I've just had my 10th wedding anniversary. By happy coincidence so has my wife. So we decided to celebrate together with a weekend in London while my parents looked after the kids.
I love London (maybe it's because I'm a Londoner). There is always something to see and do and I'm increasingly discovering places for great coffee too. I've already told you about Flat White cafe. I took the opportunity to visit it again with my wife. Another amazing espresso for me and me ol' trouble (that's me using London lingo) said that the cappuccino was even better than I make at home. I was happy to concede that title, but also purchased a couple of bags of their espresso beans to refine my craft on return to Dublin.
Now I don't believe in yin & yang, but on our trip I did experience the complete opposite of that great coffee. After a meal at a middle-east style restaurant I couldn't resist trying an Arabian Coffee from their menu. I had a feeling I knew what it was probably going to be like - similar to a Turkish Coffee which I might tell you about later this month.
To be honest, I didn't fully understand the description the waitress gave - she had a strong accent and the jingle-jangles from her belly dancing outfit didn't help - but I picked up the words: espresso, rosewater, sugar, cinnamon.
Oh. My. Goodness. It was foul. Without a doubt the worst cup of coffee I have ever had. I tried to be adventurous, honestly I did, but a couple of sips was all I could handle. It was a shame, really. The history of coffee is traced back to ancient Arabia (hence the variety of bean that is used in most quality coffees from around the world is called Arabica) and I was hoping for something a bit special. Now I can't help thinking, what if this is traditionally what coffee is supposed to taste like!!!
Tuesday, 1 September 2009
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4 comments:
"I've just had my 10th wedding anniversary. By happy coincidence so has my wife. " One of the wittiest things I've read on blogger in a fair while!
Thanks, Phiasmir. Your complimentary comments always make my day.
That really was a great way to start the blog. It made me chuckle to myself. :o) Sorry about that bad cup of coffee...I have ventured more into green tea lately and it is really an experience. I have run into some wonderful flavors and some not so wonderful ones...I will never again drink Jasmine Green tea...it is like drinking an old woman's perfume...disgusting. At least I've learned. It would be a very sad thing if that was truly how coffee was supposed to taste...Yuck...just reading your story makes me grimace. Thanks for the warning!
Snot Head, I probably actually drink more tea than coffee. But I don't do specialty teas. Just builders tea.
Now that I think about it I should dig out the tea strainer and brew up some leaves. It would have to be real tea leaves and not "herbal infussions" like mint tea - which rarely has any actual tea in it. A bit like white chocolate, which doesn't have any cocoa in it - the other bean ;-)
Any suggestions? Give me your top three.
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