hawk & Dove and the 18th Amendment come to mind. Literary references are cool too. Familiarity has bred contempt – I’m not a huge Starbucks fan, but the Moby Dick references helps you remember the coffee giant’s independent beginnings. Sometimes a name simply sounds cool. A bar/music club in Orlando, Florida (my hometown) was called, for reasons unknown to me, the Sapphire Supper Club. Before I moved away, they changed it to the Social, killing that delightfully alliterative example of pizzaz.
So, commenters, let’s hear it! What’s a great restaurant name? Has the name of a bar ever convinced you to drop in for a drink? If you owned a burger dive, a coffee house or a tapas bar, what would you name it?
Congrats to my friend at Peregrine Espresso. The coffee shop has been named one of the Top 10 Boutique Coffee Shops in the country by Bon Appetit Magazine.
Peregrine Espresso
Washington, D.C.
You’ve heard of microbrewed beer, but what about coffee? On Capitol Hill, you can get one of several single-origin coffees—for example, La Golondrina from Colombia—made to order just for you. 660 Pennsylvania Avenue SE; 202-629-4381; peregrineespresso.com
I think this is very well deserved. Between their great coffee selection, amazing latte skills, great pastries, or incredibly cool staff, this is one of my favorite places to hang out in the city.
You know it’s true because, amidst one of the biggest snow storms in the city today, the coffee shop was packed, while every other store and shop within Eastern Market was practically empty. They’re doing something right.
Next Saturday, October 24th at 3:30pm, Chinatown Coffee is going to be doing a tasting of the very much heralded coffee Hacienda Esmeralda. There will also be talks from food journalist Michaele Weissman and Chinatown Coffee owner and Chairman of the US Barista Championship Nick Cho. It should be a really fun event. I’m very much looking forward to it.
If you know me, you’ve probably heard me talking about my dreams of starting my own indie coffee shop or cafe.
As much as I love technology and its ability to allow us to connect with friends, I love real face to face communication that much more, when you’re all together in person. One of my favorite things is sitting in a coffee shop with my friends talking about whatever.
On many weekend mornings, you’ll find me sitting in a cafe (probably Peregrine). I love it because I’ll inevitably see 3 or 4 friends stop in over the course of the morning.
Well, I guess I’m not the only one with this dream. Slashfood writes “Sometimes it seems like owning a coffee shop is on everybody’s bucket list: Travel around the world, write the great American novel, retire and open a top-notch café.” Then they go on to interview a couple of brand new NYC cafe owners. They give some interesting insights into how they started.
NYC Mayoral Candidate Bill Thompson has come out publicly saying that he wants to prevent the phenomenon of having a Starbucks on every corner, in favor of supporting the local coffee chains.
While I support the sentiment, because I love indie coffee shops, is this the right way to get this done?
I’d much rather have indie coffee shops figure out how to provide value above and beyond Starbucks. They need to find a way to differentiate themselves.
I think Peregrine Espresso in DC has done this beautifully. There is a Starbucks a block and a half away but I don’t think it hurts their business at all. You go to Peregrine for the full coffee house experience. You go to Starbucks for convenience when you want that quick fix.
Wow… when did Washington DC become the center for cool indie coffee shops? I LOVE IT. First, we get Peregrine Espresso and then Chinatown Coffee Company. Now Mid City Caffé is opening in DC on Saturday, just north of Logan Circle on 14th street.
They’re going to be brewing Counter Culture Coffee which i’ve grown to love from Peregrine. They’ll have free wifi and will be open till 8pm everyday except on Sunday. Sounds good to me.
I’m going to try this place this weekend and will report back.