If you like to ride a bike and drink coffee (or any beverage, really) why not become a Coffeeneur? This annual challenge brings together – virtually – bike enthusiasts from across the globe. We post photos, share anecdotes, and feel like part of a community in a world that often feels isolating and divided. So, at the turn of the season into autumn, we coffeeneurs pedal to at least seven different coffeeshops, parks, or wherever our desires lead us – each ride with a minimum distance of two miles.
I try to choose local, independent shops, and usually treat myself to something tasty to eat with my coffee or tea. What follows is a write-up of this year’s adventures. I always aspire to have a “theme within a theme” but it usually fails – either because a coffeeshop doesn’t have the beverage I’ve chosen or for some other reason. What I did manage to do was include a photo of my backpack, complete with its vintage Coffeeneur swag, to document each ride.
Trip 1 – October 16, 2022 – Good Company It took me a while to find this location as I’d transposed two numbers when I put it into my GPS. After going around several blocks I called the shop and then rechecked the address. My perseverance paid off. They made a delicious cortado and the plain cake donut I had with it was delicious (and enormous). The shop was hopping on a late Sunday morning and there were plenty of outdoor seating options. It was a beautiful day, so I added a few more detours on my ride for a total of 8 miles.
Trip 2 – October 17, 2022 – Bayou Bakery I wanted to vote early and knowing that Bayou Bakery is close to the Arlington, VA Courthouse made this ride a coffeeneuring no brainer. Why? Because they make some delicious biscuits! They also usually have good Halloween decorations. My mistake was dashing out of the house and leaving my bike lock sitting on the railing of my front steps. I wheeled my bike into the courthouse, where the security guard told me I couldn’t take it into the building, but agreed to let me leave it by her while I voted.
Sadly, they were somewhat less accommodating at Bayou Bakery. I wheeled the bike in and left it in what I thought was an out-of-the-way corner. But after ordering my macchiato and biscuit it was declared a “hazard” and I was told I had to remove it from the premises. It was a bit awkward to transfer my food, coffee, and bike out to the patio, but I managed. The macchiato was so-so, but the biscuit did not disappoint. Distance: 9 miles.
Trip 3 – October 24, 2022 – Northside Social (Arlington). Pretty much every coffeeneur year includes a trip to Northside Social – either the Arlington or Falls Church location will do. They have what I consider the best of both coffee drinks and baked goods. Some places excel at one or the other, but NS gets it right on both fronts. I was already fairly caffeinated that day, so I ordered a decaf macchiato and a ginger/cranberry scone. The best part, however, was sharing my treat with the birds, who clearly are accustomed to snacking on crumbs. Distance: 8 miles.
Ride 4 – October 27, 2022 – Detour Coffee. This was a shop I discovered last year and remembered liking the ambiance. What I hadn’t remembered was that the neither the coffee nor the baked goods were my favorite. Nevertheless, there I was, and when I ordered a croissant to go with my cortado, I was told that it was “buy one-get one free.” Far be it from me to refuse. So I had the almond one with my coffee, and took the plain one home for another day. Distance 8 miles.
Ride 5 – October 30, 2022 – Compass Coffee. Well – this was a day when I procrastinated about going out and didn’t really have a clear destination in mind. I also didn’t feel up to a long ride so I thought I’d go to Livin’ the Pie Life…but I was too late as they were closing up at 2 pm. I then thought I might get a Middle-Eastern coffee at the Lebanese Taverna, but no luck there, either. Finally I remembered that I’d just noticed a branch of Compass Coffee along that same stretch of Langston Blvd so I decided to give it a try. The cortado and lemon-poppyseed biscotti were ok, but let’s just say, I’m in no hurry to return. The best part of it was that, on a sluggish day, I did manage to bike 6 miles. That’s the magic of coffeeneuring.
Ride 6 – November 2, 2022 – Best Buns. I was determined that my next ride would be both long and fully satisfying. It was a beautiful day to bike the 17-mile Arlington “loop.” When I ride in the easier direction (which is almost every time I ride the loop) I like to stop at Best Buns which comes at about mile 12. In my opinion, they make the best sticky bun in the county – possibly in the world – though it would require considerably more sticky bun sampling to make that claim. I also wanted to enjoy the fall colors, which have been the most vibrant I can ever recall this year. Fortunately they were not out of sticky buns (although there always are plenty of other options) and I had an Americano to go with it. As you can see from the photos, the trees did not disappoint.
Ride 7 – November 7, 2022 – Coffeeshop Without Walls. I knew the autumnal colors wouldn’t last much longer, so I took a meandering ride to view the leaves, carrying with me an iced soy rooibos chai. Yes – the day was that warm! I was charmed to find a stopping point that had a rock to sit on with an indentation that was the exact right size to hold my beverage container! Not until I began this write-up did I notice that this was a lucky 7 ride: Ride #7 on November 7 and it was…7 miles!
So, this concludes a total of 63 miles in 7 rides, for what is, I believe, my 10th consecutive year of coffeeneuring. I hope it won’t be my last.
Enid writes 