The Taco Conundrum

     On a recent trip to a coffee shop in Los Angeles I overheard a customer complain to a Barista that the coffee was too expensive. In a previous blog titled No consumer left behind, we at Con Ciencia Coffee discussed the role that consumers needs play in the coffee industry, particularly the specialty coffee markets. It is no longer uncommon to find cups of coffee consistently priced at well over $3.00, and for coffee enthusiasts a $5-$10 cup of coffee is becoming the norm for a quality cup of coffee. 

     The customers complains resonated loudly for a few reasons. 1. He didn't just complain. He made sense of the situation. 2. He explained to his friend that he gladly pays premiums when dining out but appreciates it when the vendor does everything possible to justify the cost. He went on to say that he's paid as much as $5.00 per taco, but also stated that he had done so in a restaurant that prepares all of their foods from scratch. He stated that $5.00 seemed like a bargain because he saw how the tortilla was made to order, the salsa was made fresh. The taco was carefully handcrafted to appear and taste in such a way that the $5.00 price tag was not only fair but a steal. My next thought was the inspiration for this post. I thought to myself, "I'f this person will pay $5.00 for a quality taco then why not pay$5.00 for quality coffee?" In thinking so I was assuming that this person was not capable of appreciating the details and nuances that go into a quality cup of coffee but, this is the same person that had described a Taco with better detail than anyone I've ever encountered. My attention was immediately focused on the L.A. coffee scene and I remembered two cups of coffee which I had recently purchased. I payed an average of $7.00 for two cups at two different coffee shops. One cup was brewed in a standard Fetco brewer. I ordered, the Barista drew from the brewer and served a cup. The second was a Hario pour over that was prepared with bad technique overall. Coffee shops prepare hundreds of drinks and coffees a day, but they do it one cup at a time for one customer at time. 

     Customers being asked to trust that their cup of coffee is worth $5.00 but they're told their coffee isn't worthy of the detailed preparation that single brewers offer. As a customer, are you supposed to believe that the quality of the coffee that you purchased for $9.00 a cup supersedes a Baristas lacking will to make your $9.00 seem like a bargain like the customers $5.00 taco? When, it came to my $9.00 cup of I'd say no. Perhaps a taco doesn't parallel a cup of coffee but I did wish I could've described my $9.00 cup with the same enthusiasm that a $5.00 taco was.

The best in Los Angeles

A recently published LA Weekly Blog published a “definitive list of the ten best coffee shops in L.A., period”… that is, according to them. We at Con Ciencia Coffee couldn’t disagree more. This in no way means that Con Ciencia Coffee believes the list produced by LA Weekly is inaccurate. Instead, Con Ciencia Coffee believes that special considerations and distinctions should be made when ranking coffee companies. For that reason Con Ciencia Coffee will rank what it believes to be the better coffee companies in Los Angeles.  Unlike the aforementioned list published in LA Weekly, these rankings are not “definitive”; we recognize that this decision is highly subjective.

The coffee scene in Los Angeles is evolving ever so quickly so consider this a chronological snapshot.  Recognizing the ever-changing quality of the LA coffee industry, Con Ciencia Coffee will not make extensive arguments on behalf of anyone on our lists, instead we will invite coffee consumers to visit these shops for themselves.  We will rank the top three in each of the following categories: “Coffee Shops”, which consists of coffee companies that roast their own beans; “Roaster”, which compares the quality of various coffee companies that roast coffee; and “Coffee Bars”, which are coffee companies that do not roast their own coffee (and therefore offer coffee roasted elsewhere).  When considering Coffee Shops, we considered uniqueness, ambiance, menu offering and quality of the product served.  We ranked the top three Roasters based on the consistent quality of their offering without considering their particular retail operation. Coffee Bars were judged on the basis of being distinctive regardless of the coffee roaster that they offer. Before we commence Con Ciencia Coffee would like to extend warm holiday wishes to the entire coffee community, especially coffee consumers at large.  So, here we go: Coffee Shops

1.      Intelligentsia Coffee

Their arrival in Los Angeles in 2006 was revolutionary; it was the birth of the coffee renaissance that Los Angeles is currently under. Intelligentsia Coffee (or “Intelli” to coffee aficionados) remains the most reliable coffee shop for great coffee and a great ambiance to enjoy it in. Their baristas aren’t always friendly but this is overcome by their professionalism in coffee preparation.

www.intelligentsiacoffee.com

2.      Tierra Mia Coffee

Beyond being the only Latino player in the Los Angeles coffee scene, Tierra Mia Coffee prevails over many of its shortcomings and earns this spot by being the only third wave coffee shop brave enough to combine quality coffee with a signature menu.

www.tierramiacoffee.com 

3.      Handsome Coffee

Sure their coffee shop isn’t open to the public but those brave souls that have ventured to the corner of 6^th and Mateo have found a coffee speak-easy whose baristas and coffee are amongst the best in all of Los Angeles.

www.handsomecoffee.com

Coffee Roasters

1.      Handsome Coffee

Handsome Coffee steals this spot from Intelligentsia because it’s run by three Intelli alums and has the advantage of roasting in small batches.

www.handsomecoffee.com

2.      Intelligentsia Coffee

Intelligentsia Coffee is probably the only coffee roaster in the U.S. able to roast in large batches while consistently producing high quality coffee.

www.intelligentsiacoffee.com

3.      Cafecito Organico

Cafecito Organico is found in numerous coffee shops in Los Angeles for a reason: they are a very deserving roaster with wide-appeal.

www.cafecitoorganico.com

Coffee Bars

1.      Café Demitasse

Cafe Demitasse is new in Los Angeles and is characterized by its distinct location in the heart of Little Tokyo, upscale interior and especially by its innovative recipe.  We recommend the “Icy Minty Cubano”.

www.cafedemitasse.com

2.      Spring for Coffee

This shop’s location is its biggest advantage because there isn’t any other quality coffee bar found anywhere near it in Downtown Los Angeles.

www.springforcoffee.com

3.      Fix Coffee

Residents of Echo Park are fortunate to have a quality coffee house in their backyard-- literally.  Fix Coffee is hidden away inside a residential area in the Echo Park area.  It also offers very unique coffee recipes courtesy of an unspoken menu; all you have to do is ask.

www.fixcoffee.com

The Etymology of a Barista

   By definition a Barista is a "bartender". In the coffee industry, a barista is a person that tends a coffee bar and unlike a bartender that tends to a bar that serves alcohol, mainly at night, a coffee barista has the duty of serving coffee, mostly in the morning. A barista is very much like a bartender in that he tends a bar, but how far do the parallels go?

   In Los Angeles, there has been two heavily documented renaissances amongst baristas and bartenders over the last 5 years. The etymology of Baristas and Bartenders continue to grow but in opposite directions. Bartenders are pushing the limits of component ingredients, developing recipes that equate to the same scientific approach a Barista executes when brewing a cup of coffee. Conversely, Baristas, unlike bartenders, are adamant about creating a culture of less, serving less coffee with less ingredients. In the process the coffee industry hopes to emulate the eminence of a culinary art, but will we ever see the coffee industry and baristas show the valiant an Iron Chef possesses when he tops a Filet Mignon with mushrooms?

   A bartender is an iconic figure synonymous with the joyous threads of nightlife and the drowning pessimism of sorrow. It's been said that a bartender serves the cause of, and solution to all of life's problems, alcohol. If so then a Barista elucidates the path of optimism. Con Ciencia Coffee believes that Baristas can create creative ways of tenderly drawing customers towards artisan coffee by imitating the same approach bartenders have taken when preparing mixed drinks.