Just recently, I had the pleasure of trying out Elysian Coffee Roasters.  My son and I decided to head out for a late night beverage. So we headed down to their location at 590 West Broadway, Vancouver.

 

The Interior

As soon as you walk in, you see a small wall of coffee beans just waiting to be purchased. The coffee bar is actually quite large. There was plenty of seating with several large tables and a large window table. They also had a few tables and chairs out front on their patio.

The Drinks

The drinks we ordered were as follows:

Turmeric nut milk latte $5.00 – almond cashew milk (by Nuez) and a Chili turmeric blend (by Blume), the drink tasted great. My son really loved the nutmilk. I was actually quite impressed with the price considering it was made with nutmilk. It’s been interesting reading about how upset people are getting with having to pay more for the nutmilks. When will this controversy end??

Latte $4.75 – I went with the latte and considering I have never having tasted their wares, I was truly intrigued by the flavours of their Guatemala Florencia Espresso Blend. The milk’s texture was just right and at the right temperature. The espresso had a nice sweet taste to it. Overall I really enjoyed this drink.

Elysian Coffee does roast their own beans which lean towards a darker roast, by their beans on display.

The Food

No food tonight as we had just finished dinner. Also there was slim pickings to choose from as I would think it was getting close to closing time. The baked goods they did have looked inviting.

 

The Service

The service was good even though, the staff were not the most talkative pair. They were pleasant when they did talk.

 

The Hours

I really liked Elysian’s hours. It is always nice when you can go out for a beverage after dinner, far too many places close way too early.

Daily:  7:00am to 7:00pm

 

Parking

Street parking, what can I say, I was parked about a block away from their shop. It is a pretty busy area, so I wasn’t surprised by where I had to park.

 

Last Words

To put it simply, Elysian Coffee Roasters has satisfied my curiosities splendidly. They displayed decent latte art skills along with good coffee to make me one happy camper. I just wish I had given myself more time to check out their other locations. I will definitely find the time, the next time, I’m in Vancouver to visit.

 

Needing a coffee stop on my way out on Saturday morning, I checked my coffee list for nearby coffeehouses and an intriguing place called Caffe La Tana showed up. I had not heard much of them except that they had just recently opened in October.

They are located at 635 Commercial Drive, Vancouver.

 

The Interior

First off, this is a very small place, but has huge old world charm, with its black-and-white checkerboard floor, earthy wallpaper, and a soft green colour scheme, as well as marble counters. I loved the fact that there was a guy there making fresh pasta by hand right in front of you. A well decorated shop goes a long way.

The whole shop only seats about 20 people. There is a small grocery store inside, selling such item as olive oils, tomato sauces, dried noodles and, of course, fresh pasta.

The Drinks

Unfortunately we had to get our drinks to go as the place was very busy and full. Café La Tana uses JJ Bean who does a custom blend just for them.

We ordered the following:

Americano – $3.50

Latte – $4.25

Both drinks were strong but very smooth to drink.

They also had fresh squeezed juice for sale. – $6.50 per bottle

The Food

The café offers a breakfast and lunch menu featuring pastries and assorted pasta dishes. I ordered the following:

Sfogliatella – $4.50, filled with ricotta, citrus and cinnamon, was very flaky and had terrific flavour. I would order this again if I was there again.

The also had an assortment baked goods including loaves of assorted breads. All looked delicious.

The Service

No issues to report, all the staff that we dealt with that day were excellent, and extremely friendly and knowledgeable.

 

The Hours

They are open daily 8:00am to 6:00pm.

 

Parking

There was minimal street parking around the shop.

 

Last Words

To put it bluntly, Caffé La Tana made for an excellent stop even for a to go cup of coffee, I would really like to go back and try some of their other food. . Not only was the coffee tasty but I was also able to spend some more quality time with my son. So if you find yourself on Commercial Drive in Vancouver stop by and check Caffé La Tana out.

I never grow tired of discovering new coffee shops in Vancouver. It’s the one city that regardless of how often we visit, there’s always a new or rejuvenated shop to hit. It’s a never-ending coffee adventure.

On a rainy seasonal Friday morning, I got up quite early, took my early morning stroll to where I have to park on campus which is about 10 minutes away from my son’s apartment. I figured it was time to get some much needed coffee.

As I strolled West Broadway, I ended my brief journey at a little cafe called Olive + Ruby. The café is located at 2839 West Broadway in Vancouver.

 

The interior

Albeit not the biggest place, it is laid out very well with an entire wall of plants hanging down from the ceiling, and a huge painted feature wall on the other side of the shop.

The shop itself is very bright with lots of lighting and huge windows up front, where you can sit in 2 hanging wicker chairs, very cool. There is also lots of seating at the natural wood tables and one large communal table in the middle of the place that seats about 10 people.

On a nicer day they have a few tables to sit outside and take in the sights and sounds of West Broadway.

The Drinks

Caramel latte -$5.75. I ordered the large Caramel Latte which was a pretty big drink, the the young lady serving me said, “Just so you know that there is 4 shots in it”, I responded with “that’s ok by me”. I thought the pricing was pretty good. The drink was very smooth, with a slight cocoa flavour mixed with the caramel. Overall the drink was very smooth and was well balanced considering there was 4 shots in it. I enjoyed this drink to the very last drop.

Their roaster of choice is Pallet Coffee Roasters – They were serving the Benchmark blend, a Brazilian/Colombian espresso blend.

They also had a few other options on the menu with house made almond milk, a vegan caramel syrup, cardamom/vanilla syrup and oat milk. All the above were an extra cost.

They also had an assortment of kombucha from Hoochy Booch and assorted juices from Sexy Juice.

The Food

Breakfast croissant- $10.75 – Fried egg, white cheddar cheese, micro greens, sliced tomatoes, creamy Dijon on a croissant. This sandwich was terrific. Great flavours and I definitely enjoyed the creamy Dijon sauce on this sandwich, even though it was expensive, it was delicious.

Tropical Smoothie Bowl – $11.00 When I was getting ready to leave I ordered my son the Tropical Bliss Smoothie bowl. This thing was loaded with banana, pineapple, mango, orange, chia seeds, coconut flakes and coconut water.  My son told me the flavours were outstanding, It must have been good as he inhaled this bowl.

Lots of vegan options, all baked goods looked very good. They strive to make everything in house with real ingredients

The Service

The young lady I interacted with was very friendly. She was always doing something and was always smiling. Customer service was amazing.

The Hours

Monday to Friday: 8:00am to 6:00pm

Saturday and Sunday: 9:00am to 6:00pm

 

Last Words

I was quite pleased with my experience at Olive + Ruby, I was now caffeinated up and ready to go, delivered my son his smoothie bowl, and once he finished, we ran some errands we needed to get down while I was visiting.

Olive + Ruby is a little coffee oasis on West Broadway, make sure you stop by for a great beverage and a nice relaxing visit.

 

While most coffeehouses reside in heavily-populated areas of a city, occasionally there exists outstanding coffee a little off the beaten path. I found myself in one such situation as I was driving through Vancouver last week. Moving Coffee/Fife Bakery is located at East 3Ave in Vancouver.

 

The Interior

The interior of Moving Coffee is quite small, if you need to change your mind about your order, you may need to head outside to do so, especially if there are a few people inside already. There is only 5 stools at the window table as you can see in the picture. Most people coming in while I was there, grab and go. The stools were not comfortable at all. This may be to deter squatters. Ha Ha

They have a bench outside if you chose to stay, enjoy your beverage, and baked goods.

I would have to assume that the coffee business was an afterthought as the bakery equipment takes up most of the space up front. The two do go hand in hand.

They have a small shelving unit were they sell there beans and other goods, such as olive oil and Vancouver Island Salt. They also sell these single cup Ready2go pour over coffee pouches. A very cool idea. I had to buy a few to try out.

The Drinks

I really liked these guys menu. There was a black section which was for black coffee, a white section, which means milk is added and if you want oat milk, open your wallet a little wider, they charge a dollar more for this. Lastly, they have an iced section for cold drinks. You could also chose what type of bean you would like for your coffee, but keep in mind there was an up charge for some of them.

Latte – $4.75 – I ordered a 10 oz latte. The espresso was their Phantom espresso blend – Guatemala (washed process) overall the drink was very smooth in texture and taste.

Moving Coffee is also a roaster. The equipment was out back. Their beans are sold in 1/2 bags, and were priced between $18.00 and $23.00 which I thought was quite expensive for a local roaster. The last time I paid that for ½ lb of beans is when I bought some from overseas.

I did purchase 3 individual pour over pouches, something new. Prices ranged from $3.75 to $4.25 each. Can’t wait to try them.

The Food

Sausage roll – $5.75. I thought this was a bit expensive as well, because these are normally around the $2- $3 range at max. It did taste really good, lots of flavour, but could have been warmer.

Salted chocolate cookie – $2.50 each, cookie was outstanding, nice and soft, with just a hint of salt, and the chocolate had nice flavouring.

The loaves of bread were moving out of here pretty quickly while I was there, everything looked very good.

The Service

Service was really good, the guy helping me offered some suggestions on drink selection. Everything was served up pretty quickly.

The Hours

The last time we were here we tried to check this place out but they were closed on Monday’s.

Tuesday to Saturday: 9:00am to 5:00pm

Sunday: 11:00am to 5:00pm (coffee only) no baked goods

 

Last words

Quite satisfied with my drink and delighted with the welcoming, nature of the barista. I hung out for a while longer, enjoying my day before I had to head up to UBC and see my son prior to his soccer game.

So, if you are anywhere near this fine establishment. I would absolutely make a detour there to have a sample of their wares.

 

 

 

While air travel doesn’t wear me out, there is no suppressing my child-like, adventurous anticipation when travelling to another city. As soon as I got off the plane and picked up my car I had to make a beeline for a morning beverage. Thus, upon touching down in Vancouver on Thursday morning I set my GSP to a little place called Their There. It is located at 2042 W 4 Ave, Vancouver which is quite a busy area.

The Interior

I really liked the interior of Their There. Lots of architectural details with clean lines, huge arches, lots of wood and tile. It was very clean looking. The space is divided into a couple of areas, with the counter and bar at the back of the shop. All the seating is at the front by the large windows.

They had some very unique seating made out of milk crates. Yes, cool to look at but not the most comfortable. They also had some cube seating that were tiled, again not to comfortable. Not a very big place with very little seating, very tight quarters, but a very busy place.

In the middle of the café there is a fireplace with a pair of high top Nike basketball shoes hanging on it. Not sure the significance of them, cool none the same. Maybe a conversational starter.

Overall, I found the place very relaxing, good music playing in the background and not too loud, so you could still talk to somebody.

The Drinks

So after my flight I needed to get caffeinated, stat, so I ordered a Latte and a small drip coffee.

The Latte – $4.50. Heart Roasters was there current roaster they were featuring. Heart roasters are out of Portland, Oregon.

The espresso was an Ethiopian blend, which had great flavour and was a just a little sweet. The milk was heated to the right temp and overall the drink was very smooth.

The Drip Coffee – $2.60. The drip for me was just ok. I felt that it was a little bitter.

Their There is also licensed.

The Food

Croissant – $3.00. The croissant was very flaky and had nice flavour. The other baked goods all looked very appetizing and were reasonable priced.

Breakfast sandwiches are very popular, I thought they were expensive. The average price was $7 – $9 each.

The Service

Everyone I dealt with were very friendly and helpful. I received my drip coffee and the croissant right away and by the time I sat down, they called my name to come and pick up my latte.

The Hours

Monday to Friday:       8:00am to 4:00pm

Saturday & Sunday:   9:00am to 4:00pm

Considering this is a very trendy area, I am shocked the café isn’t open later.

Parking

Street parking is available, good luck finding it, but there is some.

Last words

After polishing off my beverages, overall I was pleased with this visit. I headed out to find my next shop to check out. Go check out Their There for a great caffeinated beverage.

During the summer, my family and I visited the Inglewood Night Market when we came across a guy selling coffee beans and sampling his coffee. First things first, I am not a drip coffee kind of guy. I have turned a little snobby when it comes to having good coffee and I really associate drip coffee with Timmy’s. As I am not fond of the Timmy’s drip coffee.

So the guy, his name is Jesse, behind the coffee pots asked me to try his coffee. I was leery to tell him that I would only like half a cup because I am not a fan of the drip.

I took my first sip and my first response was really??? This was absolutely amazing! I was sampling a dark roast Honduran espresso blend. The flavours were so bold with absolutely no bitterness. I could not believe the flavour. I asked Jesse to fill the cup right up.

Before we went any further, I read the poster that Jesse had set up beside his booth, it explained how Kingdom coffee came about. I was moved by the story, as was my wife and my daughter.

Jesse’s Story

From the drop to the dream

Four Pastors dressed up undercover and spent time with the homeless on the Streets of Calgary. There they meet a man named Jim.  He was addicted to heroin, crack cocaine and alcohol. Jim was at the end of his rope, fighting addiction, and contemplating suicide. The four pastors listened to Jim and showed him love. They brought him to a recovery center where Jesus found him and changed his life.  He went from being a violent, angry addict to a gentle man who his grandchildren ran to as he walked through the door. Jim passed away in December 2015 from a tragic work place accident.

We believe if a few men can love Jim, then we in turn can love other people who are struggling like he was. We share our coffee with people to hear their story and let them know someone is listening. A portion of every bag sold goes to helping people into recovery and finding them a place to sleep at night. We thank these four men for taking the time to love Jim.  Jim was my father and this is his story.

We believe this love can restore families. Like it restored ours.

Right then and there, I told my wife we needed to buy some of this coffee. My daughter suggested we do a giveaway to our Instagram followers. We wanted to help get this story out there. So we bought four bags with the intent to give away three of them. Jesse explained to us that $1.00 from each bag goes to giving out free coffee on Saturdays, there is a group of volunteers that head down at the Drop In Centre to serve coffee. He told me that if we ever wanted to come down and help out that would be no problem.

Saturday October 27

On the weekend of October 27 we had the pleasure of working with Jesse from Kingdom Coffee down at the Drop In Centre. We arrived at the Drop In Centre around 8:45am and helped set up. Shortly after everything was ready, the doors opened to allow people out of the Drop In Centre and people started heading our way.

There was a couple of tables of baked goods, as well as, a couple of tables filled with coffee urns full of the best tasting coffee. Across the way, there were a few more tables set up with gently used clothing, water bottles, metal drink holders, care packages with tooth brushes, and other assorted items for anybody who needed anything.

There was about 20-25 people volunteering down there from assorted churches in the city. As well as, us three, who just wanted to help.

The people started moving down the tables getting some goodies and then to the coffee tables. My daughter was down at the goodie table giving out some of the 15 dozen cookies she had made the night before. My wife and I were on coffee pouring duty. Funny story, the first person my wife encounters asks for a double-double, now if you are not from Canada, that’s two cream and two sugar. My wife had no idea, but then after a chuckle, I realized that she doesn’t drink coffee and has no idea what that is. We poured a ton of coffee that morning, and listened to some stories for about two hours. I would think we served about 100 people, maybe more.

There were also three or four hair stylists across the way from us, doing haircuts to anybody who wants one. It was very cool to see how a little kindness can make a big difference.

Here is a question for you out there: How can we change people’s opinions and views on homeless people??

Not an easy question to answer is it? You can educate people until you are blue in the face, but they don’t listen or don’t care because it’s not their problem. People come up with their own stereotypes, whether taught or learned. They all have a story and their pathways in and out of homelessness is different for every single person you see. I wish people would stop and look around and see how they could help make the world a little better. How much would the world be different? Maybe that’s a place to start.

On Saturday, I had the pleasure to talk with quite a few people, some more talkative than others. The stories were all different and it was quite humbling just to listen to them, I felt that they just wanted to be listened to as well. I felt like they really appreciated what was happening down there and what people were doing for them. I didn’t encounter one rude person, everyone thanked me for the coffee and they were all very appreciative.

Searching for great coffee is something I really like to do. Kind of like Indiana Jones risking his life to unearth hard to find artifacts. Finding great coffee is the same, hard to find, and while much of my social circle doesn’t share my passion, I do have my family with me on most of my outings.

We decided to make a stop in Salmon Arm on our way home. I had read that Shuswap Pie Company is a really great pie shop. It’s hard to imagine a pie shop without a coffee presence in the shop. I personally love having a caffeinated beverage with my dessert. Shuswap Pie Company does both, pies and coffee.

 

The Interior

I really thought the place would be a nice cozy place to come for a piece of pie and some beverages, but the day we were there it was extremely busy and very loud (which is a great problem to have if you are the owners). It’s always nice to see an independent local businesses thrive.

The only thing I found that because it was so busy, things were cluttered and in disarray. It was hard to know where we had to be to collect our drinks and treats.

The Drinks

Since it was a hot day we all went with cold drinks. I ordered an Iced Vanilla Latte, my wife had the Homemade Iced Tea and my daughter went with the Raspberry Italian Soda.

My iced vanilla latte was not good at all. It was very bitter, even an extra shot of vanilla couldn’t fix the drink. The homemade iced tea was just that, no sweetener, just brewed tea. The Italian soda was pretty good, no real complaints there.

 

The Food

Have you ever been told, you got to go here and check this place out? If you are reading my reviews, you hear this from me on occasion, and sometimes when you hear this, things really aren’t as good as somebody said.

That is not the case here, the pies were pretty darn good, pie crusts were flaky, and the fillings all were really good. So if you are looking for something to eat it’s definitely the place to go, and the long line ups out the door should say something about the quality of this place.

We ordered a piece of Pecan Pie, a piece of Strawberry Rhubarb Pie and lastly my wife’s favourite, a piece of Pumpkin Pie.

 

The Service

Shuswap Pie Company, has no problem getting you in the door and taking your order, it’s after where I see they had the problem. We placed our to-go order, then after about 5-6 minutes we received our food, then we waiting about another 10 minutes before we received our drinks.

 

The Hours

Monday to Friday:       7:30am to 5:30pm

Saturday:                       8:30am to 4:00pm

Sunday:                         Closed

 

Parking

Parking in downtown Salmon Arm sucks, they have street parking, very narrow roads and it seems like nobody knew how to park there even though they had lines marking out the spots.

Last Words

I would say this is a must stop place if you are driving by Salmon Arm, BC for the food but would not stop for the coffee.

 

 

 

Next stop on our journey home is a quick stop in Merrit, BC. I found this place while searching for coffee shops. What intrigued me was a coffee shop that serves bannock. I remembered eating a bunch of this when I was a kid. My grandmother was indigenous and made this all the time. I also loved the café’s slogan “Don’t Panic we have Bannock”.

[ Kekuli (ke – koo – lee): a dwelling built into the ground, built with logs, tule, dirt and grass. English version means pithouse. ]

 

The Interior

As soon as you walk into Kekuli Café, you feel comfortable and welcome nobody is staring at you like you don’t belong. As you sit there for a while, you see that it is a very popular place with the locals.

There is lots of tables and chairs if you choose to sit at them or if you prefer, they have some more comfy chairs grouped together. There was indigenous music playing inside the shop, or as owners like to call it light pow wow music.

They also had an area where they were they are selling aboriginal art, jewellery, and they were also selling Spirit Bear Coffee Company coffee.

The Drinks

We ordered a couple of Saskatoon Tea Lattes and a Maple Latte.

My daughter and my wife both said the Saskatoon Tea Lattes were to die for, absolutely amazing flavors. Outstanding!

The Maple Latte was really good, as I mentioned above, the serve Spirit Bear Coffee Company. The espresso had great flavor, and the maple in the drink was not over powering or too sweet.

The Food

To start with, don’t ask for a donut here, they have bannock. They have maple glazed bannock, bannock berry scones and trust me I could go one forever. They don’t have Timbits either but they do have Bannock Bitz, which is similar but better, because its bannock. We picked up some for the road.

We also grabbed a breakfast sandwich while we were there, and guess what?? They were on bannock too. The bannock here is soft, slightly sweet, and just the right kind of chewiness on the outside.

We had a Bannock and Egg, a Smoked Turkey Breast Breakfast Sandwich and a Smoked Bacon Breakfast Sandwich. All had terrific flavour and were very enjoyable as well as filling.

 

The Service

The ladies working there were fantastic and friendly. The experience for us was excellent.

Giving Back

It was great to read that Kekuli Café gives back to the community by supporting youth who are the future leaders, and they also support elders who have worked hard all their lives.

They also work hard at making sure they are doing their part with taking care of the environment, using compostable cups, and sleeves. Lastly, they give all their empty pop cans and bottles to the SPCA.

More places should do this.

 

The Hours

Monday to Friday:      8:30am to 5:30pm

Saturday & Sunday:   8:30am to 5:00pm

Holidays:                      8:00am to 2:00pm

 

Parking

There is a parking lot on the side of the building.

Last Words

If you are looking for something out of the norm, “You Gotta Eat Here”. I am not just stealing John Catucci’s catch phrase as he actually did a show on this place.

Go check this place out, I wouldn’t steer you wrong, you will really enjoy Kekuli Cafe.

 

 

 

 

On our way home from Vancouver, we decided to change things up and go off the beaten path we stopped in Chilliwack for a beverage and some breakfast. So off the highway we go and into downtown Chilliwack. Next stop Decades Coffee Club.

 

The Interior

The interior of this place is huge with very high ceilings. There is a big staircase leading to a balcony that overlooks the whole shop.

There were items in the shop that were made by local artists that can be purchased in store. It’s always great to see that businesses support local talent.

There is lots of mismatched furniture in Decades gives it a vintage look so naturally.

Decades also has multiple rooms for you to host gatherings such as book clubs, crafting and meetings of all types etc. They are really making this a community space that people want to go to and be in.

The Drinks

On this day, we tried the Green Tea Cherry Cardamom which was their seasonal London Fog. We also ordered a regular London Fog and a Vanilla Latte.

Both teas were really good, but the vanilla latte was just mediocre at best. They had one of those automatic machines. I guess this way they don’t really have to hire an experienced barista. I have never had a great beverage out of one of these machines. Drinks always seem to be watered down and lack flavor. Crappy thing is we really couldn’t take it back as we got everything to go and were already on the highway when I started to drink it.

Decades uses Agro Coffee, which is a locally owned and operated, certified organic coffee roaster out of Vancouver.

Overall, I felt the drinks were reasonably priced.

The Food

We arrived shortly after they opened, so baked goods were coming out of the oven, still warm and looking so delicious. We grabbed a Cranberry Bran Muffin and an Apple Cranberry Oat Muffin.

Everything is made in house. All the food looked really good but I really felt that fthe ood menu is on the pricier side as well.

 

The Service

The service was fantastic. The ladies working there were very polite and friendly.

The Hours

Monday to Friday they are open 8:00 am – 9:00 pm. On Saturday’s they are open 9:00 am – 9:00 pm. Every Sunday they are closed.

Parking

There is a parking lot right out front as well as some street parking. The good news is I finally didn’t have to pay for parking.

Last Words

I really like the sense of community that Decades has put together here. Lots of space to host gatherings. Local artists selling their goods.

If you are looking for a place to grab a coffee, some delicious baked goods, and you find yourself in Chilliwack, check out Decades Coffee Club.