Though gone are the days of his well-loved T Magazine online column “Ristretto”, Oliver Strand continues to serve as The Coffee Writer of Note at The Newspaper of Record. In his latest feature – not in the Diner’s Journal, mind you, but in the Dining & Wine section of the New York Times proper – Mr. Strand goes exploring at two of New York City’s most hotly awaited openings in 2013.
The cafes in question come from Intelligentsia Coffee and Stumptown Coffee Roasters. This feature is our TL;DR breakdown of Mr. Strand’s reportage on both.
Intelligentsia‘s NYC expansion was first reported right here on Sprudge back in January, and Mr. Strand has more details on their cafe via an interview with director of communications Stephen Morrissey. Here’s the takeaways in USA Today bullet point fashion:
* Intelli NYC will be located in the lobby of the Highline Hotel, located at 180 Tenth Avenue (at 20th Street). There’s not a ton of info online about this new hotel property, but Curbed NYC has some deets.
* Guests can expect a variable pour over bar, including brews produced via Kalita Wave, Eva Solo, and other methods, with multiple coffee selections cupped out each morning.
* Intelli NYC will be open “next week” sometime; it will be the Chicago-based chain’s 9th location and counting, with more stores due to open throughout 2013.
Stumptown‘s new cafe plans were leaked by The New York Observer back in early January. The space’s opening has been hampered by the post-Sandy construction and permitting milieu in New York City, which is why we’re seeing a May opening date. Here’s some more bullet points:
* Permits permitting, Stumptown’s second NYC location opens sometime next week. It will include a “separate brew bar” offering a wide variety of brew to order methods.
* The cafe is located in Greenwich Village, in the former home of Eighth Street Bookshop, a noted Beat hangout.
* Guests can expect, in Strand’s words, a series of “demonstrations, free cuppings and an easy flow of jargon-laced conversation.”
Read the full feature here via NYT Dining & Wine.
