Cafe MoCA

Well hey again! We're back, minus one. This time it's just Malcolm and Matt because Mikey had some other thing to do; obviously he has messed up priorities.

This week, we journeyed to a little coffee shop in East Walnut Hills on the corner of Madison and Woodburn, called Cafe MoCA...

The location is just downtown on a corner and everything gave a good, chill, walk right on in vibe. I'd say the biggest downfall of the setting and everything was the whole place was just so big and open and there really wasn't much privacy for a group or anything. Aside from that it was mostly pretty awesome. There's free wi-fi, a little free parking lot right behind it, a few outdoor tables and a huge selection of food and drinks. The Carmel Machiato was exceptionally good. Another totally awesome thing about the location and setting was that there was a huge cathedral right across the street so you could clearly hear that church bells every now and then. Also, the service there is awesome and they have really good interaction with the customers. It's definitely a place to go back to and just hang out at.
This time we started a 3 or 4 question interview with the employees. We managed to catch one of the girls working there during a lull in the day and ask her a few questions:
~What makes Cafe MoCA different from all the other coffee shops? There are TONS of coffee flavors and different food you can get (their menu is pretty huge).
~Why did you pick this location for the shop? Little shops and stores and businesses were starting to spring up all around and it just seemed like a really central location for a good coffee shop to get business, especially during lunch break hours.
~Who is the bean supplier for Cafe MoCA? Seven Hills Coffee Co.
~Which is your most popular drink? The Chai Tea Latte (we decided to give this one a try...it was INCREDIBLE. So creamy. WAY better than Starbucks'!)
~Which is your most popular meal? Either the Chicken Tuscany Panini or the Spicy Cajun Panini

All in all, it was a fantastic little coffee shop. Great food, great coffee, great service! If you ever get the chance, definitely pop in for a visit!

After a tough decision, we gave this a 7.5

The Metropole

Hello, big, scary, world… This is the guys’s from Espresso Expressed and we are writing our first blog whilst listening to a mix by Urban Outfitters (LSTN #5)

On June 8^th, 2009, Mikey Evans, Matt Evans, and Malcolm McCoffee began their escapade to scavenge and pick apart different brilliant ideas from other coffee business owners to ultimately design the best coffee shop the world has ever experienced, and ever will.

Our first visit was a little coffee shop in West Chester, by the name of The Metropole.

Upon the arrival at The Metropole, their was a mixed vibe between us three. I, (Malcolm McAfee) felt that the coffee shop was extremely convenient but difficult to find. Mikey Evan’s felt unsure about it from the looks of the place but was excited to get inside and dive into the adventures that coffee has to offer. Finally, Matt was skeptical of the idea of a coffee shop class all together, but his mind was quickly changed.

The building had an aged-house-look, and the inside felt the same as the outward appearance. The inside was much like your grandmothers house: quiet, private and homey. The friendliness of the service was decent, but it didn’t make you feel real welcome. The drinks were pretty good, but typical. But their peanut butter Macchiato was exceptional. The rooms inside of the coffee shop were actually all separated by the hallway, which was nice because that made it secluded, and you felt quite secure with your coffee and conversation. However, the hall was quite thin, which made you feel smooshed. We also did not like that the espresso machines were automatic, and we exclaimed that, “It’s espresso, not expresso… So it doesn’t have to be fast.” They also had a nice back patio with flowers, chairs and tables, which made for a lovely atmosphere outside, but there was ugly trailers beside the building, from another company.

Overall, the coffee shop was good, we just hoped it would have been manual espresso machines, and that the sign was larger so we could find the shop more easily. But the homely and private feeling of the secluded rooms quickly overshadowed the cons of the shop, and made for a great first experience.

After heavy discussion, we decided that, in our expert opinion, The Metropole was an 8/10. We highly recommend you stop by if you can :)

Check their website out here!