Coffee Stops Awards 2014

An espresso, made by my Rancilio Silvia espresso machine, in a classic white cup and saucer from Acme & Co., New Zealand, distributed in the UK by Caravan Roastery.I wasn’t going to do a Saturday Supplement, but then the Coffee Stops Awards came out and I changed my mind…

So, here’s a plug for the Awards, which have been set up by Chris Ward to promote all that’s good about London Coffee. This, in itself, is more than enough reason to get behind the Awards and give them some support. The fact that I’m in the running for the Best London Coffee Blog Award is neither here nor there…

There are, in fact, 10 awards and the public were able vote for each one. Even better, the sponsor, Ethiopian Airlines, is providing two direct flights to the “home of coffee” for the winners of London’s Best Coffee Shop! Voting closed on April 2nd, with the Awards to be presented at the Awards Night on Wednesday 23rd April.

I also thought, while I’m here, that I’d do a quick rundown of what I got up to during my almost three weeks in the USA, which you’ll find in picture form in the gallery. Seven of the Coffee Spots from the trip (BostonPavement Coffeehouse, Render Coffee; PhiladelphiaLa Colombe, Menagerie, Plenty, Exilr; New York CityBluebird Coffee Shop) are already up with many more to come!

You can read more of about the Awards after the gallery.

  • First stop was Chelmsford, just outside Boston. It was a tad on the cold side!
  • I didn't venture out much, contenting myself with some pictures out of the hotel window. It might have been cold, but it didn't snow and was very sunny!
  • However, I didn't lack good coffee since I brought the trusty Aeropress with me...
  • From there, it was on to Boston proper where it warmed up a little!
  • It was still cold enough that almost the entire Charles River was frozen!
  • More coffee options here: this espresso came from Pavement Coffeehouse on Boylston.
  • I may also have found a new favourite... Render Coffee, with this lovely cortado and bun.
  • I also managed a couple of trips to my favourite breakfast spot, Charlie's Sandwich Shoppe.
  • It wasn't all coffee though. I popped into the Museum of Fine Art and its 30 favourite Impressionist works (as voted for by the Museum visitors). They were conveniently gathered together into a single gallery for me!
  • After Boston, my first proper visit to Philadelphia, where it got above freezing for the first time on the trip!
  • It's a beautfiul, compact and friendly city. Here's City Hall in all its glory.
  • First stop, just across the road, is the delightful  La Colombe in Dilworth Plaza.
  • There were many, many excellent Coffee Spots in Philly. This is Plenty, a lovely little spot.
  • It wasn't all coffee. My hotel overlooked Franklin's Fountain, an ice-cream parlour...
  • There was also art in the shape of the Barnes Foundation. I couldn't take any pictures of the exhibits, so I settled for this shot.
  • Somewhere along the way I hit this interesting milestone on the Coffee Spot...
  • Final stop, New York City, where, after a brief daliance with spring (I went out for the first time on the trip without my coat!), normal service was resumed!
  • While it was still spring, I took a walk across Manhattan Bridge at dusk...
  • ... saw the sunset in Brooklyn...
  • ... and walked back to Manhattan over Brooklyn Bridge in the twilight.
  • There was, of course, time for coffee, here at the delightful Bluebird Coffee House.
  • I also got arty at my all-time NYC favourite, I Am Coffee.
  • ... and called in on another favourite, Caffe Roma, to see the St Patrick's cakes being baked. Naturally I had to eat one or two...
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There are ten awards in this, the inaugural Coffee Stop Awards. I’ve listed them all below. If you’d like to know who I voted for in each award, clink on the link (although I’m the first to admit that my choices were rather arbitrary!).

As I might have mentioned, I’m in the running for the Best London Coffee Blog. Initially I found this deeply ironic, since I don’t really think of myself as a London Coffee Blogger. Indeed, I go out of my way to blog about places outside London. However, I went back to check and was surprised that I’ve covered 45 Coffee Spots in the last 18 months! Honestly, I had no idea it was that many. Maybe I am a London Coffee Blogger after all!

However, I feel it would be remiss of me if I didn’t mention all the other great bloggers who are up for the award. The full list is presented below. Click on the link and have a look around the various blogs, make up your mind and then vote for one of us (you can click on my link to do that; it seemed silly to link to the Coffee Spot since you’re already here!).

Please do take time to have a look at all these blogs. They are all very good; I know four of the bloggers personally and they all do an excellent job. You can also have a look at what fellow-bloggers 100 Cups of London Coffee and liquidjolt think of the awards and who they voted for in each category.

Finally, I’d like to thank everyone who took the trouble to vote in the Awards, regardless of who you voted for. If you’d like to find out who won, check out my report on the Awards Ceremony.


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4 thoughts on “Coffee Stops Awards 2014

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