#46 - The Wandering Goose - Capitol Hill

Let me begin this summary with a quick fact: The Castro District in San Francisco is the greatest, happiest, best place on Earth. Fact #2: I absolutely hate the sun (for reasons that are complicated and uninteresting), and, even I don’t hate the sun if I’m in San Francisco. It’s a magical place. If I could move there right now without having to be in possession of a few million dollars more than what I currently have, I would be there in a heartbeat. With that being said, The Wandering Goose happens to be located on a street that looks like it came straight out of the Castro. It was glorious. If I can’t be in the Castro at all times, this is an acceptable doppelganger.

The Casto: AKA: The Best. 

The café itself is adorable. Charming. Homey. Rustic. All of those words that sound like they could describe a novelty country Bed & Breakfast. There were fresh cut tulips at every table and sun was streaming in through all the windows .The café is quite small, with tables and benches lining the walls, making the middle passageway to the cashier pretty narrow. We went on a Sunday afternoon and the place was packed. This was the first coffeeshop that we have visited in which coffee is not the main attraction. This place is a café, and serves brunch-type foods as its main attraction.

The food looked DELICIOUS. Scones and hash browns and omelettes and pancakes… everything looked so amazingly delicious and smelled even better. We didn’t eat there, though, and I’m looking forward to going back soon when we can eat there. For Lent, both Kristy and I gave up sugar. I am also doing a 10-week program through my kickboxing gym that restricts grains and most dairy as well. It was torture to watch the ladies sitting next to us order a huge, fluffy, homemade scone with fresh raspberry jam and not even finish it.

Moving on: The latte was really, really good. The foam was great and the flavor was rich and smooth as well. Kristy’s Americano was a little bitter and flavorless, though. To be fair, my focus wasn't entirely on the coffee as all we both wanted to do was devour all the biscuits on the premises.  

When we left The Wandering Goose, we saw Girl Scouts with a sign touting, “Help us Raise Money to Cycle through England,” and all I could think was, “This is what Girl Scout money is paying for? Vacations to Europe? Why isn’t anyone financing a trip to Europe for me? If I volunteer to chaperone this Girl Scout trip to England will I also be expected to cycle, because, no thank you.” I didn’t buy any cookies.

Check out Wandering Goose

#47 - Forza Coffee - Green Lake 

#47: Forza Coffee - Green Lake

My mom came to visit me over the weekend, so I took her with me to my kickboxing class on a Saturday morning and to Forza, coffeehouse number 47. We drove to Forza in Green Lake to meet Kristy there. We found a place to park pretty easily, although my mom was driving and I now know where I got my inability to parallel park. (Sorry mom, but we both know it's true). We parked right next to a hot yoga studio, and let me tell you, based on their clientele alone, I may need to take up hot yoga. My mom put it best when she said, "Wow, that really is... hot yoga." (I guess parallel parking isn't the only trait I inherited from her; we can now add 'penchant for objectification' to that list).

We got to Forza and Kristy was waiting for us. The place is huge, and reminded me a lot of the decor of Woods Coffee (a small, local coffee chain in the Bellingham/Whatcom area). It has a great view of Green Lake (read: a great view of the attractive men running around the lake), lots of sitting space, big, wooden tables, and an open, inviting ambiance. There were families, runners, college students working on papers and looking miserable; a diverse mix of people. It seemed very friendly and neighborhood-y in the sense that perhaps the baristas know your order and may ask you how your dog is doing. 

The coffee was great. They have pretty standard prices; $3.75 for a 16 ounce nonfat latte. The foam was so smooth, which I love, and the flavor of the espresso wasn't too overpowering. I expected nothing less, as Kristy and I have visited the Forza in Seattle Center several times (most notably before meeting Watsky at Bumbershoot. Check him out here. I will continue to shamelessly plug Watsky at any opportunity. Sorry not sorry). 

Kristy, my mom and I spent the next twenty minutes conversing, peppered with bouts of appreciating the athletes at the lake. We took off after waiting for my mom to finish stacking our cups, not unlike a toddler.



(Also, Kristy saw an iced, blended, creamy, chocolate-y drink as we were leaving, and I swear in that moment she was infinite). 

Check out Forza 

#48 - Broadcast Coffee - Capitol Hill