Joyride Coffee, Momofuku Milk Bar
Considering the fame of the Momofuku franchise, I was not surprised that Momofuku Milk Bar is one of my new favorite places in NYC.
But on that same thread, considering how successful Momofuku is as a business, I was surprised by the Milk Bar's modest design. The one I visited in East Village is not particularly chic or ornamental, but very incognito, except for the neon sign.
The inside is quite small, with a little bar along the window, no seats, a large chalkboard with the menu, and then the ordering area and kitchen. It also has a full functioning air conditioner (very relevant for the hot summer months).
Joyride Coffee, Momofuku Milk Bar
Before ordering, I asked what they recommended. One of the two very friendly workers gave me a sample of the "Cereal Milk" soft serve. I was absolutely blown away. Although it looks like any other soft serve, it tastes exactly like cereal and milk. So I went ahead and ordered that, with crushed corn flakes sprinkled on it.
While I was tempted to order cold brew, I ordered a Stumptown cappuccino based on a Foursquare recommendation.
Joyride Coffee, Momofuku Milk Bar
Before I received my cappuccino, the barista asked me if I wanted a bear or a heart as the design, and I said bear. I was given a cappuccino with possibly the most adorable design...ever.
Joyride Coffee, Cappuccino
The thing to do: take a scoop of the Cereal Milk soft serve and dip it in the cappuccino. Trust me.
While I was there, a girl came in and ordered a soy latte and left quickly, which suggests that it's easy to grab a quick, good coffee and go. But I also have come here in the evening, and it was quite crowded, with people primarily ordering desserts after a dinner, or in my case, a snack before a movie. It's a very versatile spot to visit for coffee, dessert, or a savory snack.
However, it's a little bit pricier if you want more than just a coffee. My cappuccino and soft serve came out to be just under $10.
Overall, the two girls working there were very nice, accommodating and quick. I also can't emphasize enough how amazing the Cereal Milk was. I very highly recommend it and Momofuku Milk Bar. I'll definitely be going as often as possible.
Coffee by: Stumptown
Momofuku Milk Bar
Manhattan
251 E. 13th St.
15 W. 56th St.
561 Columbus Ave.
Brooklyn
382 Metropolitan Ave.
360 Smith St.
Cafe Review- Stumptown Coffee
Stumptown Coffee is one of the top quality roasters that NYC has to offer. In fact, we at Joyride distribute Stumptown blends to our clients. This roasting company owns their own cafés throughout NYC, and I visited the one in the lobby of the Ace Hotel.
Stumptown Coffee, Joyride Coffee
The entrance is embellished with a beautiful font, spelling out the name of the café "Stumptown Coffee." As soon as you walk in, it's like walking into a rainforest. There are very tall plants and wooden decorations everywhere. It's brightly lit with quirky trinkets lining the shelves that add to the Adventureland feel.
I got there around eleven in the morning, which apparently is either one of the peak hours, or it's always that busy, because the line snaked around the counter out the door into the Ace Lobby. But it moved relatively quickly, and people were served their drinks in very simple paper and plastic cups, depending on whether they had ordered cold brew or a hot drink.
I ordered a cold brew, which was the perfect drink for the scorching weather. It wasn't too watery or acidic, and the woodiness of the coffee still came through. If you want a little souvenir or don't want to drink the cold brew immediately, you can ask them for the original bottle, as seen below.
Stumptown Coffee, Joyride Coffee
I sat in the lobby which was barely lit, except for a few antique lamps. There were leather couches and loveseats scattered everywhere, with large tables that worked as community seating for anybody with a laptop or work to do. It was very much like an old, musty library.
It's a little too clustered and not quite intimate enough for a meeting with a friend, but I would definitely stop by here either to grab a really good cup of coffee to go, or stay a while to do work.
One thing I have to comment on, though, are the baristas' outfits. Every single one of them was wearing a fedora, and they were all dressed in the most eclectic mix of outfits. This must have been coordinated. Other than that, they were very friendly and accommodating and matched the down-to-earth yet slightly posh vibe of the place – posh only because of the quality of their coffee.
Stumptown Coffee in the Lobby of the Ace Hotel
18 W. 29th St.
Stumptown Coffee
30 W. 8th St.
Café Review – OST Café
This summer, Joyride will be assembling an interactive map that functions as a café guide. I'm Kristen Lee, the Social Media Intern, and I'll be visiting cafes throughout NYC and getting a taste of the wonderful beans the Big Apple has to offer. For my first stop, I went to OST Café in the East Village. I walked in and found myself in a modest, naturally-lit, unassuming setting. To the left is the coffee bar and directly in front is a full wet bar. There are a few large, leather booths, a few scattered tables and stools along the bars. It's not a setting for a huge gathering, but it's mellow enough for a nice hangout with a friend or two.
OST Cafe, Joyride Coffee
OST Cafe, Joyride Coffee
I ordered a latte. It was exactly what anybody would ever want out of a latte - just smooth, creamy, and milky enough that I still taste the comforting, clean coffee. They also use some great beans, including some from our very own Intelligentsia.
OST Cafe, Joyride Coffee
They have a relatively simple menu, with classic café drinks, but they also have a heartier menu with cheeses and charcuterie. Between the menu and the Parisian paintings on the walls, the cafe has a distinctly European feel. OST is right on the corner of 12th and A, so it would be perfect for people watching through the window if it gets too cold or too hot to be sitting outside. I feel like it would be a nice place to go around late afternoon or evening, more so than the morning, perhaps to grab a coffee and maybe a drink or two as twilight hits.
OST Café 441 E. 12th St. (Between Ave A and 1st St.)
Coffee by: Intelligentsia
Joyride Coffee: HackNY Fellows Event
Last Friday, HackNY* had their Summer HackNY Fellows Project Presentation and Joyride was happy to sponsor the event by brewing us some chemexs and dishing some cold brew to the attendees. Many of these talented college students were actually working at Some of Joyride Coffee's office coffee customers including Tumblr, Birchbox, Buzzfeed and Boxee and we were thrilled to see how some of their side projects turned out. A few presentations stand out in my head: 1) Price is right for Etsy- This is a website that lets you play the price is right for random items off of Etsy, and it keep track of how accurate you are.
2) Web design style detector and analyzer. Basically this lets you look at any website and see what the style (i.e. how do you determine header, etc etc) is and where there are, if any, problems. I think going forward I could see this integrated both in webdesign software, such as Dreamweaver as well as into search engines to allow for a more accurate determination of how the content is intended to be layed out.
3) Don't you have work to do? - This is a MUST for any procrastinator such as myself. It is a Chrome plugin that limits Facebook, rather than cutting it off. If you are a company that tries to manage an active web presence, then you need to use Facebook, so completely blocking it isn't effective. Basically this app allows you to respond to other people, post things and deal with notifications, but times you out if you start faffing about on the web (like everybody does). Although the timing as it stands is a bit cruel, with tweaking, I could see this be a mandatory part of any company's browser.
Anyhow, Here are some pictures from the event. And hey, we got our logo on the big board!
Hack NY Summer Event (1 of 5)
Hack NY Summer Event (5 of 5)
Hack NY Summer Event (4 of 5)
Hack NY Summer Event (3 of 5)
*(A really cool Non-for-profit that places younger people interested in Tech in internships at NY Startups)
Tasting with Cafe Integral
One of the things I like most about my job is that I get to meet cool people and, of course, drink great coffee. I want to tell you this guy's story because his passion for the craft of coffee sourcing, roasting and brewing is immediately clear. His name is Cesar. This guy started out doing photography and was way into his coffee. A Nicaraguan by extraction, he was bothered that while Costa Rica, Guatemala and Panama were establishing their chops as serious producers of seriously good coffee, Nicaragua was being left behind. So he went to Nicaragua and exported a pile of quality green beans. He then set up a little roastery up on 200th street and started making Cafe Integral. Now he roasts himself, operates a delivery service for galleries, co-ops and individuals, runs his cafe with his own Strada, and generally hustles like nobody else.
Cafe Integral
Being entrepreneurially minded ourselves, we can appreciate the difficulty of doing everything from packaging to fulfillment and brewing all on your own, and we think that he has a really cool idea. His coffees are all Nicaraguan (not unusual to have single national origins) but interestingly, he divides and brews them by single varietal. We took home three varietals to taste and we'll break it down below.
NOTES: All of our brewing was done on our dinged-up and oft-repaired office chemex, with 42-43g coffee to 700g unfiltered water. The filter was bleached. A small sample of each was cupped for the wet-nose. The chemexed coffee was tasted hot, and again tepid.
The Cattura
Joyride Office Coffee- Cafe Integral
Caturra is a fairly typical varietal, found in many of our current coffees (the Stumptown's Peruvian, for example, has caturra as a component). I have never really tried this varietal on its own so it is a bit difficult for me to say what is the Farm and roasting vs. what is actually the nature of the varietal. The dry nose is sharp and acidic with underlying florals. Wet, it has florals and grains. The flavors I got from the cup were bittersweet chocolate, wildflower honey and a sweet and sour berry note. It has a slight tannins.
The Maracaturra
Joyride Office Coffee- Cafe Integral Maracaturra
The Maracaturra is a hybrid of the Caturra and Maragogype varietals. The beans are closer to their Maragogype heritage, but lack a certain immensity. The coffee isn't really what you would expect from a Latin coffee. The nose is distinctly baking spices. The cup, by contrast, is pleasantly acidic with a hint of south asian spices and a baking spice finish. The whole cup is round full.
Maragoype
Joyride Office Coffee- Cafe Integral Maragoype
The beans were like nothing I had ever seen before. They were large, broad and squared at the edges in a way I normally associate with Indonesian beans, but they are simply put juicy looking; fat and almost bursting. The cup is equally larger than life. It has a sweet fruit aroma. The cup itself is dense but smooth and the flavors are heavily nutty with a molasses finish.
Here is a comparison for the different varietals against a ruler in cm. These beans are pretty epically large. You should swing by the cafe if you are in the area; the coffee is good and the location is interesting.
Cafe Integral- Joyride Office Coffee
A big thanks to Cesar for letting us come in and for the espressos! We had a great time.
Cafe Integral Joyride Office Coffee
