Our Favorite Cafes

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Name Favorite Coffee House+ Address How does this business educate coffee drinker’s about their products? Does your chosen business use any aspects of terroir? Any particularly resourceful people there? Describe your favorite coffee from there and why
Bonnie  Burial Grounds

406 Washington Street SE, Olympia, WA 98501-1152

  This business doesn’t have a great model for teaching their consumers about coffee.  I think there is possibly a lack of terroir in this coffee shop simply for the creative, yet mostly overpowering, ingredients they choose to mix their coffee drinks with. This doesn’t necessarily celebrate the taste of the land where the coffee grew. I think they gain a lot of customers due to their uniqueness, aesthetic, and they’re well liked, often sweetened espresso drinks.  I don’t like very sweet coffee myself because the combination of sugar and caffeine is overwhelming to my taste buds, and physical condition. I have a lot of friends who really like the sweet drinks here, so still frequent this place but have been able to alter recipes with the baristas here, substituting the sweetness of sugary chocolate syrup, for other things like the bitter sweetness of cocoa powder.  I realize this doesn’t have much to do with the actual coffee, but I think their knowledge of balancing flavor as well communication skills are helpful and can tell us all something about our pallets. As I mentioned I like mochas from here with cocoa powder in place of syrup. This adds a really chocolaty flavor without imparting all all the sweetness of sugar, letting the acidic bitterness of the coffee combine with the chocolaty bitterness of the cocoa powder. Sometimes I opt for hemp milk instead of regular, for a change of texture.
Daniel Traditions

300 5th Ave SW, Olympia, WA 98501

 “Traditions is a member of the Fair Trade Federation, an association of fair trade wholesalers, retailers, and producers whose members are committed to providing fair wages and good employment opportunities to economically disadvantaged artisans and farmers worldwide.”  Traditions invokes an aspect of terroir with it’s sense of place. They are in tune to the values of their products and making sure they are fairly attributed. Traditions is not only a cafe but also a meeting ground for the community, holding regular talks, music, poetry, and informational meetings about our city and our world.  They’re drip coffee is especially brewed for older folks, meaning that it’s not too intense or caffeinated. I like this.
Willow  Cafe Vita

124 4th Ave E, Olympia, WA 98501

  Often if you ask the barista behind the counter about coffee, they can tell you a little bit about it. They assume most people who are inquiring are beginners and keep answers pretty basic to be understood and to be efficient, and the cafe is often busy. However, the Vita website gives a very in-depth description of their various coffees and their role in the process. Their website is easily accessible as it is the cite that appears if you connect to the cafe’s free WiFi.  I think the cafe, at least in Olympia, tries to be very neutral aesthetically. It’s a great location to study independently, have a quiet conversation with a friend, but they don’t try to define themselves, and I think are best known for having air conditioning on full blast in the heat of summer. They don’t make sweetened drinks, I think they are trying to give an appearance of class, if anything.  The owner of Vita is often in the shop, a good coffee resource, but any staff member will educate you on almost any given topic regarding the business if you express interest. I once asked an employee on which they considered to be the best brewing method for coffee (that they happened to have in the shop). The barista brought each down and demonstrated how the more complex systems (such as the AeroPress) might be used.  I like to order their Toddy, or iced coffee. Their coffee seems to hold up pretty well under ice as well as once the ice melts into the rest of the beverage. Very acidic, high caffeine content, savior of students studying at Vita in the heat of summer.