Cappuccino. 41st-ish and Park.
Photo/Chris Preovolos
10/25/2008
JOE, THE ART OF COFFEE: GRAND CENTRAL TERMINAL, GRAYBAR PASSAGE
If you can bear to drink your cappuccino out of a paper cup – I nearly shudder at the thought – Joe, the Art of Coffee’s Grand Central Terminal location is easily the most accessible opportunity to experience high quality espresso and espresso-based drinks.
Fortunately, they will serve you a single espresso in a ceramic demitasse, so not all civility is lost and you can down one as you watch a talented barista deftly apply a micro-foam rosetta atop your drink of choice.
Joe, with a couple of other locations in the Village and Chelsea, while not my favorite NY espresso purveyor (See: Café Grumpy), does take coffee very seriously. But honestly, this is like saying tenor saxophonist Coleman Hawkins didn’t quite have the chops of, say, Dexter Gordon: It’s sort of a pointless comparison because both are among an exceedingly small group here who are truly helping to elevate espresso to the next level, where it rightfully belongs. A coffee renaissance, it’s being called. And I couldn’t agree more.
The Grand Central location, in the Graybar Passage, is just a take-out counter and therefore volume and speed are key to their operation which, obviously, caters to the commuter set. Still, the baristas operating the ridiculously-sleek Synesso espresso machine pull a superlative shot. Likewise, the milk-based drinks are outstanding.
I often go to great lengths for good coffee in New York, taking circuitous routes to find myself ordering my standard ristretto and single-origin cappuccino combo at one of my favorite cafés. Given ample time, the journey is often worthy in itself, but I was thrilled when Joe opened in Grand Central because this if often the jumping-off point for most Stamfordite’s in New York.
Unlike some hardliners, I’m not particularly worried that such a busy, high-volume location will erode Joe’s resolute standard of quality into – gasp – a Starbucks’ brand of mediocrity. In fact, I can’t think of a better way to introduce the uninitiated to espresso the way it should be made.
I just have to get past the paper cup.
–CP
P.S. Check out this great overview of the new wave of New York espresso that appeared in the Times yesterday.
