Coffee Houses

Confession time again.

I did not regularly (and eagerly) drink coffee until about two years ago.  In fact, I did not drink coffee at all.

I was a hot tea drinker from way back (nurtured by my mother who is still coffee-free to this day) and we are talking old-school tea drinking—Orange Pekoe, English Breakfast, Constant Comment.   But about fifteen years ago, I heard about this new exotic drink called Chai that was all the rage.   I fell in love.

Then one morning as we were grabbing a hot drink before we browsed the Farmer’s Market, I noticed the board had a Dirty Chai on it.

“What is that?” I asked.    “Sure, add an espresso shot!”

The rest is history.

Most everything I order now has an extra shot (of espresso only ).  🙂

I have not gotten a taste for black coffee and doubt I ever will.   I will drink plain coffee after dinner with dessert if we are dining out but I have to have the cream (and a really sweet dessert).

My coffee drinks have to be of the frou-frou variety:   Caramel Machiatos, Vanilla Lattes, and even Extra Dirty Chais.  (I have heard people refer to a Chai with a double-shot as  “Nasty Chai” but I won’t go there!)

And, I love to have these drinks at  locally owned and operated coffee houses.

Don’t get me wrong—I do have a lot of coffee drinks (and iced green tea) at Starbuck’s.  It is the only frou-frou coffee place in our town.

But if I go to the BIG CITY,  there is a host of great, funky and more importantly,  locally owned places.   (Hate to sound like PW here, but her BIG CITY and my BIG CITY are the same.)

Here is a list of funky coffee houses in Tulsa:

• The Gypsy Coffee House  (In the heart of Brady District.)
• DoubleShot  (Really, I tried to order a Dirty Chai here and I was truly scoffed at.   They don’t call these people the coffee Nazis for nothin’!)
• Topeca  (Locally roasted.)
• Shades of Brown Coffee & Art  (Fun place on Brookside.)
• Coffee House on Cherry Street  (My favorite place after a play or before the Farmers Market.)
• Cafe Cubana  (Another great place to grab a cup before the FM.)
• Joebot’s  (In the heart of a truly funky boutique/art gallery/t-shirt shoppe!)

These are our local favorites, and when we travel we always try to find a non-chain place so we can pick up on the local color of the city or town—even if it is the local donut shop and not a hipster “coffee house.”

 

Final confession of the post:

But, who am I kidding.   If I get up early enough to run and get a frou-frou coffee before work, I add and add to it all day with regular coffee from the lounge.   By 10:00 I am pretty much drinking the black stuff straight.