Once again Time Out New York released their Top 100 Dishes of the year and once again, I’m going to eat my way through every one. And no price point or subway delay will stop me. In no particular order, here’s my take on their Top 100.
I know! Let’s start a gourmet coffee business but instead of a storefront or a truck, let’s do it from bicycles. What an awesomely wacky idea! It sounds gimmicky, sure, but it’s environmentally sound and it doesn’t get more mobile than a bicycle that can quickly weave in and out of traffic.
This was the business model of Kickstand Coffee. They set up last year throughout Williamsburg and at the Hester Street Fair in the Lower East Side. And unlike some of the gourmet food trucks out there with shelter from the storms, Kickstand really was reliant on the elements. So once the Hester Street Fair shut down for the winter, the guys at Kickstand hiberanted and practically disappeared.
I did exchange an email with them telling them about my Time Out journey and they offered to meet me somewhere in Brooklyn for a tasting. Even though that’s amazing customer service, our schedules didn’t work out and before we knew it, there was lots of snow on the ground and Kickstand vowed to return when the weather warmed up. That was 2010.
Fast forward to summer 2011 and Hester Street Fair announced their new vendor lineup and Kickstand was nowhere to be found. And there was no word from them on their website or Twitter. Had the business collapsed? Did the guys move to warmer climates? Did one of their bicycles get stolen?
I was getting really worried that we wouldn’t be able to taste the pourover coffee that Time Out raved about. And then I saw a few Tweets and I realized there was a reason for all that silence. Kickstand had a new business model. They’re now distributing cold brewed iced coffee concentrate. And I could pick it up at one of my two favorite foodie hangouts, The Brooklyn Kitchen (which occupies the same space as The Meat Hook) and Murray’s Cheese Shop.
It’s not exactly the same product as what Time Out had mentioned, but it’s still fancy schmancy coffee. And the bicycles are still around – they use them now for home delivery (if you live within a certain area, of course). They’re using roasted beans from local favorite Cafe Grumpy that will rotate regularly. We got the El Limonar from Guatemala. Then they’re cold brewing it and turning it into a concentrate. Once you buy a bottle, you can make your own delicious iced coffee by adding just some water, ice, and drinking.
I’ve been partial to cold brewed iced coffee lately because it usually has a richer, more chocolatey flavor with very little acidity. And this one didn’t disappoint. It was slightly sweet and nutty with a wonderful fruity finish. It was on the expensive side with a bottle costing between $11.99 – $15.99 (depending on which borough you buy it in) and really only lasting us about 4 cups. But it was delicious, refreshing, and perked me right up. In fact, I was practically bouncing around the room when I got down to the coffee stained ice cubes.
I’m relieved Kickstand has returned. And not just because this would have been a list item that got away, but because if anybody could make me addicted to coffee it’s these guys with their delicious thirst quenching concoction. On second thought, maybe I’m not so glad. I don’t really need a full-blown addiction.
Would Kickstand’s Pourover Coffee make my Top 100 of the year? This iced coffee concentrate probably would since I’m craving it right now and it’s very late at night. 8 out of 10 and it’s a good thing I don’t have any more because I need to go to bed.
| KICKSTAND COFFEE |
| kickstandbrooklyn.com |
