Taking a tiny break from what is Wanderlust Week to pay a little homage. Doc got back from his 10 day work trip to Chicago yesterday, (Sidenote: his bags were lost for the second time with a transatlantic flight in the last 3 weeks, but that's another story. FACT: It ain't easy being a sherpa.), and he did indeed come back with some goodies from Star Lounge (subject of an Ode to segment shortly before we moved abroad) in the form of not one pound of whole coffee beans, but two. (French traduction: Almost 1 kilo of whole grain coffee beans!)
He must have seen the threat on the Facebook page for the blog.
I'll be spending the day at home today getting packed and making chocolate chip cookies for our road trip to Italy tomorrow (!!!), so obviously the percolator is on the stove on repeat with some of the amazing beans that he brought back from one of the best coffee shops on the planet.
This got me to thinking: man, do I miss good coffee.
When we were first getting ready to move over here everyone said to us, "Oh the cheese, oh the chocolate, oh the coffee!" Pfft. No, not the coffee. Don't get me wrong, I love me some french coffee, it's just not coffee to me. It's espresso. In a teeny tiny cup. Or it's a (delicious) renverse/latte/cappucino type thing. (This being said, I plan on drinking my weight in Italian espresso starting tomorrow, but in my mind Italian espresso > French espresso any day of the week.) Maybe it's just the 'Merican in me, but there's something to be said for a really good (or several) cup of jo in your favorite big mug, am I right?
{Dear Bialetti, we love you, but sometimes we want more than three cups of coffee without getting the shakes! Bisous, Les Duggans}
Teeny tiny. But adorable. Like a puppy I'm waiting to grow into a 250 lb. St. Bernard named Bruno IV.
And I know I've gotten on my francophile high horse in the past about certain things, like how cheese, dried meats, confiture, baguettes/bread in general and chocolate are forever ruined for us after having lived here, but for now I think it's time to give credit where credit is due: people in the United States know how to make a damn good cup of coffee.
{Gratuitous flea market find photo!}
And with that, I'm off to pack.
And as always, if you have any suggestions for Pisa, Cinque Terre, Lucca, Florence, and other places day trippable from Pisa, please share, the best suggestions have always been the ones from friends!
Ciao! Talk to you all from Italy! Think good thoughts to the road trip travel Gods for us!
A la prochaine friends...
Honey
I love love love this place. It's kind of been our home base for doing work, scheme-ing, and just relaxing. My favorite drink here is the Mayan Mocha - basically an awesomely made mocha with red pepper flakes in it. The loose teas are great too. Everything, including the pastries, is really fresh. They also know a lot about coffee and are very, very, very passionate about it. 
There's a great deck and yard outback for the warmer months...
I sit here now as numerous plans and schemes have evolved in this coffee shop, and I hope will continue to do so at a later date in the future and for the remainder of our time here in Chicago. I can't help but love a place like this that is so good at supporting the local arts and music scene, as well as being so environmentally conscious. If you come to visit this awesome city bypass the Starbucks and try to make a stop in for a Mayan Mocha, or a pastry. It's well worth the search. :) I'll miss you Star Lounge!!!