Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Add your favourite cafe to the game board
Yes, Monopoly City Streets is about to launch and we are only a few hours away from the start of a land grab the likes of which we have not seen since the Oklahoma territories were opened up to tornado farmers.
You can buy any street in the world and add houses and hotels. I'm going to try and buy the locations we are travelling to in the Cafe Grendel Tour of New Zealand.
Buy your favourite cafe-filled street today!
You can buy any street in the world and add houses and hotels. I'm going to try and buy the locations we are travelling to in the Cafe Grendel Tour of New Zealand.
Buy your favourite cafe-filled street today!
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Rrrrrraow!
There's a spat going on over east between Queensland and the Southern states over the sunshine state's coffee.
First of all - declarations, I'm backing Queensland on this one, for although I was born on the Mornington Peninsula I was raised in Queensland and now just how determined Q'landers are about getting it better, bigger and faster than anyone else.
The Southerner in the equation - one David Southwell, has opened up a can of worms be claiming that he couldn't find a decent cup of coffee during a recent trip North.
Actually I think that reveals far more about his skills at finding good cafes than it does about the state of Queensland's coffee - of course this was an article in Punch and I suspect more than a little of it was aimed at driving up readership, and there is nothing like a little North/South stoush to do that.
Fiona Donnelly in the Courier-Mail has taken up the Queensland part and pulled Mr Southwell's lame attempt at a coffee critique apart with a few well placed darts.
I think that proportionally (numerically is never a doubt given the sheer number of cafes in Melbourne) there are more bad espresso joints in Melbourne than there are in Brisbane, but all he had to do was a little planning.
I don't go to a city without finding out from the locals where the good coffee is to be found - why roll the dice without loading them? Coffeesnobs or Coffeegeek are good places to start and every state has a veritable army of coffee lovers and coffee bloggers only to willing to share the love - as far as coffee drinking goes.
I don't go dashing over the Melbourne and rubbish their coffee scene just because 7 out of the 10 espresso joints I walked in to used stale over roasted beans that had been ground hours ago - no, I make sure that the places I walk into are the one in which I am likely to get a great cup of coffee.
Still, as an article to get the words flying it is a success - ok, maybe not even on a winner there, 35 comments so far (34 if you take away the one from your wife! How about I make a comment too - just to round it up to 35. . .)
Nice try, head back North again some time armed with a list of cafes from those in the know, either that or drop me a line, I can either point you in some good directions or post you a tea bag - depending on my mood.
First of all - declarations, I'm backing Queensland on this one, for although I was born on the Mornington Peninsula I was raised in Queensland and now just how determined Q'landers are about getting it better, bigger and faster than anyone else.
The Southerner in the equation - one David Southwell, has opened up a can of worms be claiming that he couldn't find a decent cup of coffee during a recent trip North.
Actually I think that reveals far more about his skills at finding good cafes than it does about the state of Queensland's coffee - of course this was an article in Punch and I suspect more than a little of it was aimed at driving up readership, and there is nothing like a little North/South stoush to do that.
Fiona Donnelly in the Courier-Mail has taken up the Queensland part and pulled Mr Southwell's lame attempt at a coffee critique apart with a few well placed darts.
I think that proportionally (numerically is never a doubt given the sheer number of cafes in Melbourne) there are more bad espresso joints in Melbourne than there are in Brisbane, but all he had to do was a little planning.
I don't go to a city without finding out from the locals where the good coffee is to be found - why roll the dice without loading them? Coffeesnobs or Coffeegeek are good places to start and every state has a veritable army of coffee lovers and coffee bloggers only to willing to share the love - as far as coffee drinking goes.
I don't go dashing over the Melbourne and rubbish their coffee scene just because 7 out of the 10 espresso joints I walked in to used stale over roasted beans that had been ground hours ago - no, I make sure that the places I walk into are the one in which I am likely to get a great cup of coffee.
Still, as an article to get the words flying it is a success - ok, maybe not even on a winner there, 35 comments so far (34 if you take away the one from your wife! How about I make a comment too - just to round it up to 35. . .)
Nice try, head back North again some time armed with a list of cafes from those in the know, either that or drop me a line, I can either point you in some good directions or post you a tea bag - depending on my mood.
Friday, September 04, 2009
Friday Night Music
And tonight - a little local music. The Arundo Reed Quintet performing Piazzolla - Fugata.
If you'd like to see them live they'll be performing in Joondalup on 20 September - full details here.
If you'd like to see them live they'll be performing in Joondalup on 20 September - full details here.
West to East
Stumptown are a reknowned Portland roaster (although they started in Brooklyn) are opening a cafe in New York.
A long, long way from Perth.
I only mention this because I was reading the NY Times and found that they have a 'births' section for cafes and restaurants - which is pretty cool and I wish we had something similar in The West. Most reviews or reports are retrospective to the openings and I imagine that the NY Times solicits new business owners to contribute their opening details.
It would be a boon to foodies and coffee lovers alike - and the business owners would get early exposure from bloggers and traditional media. On the downside they'd want to make sure they had it right on opening night!
A long, long way from Perth.
I only mention this because I was reading the NY Times and found that they have a 'births' section for cafes and restaurants - which is pretty cool and I wish we had something similar in The West. Most reviews or reports are retrospective to the openings and I imagine that the NY Times solicits new business owners to contribute their opening details.
It would be a boon to foodies and coffee lovers alike - and the business owners would get early exposure from bloggers and traditional media. On the downside they'd want to make sure they had it right on opening night!
Thursday, September 03, 2009
The Dalai Lama Latte
The Dalai Lama walks into a cafe. . .
The Age this morning has some video of a cafe in Taiwan sketching Dalai Lama latte art to honour the visit to Taiwan of the Dalai Lama and a large group of monks.
And here, for your serene pleasure, is the Dalai Lama Latte:
The Age this morning has some video of a cafe in Taiwan sketching Dalai Lama latte art to honour the visit to Taiwan of the Dalai Lama and a large group of monks.
And here, for your serene pleasure, is the Dalai Lama Latte:
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Wearing its Sunday Best
I made a traditional style capuccino on Sunday and decided to dress it up a little by dropping it into a wine glass rather than a cup - it came up looking very nice. The beans were a blend of Monkey Beans from Merthi Mountain and PNG Bunum Wo peaberry.
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