The feeling of being surprised isn’t always pleasant. I’m at Barefoot Coffee Roasters right now (Santa Clara), arguably one of the most raved about coffee places in the Bay Area. I have a seminary class here in a few hours. I’ve been looking forward to coming here for a very long time.
Surprise #1: This espresso joint which has been univocally hailed as a local jewel on ‘third wave’ coffee snob blogs and forums for years… is overrun with students and folks with laptops. It’s an absolute mess. There is a couple, right now, stretched across the sofa snuggling and making out. And it’s in a stucco strip mall next to Bed Bath & Beyond. There are several charcoal drawings of villagers coffee picking (presumably Fair Trade), though. Yay.
Suprise #2: The Barefoot beans that friends bought for my home espressing–the ones that I thought didn’t come out ‘right’ because my loaner Krups machine and technique are inferior to the professional’s–it turns out they taste just the same here. So either a.) I lack the sophistication and discernment of the coffee academy or b.) it’s all a sham. Or I need to try something with milk.
Surprise #3: Some stranger randomly sat next to me, reached out, and just picked my nose. Just kidding. But that gives you a sense of how caught off guard I was coming here.
