These folks know coffee

I had a chance to stop by Ninth Street Espresso in the East Village in New York City today. Myrna recommended that I stop by and pick some espresso up and try their triple restretto. It was one of the greatest espresso's I have ever had:) They truly had a passion and zest for coffee and a great backdrop in the village to showcase it. The restretto had a smooth, buttery mouth feel with real hints of chocolate's and caramel. It was really unbelievable and was a great way to start the morning on a sunny fall day in the city!

Check out the website here------------->

Ninthstreetespresso

What makes a great latte-What we need to know for C1

Okay, as we get ready to promote our great espresso based beverages for C1, we need to know the basic elements and fundamentals of what it takes to make the best latte in our cafes. I had the opportunity to take an espresso fundamentals class this summer at the Specialty coffee associations annual conference. In that two hours, I had the opportunity to see what truly makes a great latte.

Here is my big "3" keys to a great latte--------------------------------->

1) Make sure our machines are calibrated correctly. Are we pulling 2oz of espresso. Are our pull times correct. Are we cleaning out machine daily? It all starts with the equipment, and making sure it is maintained corrrectly.
2) Are we frothing the milk properly? Are we using the right portion of milk and flavorings? For some additional help on steaming and frothing milk, check our video out here. www.panerabreadconcept.blogspot.com
3)Temperature! Make sure we are not scalding the milk. We need to bring the temperature to right around 160 degrees!

Drink Up!

Some interesting numbers

It sometimes makes you realize how many people we impact everyday! Take a look at some of these numbers, and try to realize how many transactions in coffee sales alone, that our associates interact with our guests!

(Year to date sales)
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Tall Coffee-4,991,327
Grande Coffee-12,102,321
Largo Coffee-3,992,455
lattes-1,243,848

DRINK PANERA COFFEE!!