20th and South: Cupcake Boutique

**ofeibush** · 10-21-2012, 11:15 PM

Agreed.

**Gladys** · 10-22-2012, 08:46 AM

Originally Posted by ofeibush

Thank you NorthPhilly. We are looking at offering Anodyne Coffee in place of Counter Culture. Have you ever tried it?

Everyone has Counter Culture and it's not what it used to be....doesn't have the same values we fell in love with. That and quite frankly, they refuse to sell us coffee at some of our locations because of the proximity to other Counter Culture accounts. It's a weird company.

Anodyne Coffee Roasting - Home if you want to learn more.

I like old city coffee. But no one carries it but them. I guess by their own design.

**lee** · 10-22-2012, 08:58 AM

Originally Posted by ofeibush

Thank you NorthPhilly. We are looking at offering Anodyne Coffee in place of Counter Culture. Have you ever tried it?

Anodyne Coffee Roasting - Home if you want to learn more.

Have you tried Dean's Beans? Fair trade, organic and very, very good. Also much less expensive than most, $9 a pound retail. I love the dark Sumatran French Roast for hot. I find the Counter Culture coffee served at the new Ultimo really bitter, especially in the pour-over.

**Gladys** · 10-22-2012, 10:20 AM

i just had ultimo's decaf, literally i just finished my first cup, i the poor over and actually found it to be quite good. much better than starbucks (even as an americano, i find starbucks too bitter) and just about everyone else's i've tried accept whatever they are serving on the corner of 21st and Chestnut. That is a really good roast, even brewed. although have to admit. old city is still my fav.

**mwang** · 10-22-2012, 11:35 AM

I couldn't be more thrilled that Ultimo is open and that other businesses will soon be joining them. But the best coffee in the neighborhood is BY FAR Ants Pants... has been and continues to be. I don't think they do much in the way of advertising but even as someone who frequents Elixir and from time to time OCF and now Ultimo (all of whom are great), to my taste Ants Pants is heads and tails better... rich, smooth, balanced, and just consistently on.

**Reds** · 10-22-2012, 11:48 AM

Originally Posted by mwang

I couldn't be more thrilled that Ultimo is open and that other businesses will soon be joining them. But the best coffee in the neighborhood is BY FAR Ants Pants... has been and continues to be. I don't think they do much in the way of advertising but even as someone who frequents Elixir and from time to time OCF and now Ultimo (all of whom are great), to my taste Ants Pants is heads and tails better... rich, smooth, balanced, and just consistently on.

Well, it's obviously a matter of personal taste that can't be argued. I must say that I strongly disagree. Personally, Ants Pants is my last choice among all the local cafes based on the taste of the coffee alone. To each his/her own.

**Lolly** · 10-22-2012, 12:10 PM

Don't think I've ever tried Ants Pants so no opinion there, but who else thinks Beauty Shop Cafe makes a damn good cup 'o Joe?

PS Funny aside, I just Googled Beauty Shop to see if they had a website yet, and apparently they still don't - but this old article came up which gave me a chuckle: The Beauty Shop CafÃ (Besides, who needs a website any more these days, I tend to follow BSC on Facebook anyway.)

**OffenseTaken** · 10-22-2012, 12:42 PM

The best coffee in the neighborhood isn't even made in a coffee house: it's at Magpie. Which, by the way, is just an extraordinary little place in general.

OCF is the only other coffeehouse worth going to, in part because it's not a ride in a time machine back to 1994 every time I go in there.

**BrianL** · 10-23-2012, 08:10 PM

Walked past here on my way home and saw the candy stripe cease and desist order from L&I. WTF???

**Gladys** · 10-23-2012, 10:41 PM

you'd think they were building a roofdeck

**bradley** · 10-24-2012, 12:34 PM

Originally Posted by Dolemite

I love those Counter Culture coffees. Please don't get rid of them Ori. I like the Greene Street stuff too but I like the choices. Those CC Ethiopians are amazing as is the Costa Rican.

Agreed. Most of the roasters on this thread are worth the $2.75-$3.50 it costs for a (pour over or French press) cup. This is the difference between a hamburger and a steak. It took me a few hundred cups of coffee before I noticed the difference, but now I can see why people compare coffee to wine. Even the good coffee shops are (subjectively) hit-or-miss. Each batch might be a different and some are clearly less interesting than others. This is part of the appeal though, and carrying multiple roasters can only improve the overall quality.

While I'm partial to Counter Culture, I think that all of the roasters mentioned on this thread are worth the extra price. These include stumptown, PTs, and Intelligentsia (elixr sells them retail), and reanimator. I bought a bag of Green St coffee from OCF, and it took me a while to get the grind right at home, but it was easily the peer of the others. I'll try anodyne sometime.

**Jayfar** · 10-24-2012, 04:39 PM

Originally Posted by bradley

Agreed. Most of the roasters on this thread are worth the $2.75-$3.50 it costs for a (pour over or French press) cup. This is the difference between a hamburger and a steak. It took me a few hundred cups of coffee before I noticed the difference, but now I can see why people compare coffee to wine. Even the good coffee shops are (subjectively) hit-or-miss. Each batch might be a different and some are clearly less interesting than others. This is part of the appeal though, and carrying multiple roasters can only improve the overall quality.

While I'm partial to Counter Culture, I think that all of the roasters mentioned on this thread are worth the extra price. These include stumptown, PTs, and Intelligentsia (elixr sells them retail), and reanimator. I bought a bag of Green St coffee from OCF, and it took me a while to get the grind right at home, but it was easily the peer of the others. I'll try anodyne sometime.

When I ordered 2 to-go on opening day and was surprised (and delighted) that they were made to order pour-overs, I assumed that would be their regular modus operandi. I was a little disappointed when I stopped for a cup yesterday morning and they poured it from an urn.

**andrewd** · 10-24-2012, 04:53 PM

My understanding is they have one blend that is always ready to go with no waiting and the rest are all pour-over as ordered.

**Gladys** · 10-24-2012, 05:37 PM

Originally Posted by Jayfar

When I ordered 2 to-go on opening day and was surprised (and delighted) that they were made to order pour-overs, I assumed that would be their regular modus operandi. I was a little disappointed when I stopped for a cup yesterday morning and they poured it from an urn.

If you order decaf it's always a pour over. oddly though i make a mean one myself and only really stop somewhere when i'm running late. So having to wait for a pour over is annoying, i'll only stop in when i have time to hang for a few minutes. It's a good cup absolutely. Not the best but certainly fresh!!!

**Citigirl** · 01-11-2013, 08:56 PM

That's cray-cray.

**Gladys** · 01-11-2013, 09:29 PM

what are you talking about.

**JugglerDave** · 01-13-2013, 05:09 PM

My wife went in. The smallest ice cream size is 2 scoops for $4.00

Wife asks, "do you have a kid's size"?

Counterperson responds "No, Bassett's only allows us to do 2 scoops minimum. But don't worry, they are really small scoops".

So great, a small serving of ice cream for $4.00

**Grad hospital** · 01-14-2013, 10:44 AM

Originally Posted by JugglerDave

My wife went in. The smallest ice cream size is 2 scoops for $4.00

Wife asks, "do you have a kid's size"?

Counterperson responds "No, Bassett's only allows us to do 2 scoops minimum. But don't worry, they are really small scoops".

So great, a small serving of ice cream for $4.00

you know your neighborhood has arrived when your paying 6 dollars for a tiny slice of pie, 30 dollars for a men's haircut and now 4 dollars for two scoops of ice cream.

**JugglerDave** · 01-14-2013, 10:01 PM

Originally Posted by Grad hospital

you know your neighborhood has arrived when your paying 6 dollars for a tiny slice of pie, 30 dollars for a men's haircut and now 4 dollars for two scoops of ice cream.

Speaking of which, I did get a slice of the Coconut Custard Pie from magpie on Saturday afternoon and it was pretty damn amazingly good.

I'll pay the premium of $6 for the extra artisan-ness of homemade pie. Dishing out Bassett's not quite as much

**Brian616** · 01-15-2013, 11:36 AM

Originally Posted by Gladys

If you order decaf it's always a pour over. oddly though i make a mean one myself and only really stop somewhere when i'm running late. So having to wait for a pour over is annoying, i'll only stop in when i have time to hang for a few minutes. It's a good cup absolutely. Not the best but certainly fresh!!!

The best coffee around, IME, is what I make using my rinky-dinky coffeemaker at home with the beans from the Fitler Sq. farmer's market. I think they are called Philly Fair Trade Roasters. $14 for a full pound, and just mind-blowingly fresh.