You’re never too much of a snob not to like iced coffee when the humidex is 38.

As I write this, thunderstorms are popping around Calgary and it’s cooled off, a lot, but today was miserable. “Humidex” is something we don’t orient to here, but today- sheesh. It got up to about 30, which isn’t that uncommon here, but the dewpoint was 19 for much of the afternoon, maybe peaking to 20. A dewpoint of 20 is the threshold of “oppressive” humidity, and it’s never been this swampy since I’ve lived here. So the humidex topped off at 38. Incredible.

I used to love iced espresso-based things, all sweet and slippery, but since I’ve graduated to coffee geekdom I’ve become an insufferable purist. No “lattes,” thank you very much; my repertoire is now shrunk to comprise the holy trinity of cappuccino-espresso-macchiato. I have a slew of 8-oz cappo cups that I will no longer use since I got traditional 5-oz ones. Insufferable, I know. But it was so uncomfortable today and yesterday. So I bit the bullet and experimented with a couple of iced drinks.

First up was an iced “cappuccino” and I followed the technique demonstrated in this youtube vid. I pulled a shot into a little bell pitcher for espresso (normally I pull right into a demitasse), and took a 12-oz rocks glass, filled it with ice, and then steamed a tiny bit of milk. I didn’t worry about overstretching, because this was just a little stiff-ish foam for “garnish.” Then I poured some cold milk over the ice until the glass was about half full, spooned the foam onto the iced milk, and THEN added the espresso. The result? A layered iced cappo just as in the video. It was good, and since I was using a fairly small glass and not a lot of milk (maybe 4 oz given all that ice), it wasn’t the calorie party that these drinks can be at places like Starbucks.

Today was, again, hellish, so I tried a little twist. I spooned out about a teaspoon of Nutella into the same rocks glass, and pulled a double espresso onto it. Stirred them together to (sort of ) melt the Nutella, and then poured cold milk on that, and then added a few ice cubes. The result was akin to the “iced mochas” I used to love (in fact one of the drinks that got me interested in “specialty coffee” way back when), but hmmmm…. Nutella doesn’t melt so well. Back to the drawing board there.

This, by the way, is what a rather slow shot made with my Elektra Microcasa a Leva can look like. I packed the portafilter a bit too much (wanted a nice shot for the camera and overdid it), so it took longer than one would normally want, but it was a tasty shot made with Hines espresso blend:

Restaurant stuff: Openings and opening-soon(s)

(I’m going to start re-posting some of my chowhound entries [especially reviews and the like that are my own threads] here. This is the first.)

I was surprised at the sudden closing of Noodle King, my favourite little around-the-corner Viet place recently- there were closed “for renovations” and opening in about a week around the start of Stampede, and next thing, the sign is replaced with “Pho V.K. Vietnamese Cuisine” and what appears to be a complete change of ownership. My heart sank- I’d been getting the lemongrass chicken at the King since they opened a couple of years ago, and they were the only place I’ve found that serves tofu skin stuffed with ground shrimp- any advice on where to find this, I’m all ears. Well, until the end of July, VK has a 10% off special on the whole menu, so we gave it a try a couple of days ago- and initial impressions are very positive. The place is cleaned up a bit, the menu includes a couple of pricier options (”Thai style hot pot” for 2 is $27), and the owner is a very friendly young guy. I got the lemongrass chicken on rice and partner got a sate chicken banh mi, and both were delicious. The sub has NO FAKE CHEESE (hooray!), and the spicing is very honest and strong. Lemongrass chicken is a buck or so more than King’s but intensely flavoured and a large order. More to come, but as I say, first impressions are very promising.

Some of you who’ve been around Calgary a while (I’m not one of them) may remember a Jewish deli-diner called My Marvin’s; well it’s been resurrected and is in the new restaurant space in what had been an outdoor plaza in the Medical Arts bldg on 4th St SW directly south of Starbucks. I didn’t eat there but grabbed a menu and chatted with the new owner. They have latkas and knishes, and a sandwich board with various Jewish-deli standards (including, thank G-d, pastrami). The space is big and airy, very nice construction to utlilize what had been dead outdoor space and to make it potentially vibrant interior space instead. I’ll look forward to lunch there. They’re open 7 days, 11-11.

The Da Lat space has been completely redone (as has the entire building, and the pool hall and grocery store attached) on 17th SW east of 14 St and it’s about to reopen as a “tapas and lounge” place called… something starting with a J, like Jobu Tapas or something like that. They tore out the old Da Lat/Antonio’s patio and have one with a brick surround now. AH- walked by this morning- Jaro Blue. Strange name.

Restaurant Indonesia is also gone and the space is becoming “Oishii Village.” Let’s hope for oishii food there. I’m pretty sure it’s Chinese owned but I’m willing to give it a chance. It would be nice if they actually used the huge patio space that Indonesia let sit empty.

I’m sure I spotted something else happening on my people-watching-at-Stampede jaunts but that’ll do for now.

The Seahorses and I

Here’s an experiment with posting a photo- me and the seacorns, I mean, seahorses (little inside joke for those of us who’ve seen Planet Unicorn 3):

This was at seahorse farm (well, actually, THE seahorse farm since I’m pretty sure it’s the only one in the world) in Kona, Hawaii. It’s near the K-K airport.

Blogging like it’s 1999.

I’ve dabbled in blogging over the years but I’ve decided at long last to take it more seriously. So here I am. I post all the time on sites like chowhound and coffeegeek, and the commentary and reviews I post at these sites is sorta akin to “blogging,” but I’ve come to realise that I need a dedicated place for myself, not in the (or a) “community” and unencumbered by debate. That doesn’t mean I don’t welcome comment, but this is my place. I hope it goes well.