Just got back from Hawaii...

Bad Ass Coffee, Maui - It was pretty good. My wife and I ordered double every day when we were there.

Waikoloa Marriott, Big Island, HI - Surprisingly, this is where we tasted the best espresso. I suspect the 100% Kona they used had a lot to do with it. As they were using a super automatic to pull the shots. The espressos were amazing.

Just got back from Southern California. I had two very good espresso / coffee experiences:
1) Caffe Luxxe - Santa Monica. At Caffee Luxxe I had the added bonus of seeing actors Madeleine Stowe and husband Brian Benben. Looks like they enjoy good coffee too. The Barista I talked to there said their coffee is currently roasted in Seattle but they were working to set up their own roasting facility there. They used a Synesso espresso machine with a naked portafilter.
2) Intelligentsia - Venice. Yes, there was a line - maybe a 10 minute wait but it was worth it. Their layout is very interesting. A barista greets you and takes you to their station - consisting of a Synesso machine - there are six of these stations (only two were being used when I visited around 2pm). The barista takes your order and begins working on the espresso while and assistant handles the milk frothing and milk pouring duties, et al. They used a naked portafilter and you are right there for an excellent view. I had a Black Cat espresso - excellent and a Black Cat cappucinno - the sweetest I have ever had. Lastly they had one more espresso machine there - a beautiful LM GS/2 which is ready to use but was not in use during my visit.

Todd

BB Huell wrote:Just got back from Southern California. I had two very good espresso / coffee experiences:
1) Caffe Luxxe - Santa Monica. ... The Barista I talked to there said their coffee is currently roasted in Seattle but they were working to set up their own roasting facility there.

Luxxe's coffee comes from Espresso Vivace. There is another good Schomer acolyte in Westwood Village, Espresso Profeta.

BB Huell wrote:2) Intelligentsia - Venice. ... Lastly they had one more espresso machine there - a beautiful LM GS/2 which is ready to use but was not in use during my visit.

I have never seen it in use. The mysterious black box under it is Greg Scace's custom pressure profile controller, which is also normally idle.

It struck me, by the way, that the title of this thread is badly outdated. In the earlier days of online coffee forums (going back to alt.coffee), Americans had a very hard time finding good espresso outside their own kitchens. Today, it can be found in just about every major metropolitan area and in many smaller communities. I'm pretty sure that the vast majority of Americans lives within a 1-hour drive of good espresso. So good espresso "away from home" is no longer the novelty it once was (thank God).

Marshall wrote:(G)ood espresso "away from home" is no longer the novelty it once was (thank God).

Very true, Marshall, but . . .

Marshall wrote:I'm pretty sure that the vast majority of Americans lives within a 1-hour drive of good espresso.

How many of us will drive for one hour to get there?

That said, I agree the title is, if not out-dated, then certainly slightly "out of focus," perhaps. But it has become a resource for seeking out decent cafés/coffee houses, albeit in a rather unwieldy format.

Cheers,
Jason

My wife and I recently returned from a trip to the Pacific Northwest, specifically Seattle and Vancouver, about a week ago. Needless to say, we had no difficulty finding some great coffee. We managed to hit Herkimer, Stumptown, Vivace, Caffe Vita, and Victrola in Seattle. We also visited Artigiano and 49th Parallel in Vancouver, as well as swinging by Origins Roasting in Granville Island.

The biggest and most pleasant surprise was finding a small but great shop only a block from our hotel in Vancouver called Michi. It was run by a really nice guy named Michael who is obviously very serious about coffee. He was pulling shots of Origins espresso as well as 49th Parallel using a Synesso and three Anfim Super Caimano grinders. The bar is set up so that you can sit and watch him pull shots and prepare drinks, and he was happy to chat with you as he worked. He even made a syphon pot coffee for some customers, which was entertaining to watch. They also serve food there, including some delicious waffles, so needless to say we ended up going back there a lot during our three days in Vancouver.

Pretty much every shop we hit on our trip was excellent, although I admit to be slightly disappointed by Vivace. The cappuccino I had there seemed a bit weak, with the milk overwhelming the flavor of the espresso. The straight espresso I had was also a bit thin and lacking in body, although I may just have a preference for heavier, more chocolatey espressos. On the other hand, I thought that Vita was excellent, and I had probably the best macchiato of my life there.

After living for years in a relative "espresso desert", it was refreshing and eye opening to be able to find great shops in almost every part of town. That being said, we still had to know where to look for good coffee, since there were also plenty of mediocre cafes in both cities. Having the recommendations of the people on this forum and Coffeegeek made a huge difference, as did having the ability to do Google Maps searches on our phones.

A few pics from the trip.



Caffe Artigiano.





Michael at Michi.



Double rosetta at Michi.

49th Parallel.




Stumptown

Vivace







Caffe Vita