#ElCafeDe2013 Coffee tip of the week: Go Somewhere New!

Most of the tips up until now involve already being at the coffee shop or cafe enjoying your coffee. What about before you even decide what kind of coffee you want to experience? Whether you’re traveling or around home and you’re looking for coffee, you own it to yourself to…

Tip #13: …go somewhere new!

Experience new beans, flavor and coffee-making and the atmosphere that surrounds it. Whenever I’m in Chicago, The Wormhole Coffee and Intelligentsia are my go-to coffee shops. On a recent day in the Windy City however it was time to experience something new. I was introduced to more of the Chicago coffee scene by Pola of Jetting Around. First up was Julius Meinl cafe in the Lincoln Square neighborhood.

The roots of Julius Meinl go back to 1862 and Vienna. Walk inside and you’ll get a Viennese feel as all the furniture and fixtures were built back home. They have a strong presence throughout Europe and since 2002 in the Windy City.

My choice of coffee was the Melange which came highly recommended. It’s an espresso with equal parts steamed milk and foam with some meinl european cocoa on top. I added in an extra shot of espresso for good measure. A glass of water was along side for the ride.

Besides coffee, you’ll find a wide variety of Viennese themed pastries and cuisine.

She also took me to Asado Coffee, a relatively new addition to the Lakeview neighborhood.

We had great conversations with both the barista and owner about their history and coffee-making process. There are some pour over coffees just waiting to be made.

I selected the Cafe Con Leche from the small menu of three on this day. It was made with the freshest of beans, roasted in-house, and liquid sweetener. I got a grounded bag of their Especiales coffee for the road. The smell coming from within OMG! 🙂

The coffee shop hopping resulted in some Chicago neighborhood exploration, not to mention some great conversations and times with Pola. The other coffee shops and these of course I will return too, but it’s always good no matter where you are at to go somewhere new!