The Confession of My Coffee Bar Affair at Blumen Studio

Have you ever been to Blumen Studio?

I have passed by it many times, driving south on Parkdale from Wellington, since it opened in March. It has a 'come hither' beckoning with it's sophisticated curbside styling of containers and plants. The modern minimalist feel has been calling me in.

Blumen (German for 'flower') is first and foremost a contemporary flower shop with European flair. If you need it to be, it can also double as your corner store for eggs, Lactantia cream, Cochrane's Dairy milk and Stirling Creamery butter. They have a few magazines and newspapers for the picking too. There is room to sit and relax cupping a coffee or tea, matched with a decent selection of fresh baked goods.

When I go out for a hit of caffeine, my coffeehouse of choice is Bridgehead. Any one of the twelve locations will do. I thought we had a rock solid relationship. But on this day I fell to the temptation of Blumen Studio's café crema ($2.83 with tax). One shot espresso and one shot microfoamed 10% cream.

Kat planned to serve it in a hip-style tumbler but I asked for the well-known #3 size Könitz Coffee Bar cup. Wow! With much restraint and discretion, I just closed my eyes and kept all the wee noises to myself.

I know I have been far too flirtatious with my coffee style status. My collection of 'in a relationship' partners has flipped from cappuccinos to lattes to most recently, flat whites. But as of today, my newest 'forever coffee true love' is for sure the café crema.

If you are taking in the Taste of Wellington West this weekend, consider stepping off the beaten path to see what Kat Kosk and Nathan Turner have to offer in their menagerie of wonderful things.

My favourite Ottawa flower shop is Tivoli Florist on Richmond Road. Now I wonder. Will I end up cheating on them too?



Blumen Studio
465 Parkdale Ave.
613-680-8400
website: www.blumenstudio.ca

Tues to Thurs: 8 am - 6 pm
Fri: 8 am - 8 pm
Sat: 9 am - 7 pm
Sun 10 am - 4 pm

Café Myriade - So Far, My Favourite Montreal Latte

I first read about Montreal's Café Myriade on Coffeestork's blog. Coffeestork is a coffee sommelier of sorts. I love reading his blog. I probably love a good espresso as much as he does but he is willing to write about it, study it, learn the lingo, research the beans and be a thoughtful and fair critic. In some ways I feel like a bit of a freeloader, going on his suggestions when venturing to coffee towns unknown.

When in Montreal this past weekend, I had to check out Café Myriade. Sanctioned by both Coffeestork and my foodie/coffee friend, JK, it was a no brainer.



I made it there on the Saturday and returned without haste first thing Sunday morning. No surprise here. Coffeestork and JK are right. Café Myriade pulls a mean shot. Both times I enjoyed them in a latte.



Being close to the universities, it seems to attract a strong following from the academic crowd. Probably the demographic most in need of caffeine. So why not AMAZING caffeine. With the full front of the store opening up to a good size patio, the place still seems small. Wintertime is probably pretty crazy.

On my first visit, I tried a pain au chocolat. It was nothing special. Considering it was later in the afternoon, the treat was at a disadvantage, because no pastry gets better with age.

For those that are die-hard coffee fans, Café Myriade also does siphon filter coffee for a premium price.

The bean of my jolt was the 49th Parallel's Epic Espresso from this rising star roaster in Vancouver, BC. I came home with a pound to see what artful coffee business I could do with our Rancilio (no doser grinder) Rocky and (espresso machine) Silvia. I am quite transparent when it comes to pulling a shot. I put a lot of judgement on the crema. I am looking forward to see if Epic Espresso can rival my now-favourite bean, Happy Goat Coffee Company's Babae's Espresso Blend from a new-in-town, Ottawa-based roaster.

I really need to point out that the staff is extremely friendly and helpful with any questions.



On Sunday I had a religious experience with my latte. Without even noticing, I somehow managed to preserve my latte art down to the last drop.





When I go out for a latte here in Ottawa, it is always a trip to Bridgehead. I hear from Coffeestork that they get their beans from micro-roaster Café Mystique (sister company to Toi, Moi & Café) in Montreal. They will soon be roasting their own when their new facility Roasting Works on Preston Street opens in the Fall.

Café Myriade won me over. But Coffeestork speaks well of other coffee cafés in Montreal. Like the butter tart, aren't we always on the perpetual search for the best? Wanting, and trying, and measuring it against the last best. I am curious to see if Café Myriade can reign supreme.

Café Myriade
1432 Rue Mackay
Montreal, Quebec
514.939.1717
website: www.cafemyriade.com
Twitter: CafeMyriade
Facebook: CafeMyriade

Mon to Fri: 8 am - 7 pm
Sat to Sun: 9 am - 7 pm

Rhubarb and Strawberry Compote

A favourite spring breakfast for us is a wee bowl of plain yogurt, rhubarb and strawberry compote, and a topping of gourmet granola.

Our regular yogurt is Western Plain Yogurt 2%.

Our granola is either from Bridgehead Coffeehouse or Siren Bakery.

Our rhubarb and strawberry compote is homemade, thanks to the bounty shared by dear friends, Helen and Merrill. Because we have kept the ingredient list simple, the rhubarb stands out with all the pow that emanates from this full-flavoured stalk.

I can't get enough of it.


RHUBARB AND STRAWBERRY COMPOTE
Modified from a recipe by Canadian Living

1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
6 cups rhubarb, chopped
1 strip orange rind
1 cup strawberries, diced
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, optional

Heat sugar and water together in the top pot of the double boiler but directly on heat. Once it starts to boil, add the 6 cups of chopped rhubarb and stir. Then place over a double boiler pot that has water already heated. Add the orange rind and the cinnamon. Maintain a steady gentle boil with the water until the rhubarb softens. This takes about 20 minutes.

Once the rhubarb is soft and juicy, transfer the contents to a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil and then simmer until the compote has the desired thickness. I prefer it to be pudding-like and I do not want to use a thickening agent, like flour or cornstarch. Boiling out a lot of the liquid, plus the
sugar will help to thicken it. I usually simmer it for at least another 20 minutes.

Once it is to the consistency you prefer, take it off the heat, discard orange rind and add the diced strawberries. Because they are small enough, they will just cook through from the heat of the rhubarb. I like to add this bit of strawberries because it brings a beautiful red colour to the compote. Let it cool before storing it in a sealed container in the fridge.

We love this compote on plain yogurt with a sprinkle of gourmet granola. Very refreshing!

Open Letter to Bridgehead Coffeehouse

Dear Tracey Clarke:

If you have ever wandered over to my blog, which I hope you have, you will know that I love food. More importantly, I love coffee. Good coffee.

Lucky for me, there are now a dozen Bridgehead coffeehouses dotting the urban landscape here in the nation's capital. Today I stopped in to your Golden Street location at precisely 1:40 pm. Being one of your larger stores, I think of that particular coffeehouse as the 'gateway' to 'Westboro West'.

My mission was to pick up two critical breakfast accoutrements for the upcoming gal pal weekend deep in chalet country on the Canadian Shield in Quebec.

The first item was a half pound of Nicaraguan Dark, ground for an automatic coffee machine, basket filter. At this moment, the bag is driving me to distraction. The scent of fresh ground coffee permeating from that bag is pure drug.

The second item I needed to purchase was your 500 gram container of chunky handmade Bridgehead Granola fresh from the Bridgehead Kitchen. I faltered for a moment as I grabbed the 1.2 kg bag out of pure gluttony. Three breakfasts and four ladies. No matter how I did the math, there was no way I could justify it. I love how the rolled oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, honey, canola oil, cinnamon, vanilla, salt, and almond extract cleave to each other in gentle bundles that quickly relax at the slightest touch of a knowing spoon or a closing jaw. This granola is headed to the top of the heap of fresh fruit and plain, fresh yogurt.

I thought my visit was straight forward, but as can often be the case, approaching the cash is not without its dangers. It was well past noon and without hesitation I scooped up your last pre-made tuna sandwich. Your grainy bread (also from the Bridgehead Kitchen) is pillowy soft. The cucumbers and lettuce, crisp. I love that you and your master food people know that dill and capers are absolutely exquisite in a tuna sandwich. Nice that you offer your sandwich bread for sale by the loaf.

When my foot crossed the threshold, I think I already knew that I would not get out of Golden without a latte crossing my lips. Being of the older persuasion, I know that past noontime means any coffee must be decaf. I love that you can make a decaf latte not seem like fake coffee. A mirage of ‘high test’ all the way.

It is with great regret that I did not ask the name of the young gentleman on Barista duty for my sacred potion. The espresso for my coffee was deep, full-bodied and thick. The micro bubbles of milk were silkily poured into my cup with the steady precision of an artist's hand. My latte art was not one fern. Not two ferns. But a full bouquet of three ferns engraved into my espresso crema. It would not be wrong to promote him to Barista Maestro if you have such a title.

So why am I writing? You already know your lattes are drinks for the gods. Even if mine was a decaf. You already know that your Bridgehead kitchen is doing very good things with your granola, your bread and your other culinary creations. You already know you have top-notch teams working each coffeehouse.

I am writing to you because I wanted to tell you that I know too.

Regards,

One of Ottawa's Real Foodies

Bridgehead Coffeehouse
440 Richmond Road (at Golden)
Ottawa, ON
613.729.2100

Mon to Sat: 6:30 am - 10 pm
Sun: 6:30 am - 9 pm

Renowned author, Malcolm Gladwell "Comments" on Ottawa's Battle of the Croissants

Malcolm Gladwell, well-known author, of such best-sellers as The Tipping Point, Blink and Outliers today shares for you the brilliant breakthrough of the REAL question on Ottawa's Battle of the Croissants. Before I reveal how this transpired, I must give you a bit of background.

Four things happened today that speak to the formulation of this particular blog entry.


1) I had to cool my heels in the Ottawa South area between 7:15 am and 7:45 am as my son attended physiotherapy. I headed to my bank for an overdue ATM errand and then took a few extra steps to land at the Bridgehead coffeehouse at the corner of Bank and Grove. I knew I needed to get the morning kickstarted with 'a medium latte to go'. Then something happened while in line that can only be justified with the plea "Not guilty by reason of insanity." Against my better, calorie-counting, judgement and against any semblance of will-power, I said "and could I also get one of your ham and Gruyère croissants to go". Well I didn't 'go'. I sat down right away to administer my hit of caffeine and then unravel my little pastry bundle, that I rationalized as breakfast. It took great restraint to chew slowly and with good manners and sophistication as waves of saliva were building. I had an inkling that Bridgehead had not won the buttery croissant competition held on the weekend. But as I savoured the morning delight, I knew that what I was enjoying was still pretty amazing. The important message of this little story, is the total temptation these croissants created when my eyes fell upon them in the display case. (And I haven't even taken the time to share with you the utter disappointment of the person next in line who purposefully trekked to Bridgehead this morning to savour the newly released almond croissant, only to hear that it wouldn't be in this store until Friday.)


2) After the taxi servicing was completed, I headed home and I read Ron Eade's Omnivore's Ottawa blog entry on Battle of the pastries: Hot on the trail of Ottawa's best croissant. He announced that Le Moulin de Provence was top pick for the taste off that took place this past Sunday. What I had just enjoyed in Ottawa South this morning didn't even make the top 3.

3) I followed by reading Don's foodiePrints blog entry on Ottawa Croissant Battle: Results of the Roundup. More details on the Sunday taste off. Wow, Bridgehead was tied for 5th! They only beat out Boko Bakery and Loblaws. Who knew.


4) Being a huge fan of the TEDTalks, I rounded out my intellectual stimulation for the morning with Malcolm Gladwell's talk on spaghetti sauce. Shari of Whisk: a food blog had a morning twitter that landed me there through 20 Fascinating Lectures for Serious Foodies.

And this is when I had my eureka moment. Malcolm Gladwell talks about American marketing researcher, Dr. Howard Moskowitz, who did his doctoral dissertation on psychophysics and is most famous for re-inventing spaghetti sauce. And what I came to realize in the Battle of the Croissants, thanks to Malcolm and Howard, is that we are asking the wrong question. We shouldn't be looking for the perfect croissant, but instead we should be looking for the perfect croissantS. I suspect that the very clever, Tracey Clark, Managing Director of Bridgehead Coffeehouse already knew this. So for all of you not getting your croissant fix from top pick, Le Moulin de Provence, rest assured that you may still be eating a perfect croissant! Wherever your croissant temptations lead you in this city, enjoy. It is pretty fantastic that we have so many great choices in our wee town. (And Ichiban Bakery still needs to be in the running!)

First in Line at the New Bridgehead at Metcalfe and Sparks Street Mall

Tracey Clark, Managing Director of Bridgehead Coffeehouse, doesn't know it, but I am her number one fan and number one fan of her great coffeehouses here in the nation's capital. So it should come as no shock that I would want to be first in line at the opening of the 11th store at the southwest corner of Metcalfe and Sparks Street Mall this morning at 6:30 am. And first in line, I was. Normally, that hour of the day is spent with my walking buddy on the Trans Canada Trail doing an invigorating 4 kms to put a refreshing start on the day. Today would be a surprise for her. Instead, when I pulled up in front of her house, I told her to get in and wrap my pashmina around her eyes as she was going for a ride!

The first lattes on the bar were pulled to perfection. Although I had my heart set on meeting former Eastern Barista Champ Laura P. and World Barista Championship Judge Ian C., we were told that they would not be arriving until 7:00 am.



The opening also coincided with the launch day of their new croissants, now baked in-house from scratch. Not one to normally indulge, I felt compelled to find out how they compared to The French Baker selection they used to bring in for their customers. Their selection includes: Plain, Ham and Gruyère, and finally the classic Pain au Chocolat. Almond Croissant coming soon.



I have had the pleasure of enjoying true French croissants for a month in the summer of 2007 and what we sampled this morning is certainly a good approximation of that French experience. It was pretty obvious that they have a hit on their hands. I enjoyed the Pain au Chocolat and my walking buddy had the Ham and Gruyère. I do want to wish only the best for The French Baker, but I have to say Bridgehead has nailed it. If they can do this everyday with their new croissants, they will be creating yet another reason for customers to flock to their stores. The pastries were "ridiculously" flakey! Only Paris is better.

Sitting in the Coffee Shop

You are sitting in the coffee shop alone.
Caressing your latte and reading the Globe.
The sun warms your table and bakes in its serenity.

I just watch.

Are you waiting for someone?
Or will you find company in print this morning?

If I approach you,
I fear you may feel the sun block,
And a chill settle in.

I wish for a warm welcome.
But I just take my cloud and go.