Roasterie

The Roasterie Kansas City blend has long been one of my favorite coffee blends. My wife and I consume so much of it that we buy the large bulk bags of it at Costco. When The Roasterie factory was renovated, in the second half of last year, to expand and add a cafe (called the Bean Hanger), we knew that this would be a frequent stop for our Saturday morning coffee needs.

The exterior is impressive; the most stunning aspect being, of course, the full size DC-3 mounted atop the factory. The interior is modern with a bit of a retro flair that we have come to expect from The Roasterie.  They have even just added an event space between the cafe and the factory, it looks amazing! I snapped a quick photo of the coffee bar, but it does not do the space justice, Roasterie has a 360 degree Google view on their website (if you want a better look at it): http://www.theroasterie.com/about/tours 

The Bean Hanger has memorabilia and coffee paraphernalia for sale along with countless blends of Roasterie coffee.

Factory tours are offered daily (Mon-Sat) at 10am, with a second tour at 11am on Saturdays. We have yet to take one, but are very anxious to do so.

During one of our recent trips to The Roasterie Cafe, we tried the drink of the month (for February): The Sweetheart Mocha. It was a regular Roasterie mocha, however instead of regular steamed milk, it had steamed Shatto strawberry milk. This was probably my wife's favorite latte of all times! The barista even put a little heart on the top for bonus points.

The Roasterie is offering an Irish Cream latte, in honor of St. Patrick's Day, as the March drink of the month. Or you can stop by and pick up some of The Roasterie Irish blend to take home and make your own Irish Coffees (recipe to the right, click to enlarge). Aye, cheers!

This is an awesome place on the Westside to go meet up with friends, take a first date, read a book, learn about coffee, or just grab a dang good cup of coffee!

First Time for Everything

As it is said, there is a first time for everything. My first of the week: my first live TV appearance. 

I was asked to go on Fox 4 to talk about some of my favorite local brands and restaurants for St. Patrick's Day. I was given three and a half minutes to talk about as many different products/places as I could. I do want to apologize to any great KC brands/restaurants that had St. Patrick's Day items that I did not have a chance to discuss.

Admittedly, live TV can be a bit intimidating. There are [who knows how many people] watching and if you screw up, they all see it and are going to discount everything that you say. I tried to give good information, not be too corny, and still keep it all under three and a half minutes. I did feel a bit like Ricky Bobby in his first interview though, I did not know what to do with my hands.

I am no Anthony Bourdain, but you can judge for yourself how you think I did (link pasted below). Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Lets get my views up so that maybe they will have me back on again. Perhaps for Cinco de Mayo?

http://fox4kc.com/2013/03/09/irish-coffee/

A Different Way of Thinking

I recently attended a wine tasting at Boozefish Wine Bar, for a friend's birthday. We drank good wine, we ate hors d'oeuvres, and we had a good time. Though the wine was good and the hors d'oeuvres were full of flavour, this post is about a conversation that I had with the sommelier. I left with a new look on language that will hopefully be reflected in my coming posts.

We tasted a flight of Single Vineyard wines from Lamadrid, an Argentinian vineyard. Lamadrid owns vineyards all over Argentina, the Single Vineyard designation simply states that all of the grapes in that particular bottle came from a "single vineyard" (similar to single barrel whiskey). The flight consisted of a Torrontes, a Malbec, and a Cabernet Sauvignon, of which all were great, but I gravitated toward the Malbec. This initially came as a surprise to me, as (in general) I prefer Cabs to Malbecs. However, this did not surprise the sommelier, as Malbecs are the pride of Argentina.

He went on to state that while "new world" wines are named after the grapes that make them up, while "old world" wines (namely those from France's wine regions) are named after the city or region in which they are produced. Pourquoi? Because the wine is not supposed to taste like the grape that it is made with, but the region in which it was produced. The Malbecs of Argentina are said to be the same, Malbecs just taste like Argentina.

Similarly, the French language (a Romantic Language) allows French wine writers to describe wines in ways that the English language just does not allow (but take what I say about the English language with a grain of salt, as I am no English major, which I am sure is grossly apparent in my writing). Where English wine writers describe wines as "buttery" or "with hints of citrus" or whatever, which may be true (and distinguishable by the trained tongue), but are also often used to confuse and belittle those not trained in all things wine. The French prefer to personify the wine and describe it as "playful" or "fickle" or other adjectives. 

Having said all of that: I started this blog because I wanted to let the everyman know about awesome food in a non-pretentious, food critic-y way. I wanted to "cut the crap" (if you will), get down to what is important, and un-complicate good food. Apparently the French agree with me!

Boozefish provides flavourful hummus, cheeses, and cured meats to pair with the wines. The sommeliers  provide an education to pair with their pouring. I am just going to do my best to bring it to the people.

Head to Boozefish if you want an education of your own. They also have a good selection of craft beer, for those non-winos. And if that is not enough to convince you, you may even run into a girl that your friend had an awkward physical encounter with in college.. who is there with her husband (it happened to us, and it was still awesomely awkward). More than anything, I would describe Boozefish as sophisticated, but not stiff. Sante!

"Eat My Sausage!"

This post is titled after what the Haus twitter account once told me. I took their advice and I advise you all to do the same!

Haus is a German style sausage and bier haus that serves wurst made locally (by The Local Pig), on bread that is also made locally (by Farm to Market). The interior of Haus is what I consider to be the perfect mix of modern and retro, just enough retro that the modern decor isn't over the top, and just enough modern decor that it doesn't feel like Zoo Bar (which I do enjoy, from time to time). They even have a stack of board games in the corner if you just want to sit at the bar and enjoy some bier.

There are so many delicious sounding options on the wurst menu at Haus, I had a very difficult time deciding which one to order. The duck-ginger-sage, lamb-cumin-oregano, and roasted eggplant-feta were all calling my name, but I went with the pork-tequila-serrano pepper sausage with homestyle sauerkraut, which is a more "rugged" alternative to that store bought junk that they label "Kraut", and sweet peppers. It was a fantastic choice, it had a little bit kick to it that was offset by the sweet peppers and the vinegar from the sauerkraut. My wife went with the smoked chicken and apple sausage (also with kraut and sweet peppers), which was a great milder, slightly sweeter option. All of the mustards are great on both wurst that we had.

As a side, we had the large haus cut fries with cucumber-yogurt and curry-sour cream dipping sauces. I had high hopes for the cucumber-yogurt sauce, reminiscent of a tzatziki sause, but it was the curry-sour cream sauce won my heart. 

We washed all of this down with two beirs. I went with the Aventinus Weizenstarkbier, a dark German wheat bier. My wife went with the Weihenstephaner Kristallweiss, a light German wheat bier. Both were great options, both had playful fruity notes. Haus also has a plethora of draft bier options for those who prefer a freshly poured glass of bier to bottles.

Haus is a great place to take a date or to meet friends for a bite to eat before a night on the trolley. It is certainly awesome and we will be back soon to try the rest of the sausage options.

Crossroads Coffee

This past Sunday, on our way to church, my wife wanted a cup of coffee. Realizing that we had yet to visit the nearby Crossroads Coffeehouse, I recommended that we go there. This turned out to be a fantastic decision!

With convenient parking out front, and adjacent, the Crossroads Coffeehouse (XRC) has a wonderfully convenient location. When you walk into XRC, you are greeted by a warm, slate-laden coffee bar. The walls are adorned with fantastic artwork (that I would hang on the walls of my home), created by local artists, and listed for a reasonable sale price (the most important part for us unpretentious). There is even a Central Perk-esque stage in the front window, where (if you listen really hard) you can even hear Phoebe Buffay singing "Smelly Cat". Okay, okay, that last part is not true, but you get what I am saying.

Upon approaching the bar, you see the numerous pastries (and on this particular Sunday - and with all likelihood, every Sunday - bountiful Quiche), sitting there, calling your name. This particular Sunday, I was able to resist, knowing that I had an upcoming week of gluttony ahead of me. However, I know that I will fall  victim to the sweet goodness of a XRC breakfast soon enough. Today was all about the coffee. 

Mi esposa went with the cappuccino. I, however, went with something more interesting (the Purple Haze). I tell you what: you put some crazy delicious concoction on your menu and give it a name that infers that its ingredients are slightly taboo, you will find your way onto this blog! The Purple Haze is essentially a latte with caramel, chocolate, and hazelnut flavours. I imagine that the "Purple" comes from the colour that comes from mixing chocolate and caramel. The "Haze" obviously comes from the hazelnut. The result is the richest and most unique coffee drink I have ever had in my life! 

The only question that I have left about XRC is why it took me so long to try it. They serve Chicago's famous Intelligentsia coffee. The ambiance is the perfect middle-ground between the hipster-packed low-end coffeehouses (that I also love, once the hipsters have gone to bed) and the big name chains (who's names will not be mentioned here). I honestly cannot imagine a more perfect coffeehouse, unless they served local coffee, but we will let that slide for now.

Half baked

Well, in all honestly, it's more like 2/3 baked. When you have caramel/peanut butter/other ooey-gooey, sticky-icky, sugary goodness sandwiched between two already amazing brownies, what you get is the Killer Brownie (r) from Dorothy Lane Market!

The name says it all, but still doesn't do it justice. The Killer Brownie (r) is 1/3 of a pound of awesomeness. These things are legit (so legit that they are actually trademarked)! I was actually kind of psyched out when I got them in the mail and realized that this was some Man vs Food type of business! The photos I've attached do not do it justice, I measured them out when they arrived, they measure out at 1.5" x 2.25" x 3" (each).

I got 4 of them, but I had to eat them 2 at a time (immediately after a long workout). Even by limiting my consumption (somewhat), I still got a sugar buzz that not even a Red Bull can rival. After eating two of them, I ran around the house about 75 times and then passed out in a sugar comma.

Now that I have you all scared to death, these things are truly epic! If you are ever in the Dayton, Ohio area, you should stop into Dorothy Lane Market and grab one. Or if you are like me and have no idea when you will be anywhere Dayton, you are in luck because they ship/deliver! See descriptions of the Killer Brownies (r) that i have tried below:

Pictured to the right (in order from left to right) are The Original and the Brookie. The Original is about what it sounds like: caramel sandwiched between two traditional brownies and covered with powdered sugar (contains pecans). This brownie is for the brownie lover that is on the quest for something more. The Brookie (nut free, for those that are allergic, or just do not like nuts): a chocolate chip cookie-brownie-caramel sandwich. This brownie is perfect for someone who cannot decide weather they want a rich brownie, or a rich and gooey chocolate chip cookie. The solution is here... ...have both!

Pictured to the right (in order from left to right) are Blonde Ambition and The Peanut Butter. The Blonde Ambition: Macadamia nuts, Heath mix, and white chocolate sandwiched between two blonde brownies. I actually slept on this brownie before tasting it, boy was I wrong! This was possibly my favorite of the four. It tasted like you came home from trick-or-treating, dumped your candy out on the floor, then ate it all at once (simply incredible)! The Peanut Butter (pretty self-explanatory, nut allergies beware): some THICK peanut butter sandwiched between two peanut brownies. This one was probably my wife's favorite of the four.

Lastly, if you order the Killer Brownies (r) to be delivered to your house or business, they come in this awesome tin that I have repurposed into my blog contact business card holder.

Getting Baked!

This past weekend I was blessed with the opportunity to take a tour of Farm to Market Bread's new downtown bakery. This is exciting to me, firstly because my wife and I love the product and love downtown businesses. Secondly because, being an engineer and having worked in/on a few food plants in my day, I am known to nerd out when it comes to processes and industrial machinery.

Farm to Market Bread has taken over the old Hereford House event space in The Crossroads district. Not the original restaurant (that the owner was just convicted of burning down), but the second one (that also used to be a Paddy O' Quigley's, across from The Cashew). My wife and I smell the delicious bread baking every time we are jogging down Main Street. We had always wondered if they had a shop inside the bakery that sells the bread, and they sadly do not... yet, but it is in the works. They hope to have a bread shop and event space open in front of the bakery soon.

Buns in the oven.
(for Blanc Burgers)

Now to the bakery: It is exactly that, a bakery. Going into the tour, I had expected something much more mechanical, much more automated, much more of a factory setting. But I was wrong, it is very much a bakery, where the bread is made by people that know about the science of making bread and love making it. This is not a Wonder Bread bakery (too soon?).

The bread making process at FTM is almost a 24/7 operation. FTM bakes and delivers fresh bread to local grocery stores and restaurants 7 days a week. That means you have people coming in at 3 AM to start mixing dough, then you have activities going on throughout the day (shaping, proofing, baking, packaging, etc). Then to make sure that grocery stores and restaurants get the freshest bread, drivers show up at about 2 AM the next day to take the bread to it's final destination.

Dough in the new proofer.

Don't get me wrong, there are some awesome advancements in the new bakery that any bakery would love to have. For example: They have a huge new dough proofer (warm humidity) and dough retarder (cool humidity) that are both twice as large as those in the previous bakery. Proofing is a very important part of the bread making process. Not enough time in the proofer, the bread will not rise to the desired height. Too much time in the proofer, and your bread will go flat.

The bakery's HVAC system is made up of a canvas-like ductwork that blows cooling air upward, instead of downward (which would dry out the dough). <-- I told you that I was about to nerd out!

The breads: FTM bakery has the most amazing breads! As I told you, my wife and I love their breads, even before being invited in for a tour. They have both oven baked breads and hearth baked breads. We love the Wheat bread and Grains Galore for sandwiches. The hearth baked Sourdough is incredible! <--Try it with the Rachael Ray tuna melt that I posted about a few months ago.

These are a few of
my favorite things

We were given an awesome tip during our tour. If you have a problem eating a whole loaf of FTM before it goes bad (as it is made with no preservatives - it will not last forever - unlike Twinkies, too soon again?) then put it in an air tight ziplock and stick it in the freezer. This will keep your FTM bread fresh until you are ready to enjoy it.

They even have a couple holiday offerings - that if you have yet to pick up something to take to that Christmas potluck, I have the perfect offering for you - Stollen and Panettone. Stollen and Panettone are both traditional Christmas breads, from Germany and Italy, respectively. Both are a sort of fruit cake-breads, made with sweet candied fruits, and are just fantastic (just like every other bread from FTM).

If you have not yet enjoyed a loaf of FTM bread, do yourself a favour and go pick one up. If you already love FTM, I hope you enjoyed the pics!