Super pleasant surprise at Costa in Wantage

 

I posted previously that our local Costa is not my favorite place simply because it is not clean (at least not up to my standards of cleanness - and here I mainly refer to the state of tables). It's interesting to see though that my personal relationship with this brand and place changed recently due to a pretty good product. I was really pleasantly surprised to try their new coffee drink - Cortado:

Welcome Cortado, the brilliant new drink that's set to change the way you enjoy coffee. Made with one shot of pure Mocha Italia espresso and a smooth layer of milk; it's the short way to enjoy a long lasting coffee lift.

See I am not much of a cappuccino fan. I like my coffee black and strong. I only ask for milk in my coffee when I feel that my stomach simply cannot take more black coffee. It's sad and I wish more coffee places in the UK had the habit of providing clear water next to black coffee. I remember that in Budapest with on-going supply of crystal clean water next to my short black cuppa I would never have problems of this kind. Thus I am really happy that Costa's Cortado has a perfect ratio of milk to coffee. It is delicious and I do not remember when was the last time I used the term for any coffee drink containing milk;)

Saying that I need to check with the local branch one fact - on the site they state that it contains one shot of espresso, but I clearly remember being told there were two shots in my drink....

In any case I really enjoyed my Cortado at Costa in Wantage and I think I might just go back to have another one and take another picture of pretty latte art;) 

Why I do not like to drink coffee at Costa, why I like Starbucks even more and why I might reconsider the Missing Bean

When it comes to choosing between Costa and Starbucks it's not much of a question to me. Why? Well, just look at the photo below - a typical view of a table at Costa in our small town. The tables are so sticky that I am afraid to touch them or anything else for that matter. I had to go in today while waiting for the bus (the place happens to be the best one when you want to spot the arriving buses) and had a quick peak at the state of the counter - well, I did not know you can make much mess with cocoa powder when decorating cappuccinos, but as I learned - yes, you can!;) On the top of that I have learned today about a law suit against the company initiated by a friend of a friend after her observation that only non-British employees happen to wear name tags with a flag representing the country of their origin. Well, if that's true it's a pretty stupid and unfair policy! (Is that really the case? I would appreciate feedback on this as in our local Costa I think I only spotted one person who seems to be non-British, so I find it hard to tell). 

I increasingly like Starbucks though. I have always been a keen visitor simply because I like the coffee and I am a huge fan of ever smiling staff. Now that I have finished "Pour Your Heart Into It" I am truly fascinated by their business model, history and growth. I feel strongly and completely agree with the priorities Howard Schultz presents in his final chapter and I am looking forward to reading more books on Starbuck's which by now pile up on my new #coffee shelf;) Whether one likes the taste of their coffee or not I think most of us had rather pleasant experiences in their stores. It FEELS like the company cares for their employees and this is exactly why I am willing to support them by purchasing their products and spending time in their shops. 

I also like the Missing Bean in Oxford but today I was a little bit disappointed in their staff. I met a friend who was up for a truly good cuppa so we headed off to their shop but it happened to fall into the current filming of "Lewis", a British TV series I watch occasionally. It was quite fun to watch the crew finally working in sunny weather and promising us coffee after "just 10 more minutes". It was not fun at all to see them packing up (in less than 10 minutes actually) but the staff of the place closing it down for an hour and a half. I really do not understand why such a well prepared and logistically almost completely non-intrusive team of filmmakers could cause a havoc demanding 90 minutes of clearing up. Please do not get me wrong, it's not a ramble and we did not really care much having plenty of other choices around but it was a bit strange. 

So for now, if I am in Oxford, Starbucks or AMT it is. But AMT deserves a separate post, I think;) 

Update: I take it back - the part on the Missing Bean! It looks like the staff warned customers via their Facebook page! There, learned my lesson and will follow them there!;) 

Coffee treats at home!

Every evening I am falling asleep with new stories of success or failure, magnificent discoveries or terrible living conditions of people involved in coffee trade over the ages and continents. While I am reading history of this beverage I am also changing my attitude to coffee drinking. Today I have noticed that when I took my son to the local Costa (treat to him, not so much to me...) instead of buying a coffee I decided to spend a little bit of money on a set of syrups to make our coffee brewed at home a little bit more interesting.

We are all getting more and more excited about Christmas so I have started with a cup of espresso (ah, how I love the fact that we have decided to buy a proper coffee machine!) with roasted hazelnut syrup. Just few drops and my usual short black classic became a source of love, warmth and tenderness. As you can see I drink it from a special cup given to me by closest friend. I always think of her when I drink from that lovely piece! 

How about you? Do you have your favourite mug or do you focus more on what is inside of it? To me both matter a lot. I like the cup to match my hands and warm them up on a chilly day or wake me up with slow rise of temperature on those days when I am still half asleep sitting down at our kitchen table....

With this new study of coffee I start to love my home made cup of it so much better! I invest more time and love in it and I get so much more back. Simple joys of life for me, huge burden of history in a single cup for so many....