15th Avenue Coffee and Tea

15th Avenue Coffee and Tea offers a creative variety of international beverages, so many, in fact, that we asked the pretty barista to choose one for us. I confessed that I almost exclusively drink French Roast, and know little about other coffees. She informed me that the origin of French Roast involved combining old, unused, coffee beans and roasting the heck out of them to make a strong, nondescript brew, as an alternative to throwing out the undesirable beans. Well, we can't have that, so at her suggestion, Noel ordered the Ethiopian Sun-Dried Yirgacheffe. Switching it up a bit, I ordered the Japanese Genmaicha, my favorite tea, to go. Genmaicha is a uniquely robust tea, containing both green tea and toasted, popped rice, which gives it a strong, roasted flavor.

15th Avenue does put on a great show. They utlize a pour-over, Melita-like filter system to brew each individual cup of drip coffee. Unfortunately, by the time Noel's coffee had finished dripping through what I learned was a technologically advanced design over the old Melita drip cone, it was already getting cold, and I was suddenly spending an additional $22, to purchase the superior plastic cone and accompanying filters.

After receiving a crash course in coffee selection and brewing, I wish that I could tell you the coffee was rich, and the tea, roasty. But neither was the case. The coffee tasted bitter, and the tea, tasteless. Fortunately, they were out of stock on the cones, so I got out of there without spending the additional money....turns out I'm perfectly happy with my old, chipped, ceramic cone, purchased at the Women's Craft show in San Francisco eons ago.

Dear Starbucks, You've designed a beautiful, local-style coffee shop, educated your baristas, and chosen what appears to be a great selection of coffees and teas. But it still doesn't work. Maybe you should stick to the old formula. Not as sexy, but consistent and reliable...Meanwhile, Noel and I found another use for our drinks. Hand warmers.

Cupcake Royale

A crisp cold October day, a ballerina topped-pink cupcake, a warm, aromatic, heart- swirled latte, a bright window seat, and my gorgeous date sitting across the tiny round table from me.

My introduction to Capital Hill’s Cupcake Royale had come months before, on a warm summer night at the Wild Rose Bar, when a couple of young, tattooed gals hand-delivered a dozen to us late night patrons. I became hooked on their cupcakes from that moment forward, making it my mission to sample each and every flavor, my favorite being the lavender or lemon, depending on my mood. Three months later, I discovered that the perfect accompaniment to a Cupcake Royale cupcake was not a martini as previously thought, but a frothy, Stumptown grande latte, a perfect juxtaposition to the spongy sweet cupcake I devoured along with it. Not bad for warming chilled hands, either.

All at once kitch, modern, and welcoming, Cupcake Royale is a fine establishment for discerning coffee drinkers, solo computer devotees, socializing friends, and starry eyed new lovers. Overall rating: 4 out of 5 beans.