I’d used blogspot for more than 15 years, but, over the past several years, it became increasingly glitchy. For a host of reasons, I ended up establishing a writer website on wordpress and decided it made sense to migrate my very occasional bikingyogini blog here. So here goes my 1st entry: Coffeeneuring 2021.
Ride 1 – October 18 – 17 miles – Best Buns
How better to start this year’s coffeeneuring challenge than to ride Arlington’s 17-mile loop? My favorite way to ride the loop is to head east on the Custis Trail, south on the Mt Vernon Trail, and west on the W&OD. Conveniently – at mile 12 I arrive at Shirlington – home of Best Buns. I’d hoped to have a sticky bun with my espresso, but alas, I was too late and they were all out. I had to “settle” for a walnut/almond croissant. It was so delicious I thought, perhaps my “theme-within-a-theme” could be espresso + croissant.
While sitting outside to enjoy my treat, I saw a young man leash his two adorable French bulldogs to the fence as he went inside to pick up his order. The dogs kept their focus on the door waiting, brokenhearted, for their human to return. They had such soulful eyes!
Ride 2 – October 20 – 13 miles – Caffe Amouri
I wanted to pick up a few items at Whole Foods, so I decided to bike to Vienna and check out Caffe Amouri – which I seem to recall other local coffeeneurs visiting. Just a block off the W&OD Trail, it was not surprising to see lots of bikes filling the rack. Ordering my signature espresso (this time with whipped cream) I also got a croissant. Sadly, in close comparison to the heavenly croissant from Best Buns this one was grossly inferior and, in my opinion, the coffee was only so-so.
I did, however, again get to see a cute dog – this time a standard poodle – and it was a beautiful day for a ride.
Ride 3 – October 29 – 2 miles – High Point
This week I was visiting the cycling yogi in Philadelphia and I first had to find a bike for myself to use there, following the tragic theft of my other bike. It’s always sad to have a bike stolen (especially one I’d equipped with a mirror, bell, rack, and fenders) and as many of you may know – the cost of bikes has gone up as availability has gone down. People turned to bikes to avoid public transit and gym visits last year during the height of covid. But it’s still hard to find a good, not-too-costly bike.
After poking around on the web I ended up at Philadelphia Bikesmith where I found a new-to-me used bike. At 5’2″ tall, I finally concluded that an extra small frame is more comfortable for me and there was one nice used bike (a Specialized “hard rock” model) in a beautiful shade of red.
By the time I brought it in my car to Mt Airy (where the cycling yogi lives) the weather was threatening to rain soon. So, with just 20 minutes to closing time I hightailed it to High Point at the Allen’s Lane SEPTA station. Halfway there it started raining. I had a moment’s hesitation about continuing – but I persevered and fortunately the showers stopped. With 10 minutes to spare I ordered my espresso but, alas, there was no croissant to continue my quest.
Having missed my sticky bun on my first ride, I opted for a cinnamon roll. While the coffee was pretty good, the cinnamon roll was not something I’d order again. But, as the sky again darkened, I was happy to make it back from my brief ride before the big rain came.
Ride 4 – October 30 – 8 miles – Ultimo
Still in Philly, I researched nearby coffeeshops with decent bike routes. Let me digress a moment here to relate that the cycling yogi was hit by a car while on his bike back in July. With a broken pelvis, two broken legs, a broken arm, and – just for insult – a broken nose, he is still recovering after a total of 8 surgeries and it’s hard to say when he’ll be back on a bike. We all know that biking around cars can be hazardous and I have not given up my biking, but I am increasingly cautious. Also – in my opinion – Philadelphia drivers are more aggressive toward bikes than they are in the DC area.
About half my ride there was in a nice bike lane, the other half – no lane and not really enough space for bikes and cars. Although the street was painted with sharrows, I did not feel at all comfortable taking the lane.
That said, it was a very pleasant coffeeshop, I got to see an unfamiliar part of the city, and I had a slice of pumpkin bread with my espresso – having given up on my croissant theme.
Ride 5 – November 5 – 7 miles – Kaldi’s Social House
Almost as though they knew it was coffeeneuring season, I received via email an article in Arlington Magazine called 9 Coffee Shops We Love. I’d only ever been to four of them, so I decided to try ones on their list for my last three rides – all of them in Clarendon.
First up was Kaldi’s on N 10th Street. It has an area for people to work and serves some brunch items – but it was too noisy for my taste and the one barista took so much time with his coffee art that it was the longest wait for an espresso, despite not being that crowded. Still, I wasn’t in a hurry and they served the fanciest espresso, along with a glass of bubbly water – just like in Vienna, Austria.
The coffee was delicious – as was the marble poundcake. So, while I didn’t care for the vibe of the place, it was probably the best coffee.
Ride 6 – November 6 – 8 miles – Detour
I had planned to visit this shop the day before but couldn’t find it because I had misremembered the name of the street it’s on. Even once I found Jackson St it was not easy to find Detour – which is tucked in next to a Jiffy Lube.
I vastly preferred the vibe at Detour – it’s a place I’d happily return to if I had a while to spend. The espresso was ok – not great – and I was intrigued by a pumpkin croissant. Well – it looked like a croissant, it tasted pretty good, but it did not have the consistency of a croissant. If I want a real croissant, I definitely will stick to Best Buns.
Ride 7 – November 8 – 8 miles – East West
Although coffeeneuring can continue through November, good weather is not a given. Taking advantage of another sunny day in the 60s, I visited East West on Wilson Boulevard. They had some interesting lunch items but I stuck with my espresso and sweet treat theme and ordered a large cake donut covered in cinnamon sugar. Again the coffee was just ok and the donut was good, but not something I’d crave.
So – all total – 63 miles, 7 espressos, 3 croissants, 4 other treats, 3 cute dogs, and 5 new-to-me coffeeshops. Who knows, I may bike to the last 2 shops in the Arlington Magazine article, but they won’t be part of my “official” coffeeneuring challenge for 2021.
Enid writes 