Bridgehead better than Starbucks

[StevieC]

I was in Ottawa from Sunday-Wednesday and across the street from where I was working had a Bridgehead coffee shop. I had heard a lot about them and never tried the coffee.

I ventured over because I'm a coffee junkie and had a Late as I would at Starbucks.

Can I tell you how great it was? ... It was amazing, the bean was so good I'm looking to find one close to my stores here so I can have it instead of Starbucks.

Thought I would share.

I believe the company is B.C. based in Western Canada and it's not available south of the border but I had to post this for those that have access to a B.H. coffee place.

Steve

 

[ARCOgraphite]

The day I give somebody 3+ bucks for a 25c cup O joe ....

 

[Kaboomba]

I recall havingn some EXCELLENT coffees in Victoria, B.C.

Italianos and espressos done right=life is good

I love a tasty buzz.

P.S. Starbucks is WAY overrated. You pay for a specific ambiance, and pretty much nothing else, IMO.

 

[mrsilv04]

Some would say that it would be fairly simple for a chain to serve better products than Starbucks...

 

[StevieC]

Originally Posted By: ARCOgraphite
The day I give somebody 3+ bucks for a 25c cup O joe ....
I can expense it when I'm away from home and I use gift-cards and points I accumulate on credit cards etc. for Starbucks. I never pay out of pocket. Timmies does fine for me when it's my buck!

 

[Kaboomba]

Wow, that is the way to do it, my friend.

Not that I am not hooked up myself. A buddy of mine is pretty talented at coffee roasting, so I have a steady supply of interesting new delights.

 

[RF Overlord]

Why should I pay $4.25 for a cup of mediocre coffee with caramel, whipped cream, and a little girlie-man umbrella, when I can go to Cumby's and get good coffee for a dollar? Starbucks is MASSIVELY over-rated.

 

[J. A. Rizzo]

I agree completely with most of these posts - Starbucks is far overrated. Their beans are usually overcooked and bitter and weren't the greatest stock to begin with. For the price, you can do a lot better. In Chicago there are plenty of way better options, most notably in my mind Intelligentsia (personal favorite) and Metropolis.

 

[SLCraig]

Never heard of it.. I'll try anything when I see it.

We have a local place (I think) called Coffee Culture. It is pretty good and I often buy that over Starbucks. I still do like Starbucks though.

 

[IndyIan]

Intelligentsia... That cuts right to the heart of it doesn't it! Customers are obviously smarter than the average joe if they appreciate their expensive coffee...

I have to admit I do buy Kicking Horse coffee (454 Horse Power and Kick A$$ are my current favourites) for at home but I never turn down a cup of mild tim hortons coffee either.

 

[Y_K]

Originally Posted By: IndyIan
Intelligentsia...

Yup, form vs substance is important for wannabeez. The bean is good in NA - they simply lost the roasting skills. They fry it. No matter what they claim it's a burnt one. They don't know better.

I just brought a bag of regular coffee from Japan. Bean from Nam. Great coffee. When in Australia I always enjoy a cup of excellent coffee at half the price. They have rather large Italian and Greek diasporas there and haven't lost it yet.

But hey, they figured out how to make great wine in US and beer from some micro places resembles the real thing, so there is a hope somebody will see a business opportunity in not so overly burnt coffee? Until then Lavazza is cheaper and ten times better, and Illy for weekends.

 

[VaderSS]

I like Tully's chain far more than Starbucks.

My favorite is Blue Bottle Coffee in the San Francisco Ferry building. Coffee Nirvana...

 

[StevieC]

Coffee Culture is OK, but I like a Good Bean and Starbucks was it until I found Bridge Head. I'm not into regular coffee unless it's Timmies, at Starbucks and Bridgehead I like Latees which use an Espresso bean.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: Y_K
Until then Lavazza is cheaper and ten times better, and Illy for weekends.

Lavazza Qualita Rossa and Crema e Gusto at Amazon are much cheaper and much better than Starbucks, a cup of excellent homemade cappuccino is less than 50 cents vs $3.xx at Starbucks.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

We use to have FREE starbuck's coffee at work in Wilmington, MA( BC the CEO loved it). When in the mood, I'd pop into the employee cafe and I make a pot of SUMATRA in the BUNN-O-MATIC, take the fist cup draught and mix it with 1/3 cream. Now U got me salivating ...

 

[StevieC]

We have a Starbucks machine at our head office and it has a strong and mild blend and you pick the button, the size of the cup and hit start and it grinds & brews you a fresh cup right from the beans.

The mild is way too strong and I usually add some hot water to it because its so bloody strong.

Good coffee like that though...