Another poor coffee shop

[Lozzo]

A new coffee shop has just opened in the last month at Boondall on sandgate rd.
I just went in there and asked for a doppio ristretto, i got a blank look, so i asked for a double short black.
As this was going on i observed a normal 250ml flat white cup sitting next to the machine that was used, the guy was filling the basket which he filled with one dose of - i can only presume stale ground coffee , he then put the cold used flat white cup under the double spout and pressed the button and the pour colour resembled something that would come out of the top of a shaken cola can and as fast, as it was pouring he grabbed what looked like a very large paper cup and put it next to the machine, i can only assume that my coffee was going to be poured into the paper cup after being in the cold flat white cup.
I spied some shot glasses on top of the machine and asked if i could have my coffee in that ( i was still game to try it ) , the reply was that its a shot glass you can`t have coffee in that. I just said - don`t bother mate and walked out . I never learn  :, i just thought i would try them out . what a waste of time. Just had to vent , thanks. My wife just said why did i bother to go there to get dissapointed as i usually am with coffee shops.

[blanyon]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

I hear you brother although I tend to only try coffee shops when I am travelling. My wife hates being with me when I order she thinks it is mean. ;D

[A_M]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

A new coffee shop has just opened in the last month at Boondall on sandgate rd.
I just went in there and asked for a doppio ristretto, i got a blank look, so i asked for a double short black.
As this was going on i observed a normal 250ml flat white cup sitting next to the machine that was used, the guy was filling the basket which he filled with one dose of - i can only presume stale ground coffee , he then put the cold used flat white cup under the double spout and pressed the button and the pour colour resembled something that would come out of the top of a shaken cola can and as fast, as it was pouring he grabbed what looked like a very large paper cup and put it next to the machine, i can only assume that my coffee was going to be poured into the paper cup after being in the cold flat white cup.
I spied some shot glasses on top of the machine and asked if i could have my coffee in that ( i was still game to try it ) , the reply was that its a shot glass you can`t have coffee in that. I just said - don`t bother mate and walked out . I never learn  :, i just thought i would try them out . what a waste of time. Just had to vent , thanks. My wife just said why did i bother to go there to get dissapointed as i usually am with coffee shops.

Problem is they often promote themselves as a BARISTA and proudly have a certificate on teh wall..

Many of my friends and or others that drop by and have a coffee often comment that I should set a shop up.. I usually reply with " I may be a Coffee Snob, but I dont have teh skills to do the public or the name BARISTA justest"..

The other issue here is that they often get their beans from a reputable Roaster - But can the Roaster audit and withhold / restrict beans (and equipment) until they have been retrained and demonstrated that they have stepped up to the required mark...

In an ideal world YES... However REALITY BITES....

I feel for ya, because I have also had teh same and on more than one occasion have attempted to comment, but have been abused.. Then again that also clearly demonstrates they knowledge and lack of understanding..

Maybe a HALL of SHAME 8-)

[Toad]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

As bad as a lot of coffee shops are, I can tell you that the majority of them turn out far superior coffee to anything i had in the UK.  >

The poms think they have a great coffee culture, but there again, they think they have great cricket & soccer teams!

In one place, i asked for FRESHLY ground beans, only to be told that they WERE fresh - they were ground this morning.

In a Costa shop, the woman left the milk jug on the benchtop steaming/screaming away whilst she did something else...

They use so little grounds in a shot that you have to ask for an extra shot each time, at 50p (a dollar) a shot  

If you complain, they grudgingly make another, equally hopeless one. Complaining is, of course, officially frowned upon in the UK.

I learned my lesson & stuck to tea, but me wife persisted & was constantly disappointed.

For the record, we did not go to London, where I have heard there are a few decent coffee shops.

[Lovey]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

I hear you brother although I tend to only try coffee shops when I am travelling. My wife hates being with me when I order she thinks it is mean. Grin

Im hearing you on that front. After I try somewhere new and disappointing, my better and very understanding half says, "I dont know why you put yourself through that, you should have know it was going to be crap." :

If you complain, they grudgingly make another, equally hopeless one. Complaining is, of course, officially frowned upon in the UK.

Frowned upon, I thought it was their national sport ;D.

[Rocky]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

Ha! This all makes me feel better because I am another hopeless optomist who persists in ordering coffee at airports and random coffee shops in the hope that they will be drinkable. My wife always visibly grits her teeth with the "Why do you DO this to yourself" look.
Last week we were in what used to be Chinatown in The Valley in Brisbane and I dragged her into a very well known cafe for a coffee. Barista seemed to know what she was doing - but the coffee was pretty ordinary. Not busy either.
Fortunately we went to Venezianos the next day which made up for all the bad coffee I had on the trip.
There needs to be a licensing system for Baristas so that the good ones get the respect they deserve and the ones who just call themselves a Barista are identifyable.

[blanyon]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

There needs to be a licensing system for Baristas so that the good ones get the respect they deserve and the ones who just call themselves a Barista are identifyable.

Was thinking about this today and I came up with the idea of coffee snobs "licensing" cafes that are rated by members. Something along the lines of "Passed by coffee snobs for coffee snobs". Absolute nightmare for administration I know but it popped into my head and I thought it sounded like a good idea in theory.

[Coffee2Di4]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

We have - its called the "Good Coffee Where?" threads... If its not on there, then dont bother but it needs to be added to as people see fit (and have enough post counts).

Cheers
Di

[melicious]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

Good idea - maybe a little CS sticker for the window? handed out by cs-ers to indicate for other cs-ers that this is a friendly house (much like the hobo code!) rather than a national scheme that cafes would have to be aware of and apply for. Would have to be dated though - over time changes in staff and practises can mean an originally highly rated cafe might be a bit more hit and miss.

[melicious]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

We have - its called the "Good Coffee Where?" threads... If its not on there, then dont bother but it needs to be added to as people see fit (and have enough post counts).

Cheers
Di

That threads very handy if youre looking at it as a precursor to going out for a coffee, but if you are about town and happen upon a place and would like to know without internet access whether or not to bother, youre kind of on your own.

[PWade]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

Hey Lozzo,

While not as big a connosieur as others around here... I know enough to feel disappointed when stuff like this happens lol...


I also had an experience like that... I went to a coffee shop at my university and asked for a latte... the response was... "so is that with froth on it love?" i didnt know what to do! I just replied with "i just want a latte please"

needless to say it was disappointing...

[ento]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

A reliable rating system would be heaven. Unfortunately as previously stated, staff and ownership changes can have huge impact. We used to frequent one of the franchises which had passable coffee, great ambiance, and was a healthy 20 minute walk each way (the dog loved it). The owner bailed out of the franchise and sourced her own coffee. Sadly the coffee is now abysmal. We let her know we were not enjoying the new brew (kindly!) We persevered hoping it was just teething problems but no improvement. My local roaster even called on her to see if she was interested in trying another bean, but was told by the owner "I like our coffee". I guess thats the important thing when you sell coffee?
We have 6 relatively new coffee shops within walking range and only 1 serves consistently good coffee -they roast in house so that must help.

[Rocky]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

Nobody would deny that it would be very difficult to identify good cafes, given the fact that it is the Barista, not the cafe that is good. I would imagine that there is a lot of turnover in Baristas in common with the rest of the Hospitality Industry. That is why I think you could only draw attention to the good Baristas. I would be thinking any qualiication would need to be at the Certificate level from a recognised training institution that has itself achieved the required teaching standard and updates its license annually. Given that most Baristas would not necessarily have anywhere to display their Certificate, I could imagine them being given a distinctive cloth badge to attach to their clothing. Sure TAFEs offer Barista courses already but these vary wildly in quality and really need to conform to a Nationally established benchmark. I guess its all a lot of work but I am thinking it would be good for a skilled Barista to be able to proudly wear a badge of attainment for all to see. (& good for the rest of us as well)

[TC]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

I got a call today from a friend of a couple of women who have purchased a failing cafe. Maybe I could assist with some consulting?

The facts:[*]One is an economist[*]Neither has ever used an espresso machine[*]Neither has ever run a small business[*]Neither has ever worked with food[*]Neither has ever employed or managed a team of staff

They figure that they can just use the existing machine and decidedly average coffee and make a few small changes in the first 6 months..Wanna form an orderly queue at the door CSers?

Keep an eye out for a very cheap cafe for sale in about 8-12 months Id reckon :

2mcm

[Robstar]

Re: Another poor coffee shop

2m, I see some Coffee Nightmares episodes appearing in the near future! I sure as hell wish I could just walk into the back of house of some shops and say what I really wanted about the place.