Johnny's, Roland Park

Johnny's, the latest restaurant in the Foreman Wolf family, opened today in Roland Park. I crashed a meeting E was having with some of our favorite coffee friends this morning. We, of course, had to make the pilgrimage because Lindsay (@Lindsaytron9000) is the head barista or "Coffee Auteur" as the menu reads. We have followed her from Spro, to LAMILL to Johnny's and couldn't be more proud. After posting a few photos on-line I was bombarded with questions asking where it is located. It is on the northern part of the block where Petite Louis sits and where the old Roland Park Deli used to be at 4800 Roland Avenue.

The skylight over the entrance creates a wonderful welcome. The coffee bar is to the right and the restaurant & whiskey bar is to the left. Yes, my darlings, Johnny's has an incredible list of bourbon and I'm dying to get a few friends together stat to check it out for dinner. I predict this will be the place to hang out for drinks to see and be seen by all of Smalltimore.

The coffee bar is bright and airy with high ceilings and windows. Patrick Sutton strikes again with his tasteful design.

Lindsay pulling shots with her protege.

I had to try to the banana muffins.

Lindsay suggested I try a Cortado. It's an espresso shot with half and half. A macchiato is an espresso with whole milk. Have mercy. It was calorically delicious and her apprentice gave me a little heart. Aw.

It's a great, casual space with a warm and welcoming atmosphere. I saw people with laptops and assume there is free wireless. (Update, no wireless.)

The bar space has a phenomenal, Irish pub-like feel. The original stone walls add so much charm you can cut through it with a knife.

I loved the galvanized steel bar caddy.

I see some of my favorite bourbon front and center. Who is with me? 

The space is much, much bigger than I imagined. There are three rooms with banquets and tables. The front area has natural light coming through the windows near the bar area.

The next room has a front and center view of the open kitchen.

The back room is tucked away featuring a mounted deer head and wine stacked in the center buffet space. It is so cozy and begs for long dinners with great conversation.

On the way out you can put change in the piggy bank for a little sweet treat. I can spare a penny for a gum-ball. What a darling idea for Halloween.

My coffee break was a bit of a tease. I look forward to going back soon for lunch, dinner and the happening bar scene very soon. Thank you Tony and Allison for the tour and for the great coffee and tea Lindsay. The space looks and feels so fantastic. We wish you all of the best success.

Madcap Coffee Cupping at Woodberry Kitchen

Last Friday I took the morning off to spend some time at a very special coffee cupping. Our beloved Allie invited us to come "cup" some of Madcap's beans that they sent from Michigan to get people buzzing about their arrival coming soon on the East Coast. Madcap will be opening a shop in DC shortly. E. sadly had to miss it as his work schedule doesn't allow him to take off much time during the week. He was mildly jealous to say the least.

We were just in Grand Rapids, Michigan at Madcap Coffee and I wrote about it here. Eric really enjoyed the Santa Lucia and he's been enjoying the beans at home. After my detox I have given up all caffeine so E. gets to enjoy all the beans in our home at his leisure without any fear of me stealing a shot here or there.

Last week we cupped four beans; Santa Lucia from Costa Rica, Fazenda Rainha from Brazil, San Sebastian from Columbia, and the Gacokwe from Burundi. They were all so, so different. This was my second cupping. It was just as complicated as the first one. I felt like I could really smell the difference in the ground beans but again had a terrible time describing the aroma and flavor after the coffee was steeped with water. The flavor however was very clear to me and some coated my mouth with a creamy sensation, vs. the sensation of juice. The Santa Lucia and Gacokwe both did this in the mouth feel. It was awesome!

When I arrived Timothy made me my very own French press of decaf. So, so nice.

I couldn't help but notice these precious enamel espresso cups with Spike and Allie's names on them. The hand made masking tape label is too adorable for words.

I noticed a few new additions to the coffee bar. Woodberry's fans and famous people sign the coffee cups. Peter is from Counter Culture.

Madcap

Gordon Ramsey

These wall of fame cups are the most fun.

It was fun going around the table at this cupping and hearing how people brew their coffee at home. Jay from Spro, Kris and Becka from LAMILL and a few other seasoned coffee people were there. There were many fans of the V60 pour over brew method and one I think was called a "bee" pot brew method.

Not your average cup of Joe!

Timothy measured out each bean and ground them prior to the cupping. He and Allie both swear by a scale they found at Target.

My favorite smell test made me think of STEAK. Yes, the Gacokwe coffee smelled like a big freaking juicy steak to me. Amazing. I picked up notes of peanut butter in one and lime in another. You really are supposed to write the first thing that comes to mind and I let myself go CRAZY with my descriptors. 

The class was diligent in writing notes and keeping their thoughts to themselves. Cuppings are oddly quiet.

It was much harder writing what I thought I smelled at this stage. It is very subtle. I think I have a pretty good nose. The dynamic of the coffee changes so much from the ground bean to the "wet" stage. I honestly have a hard time writing anything during this part of the smell test. You are supposed to get really close to the cup and sniff the heck out of it. Still, I got nothing. Stumped, truly.

Once the coffee is "broken" Allie scoops off the foam and bean grounds. I let the new "cuppers" break the coffee and shied away since I felt my nose may have been broken. And then we slurped. 

I took a little video of Allie's "slurp" demonstration. The recent article in the Sun suggested that you can't be a "Ruxton Dowager" while slurping. I love their Downton Abbey reference! It felt like I was back in business after slurping. The flavors were robust for my Steaky bean. One person commented it had wild rice flavors. I love hearing what people wrote afterwards. 

It was a very large class with so many newcomers after the article about Baltimore's coffee scene. Thanks again Allie for your education and open way of teaching. It truly gets easier each time...even though it is still pretty tough to find words. We had the Santa Lucia for brunch this past weekend and our guests were really impressed with the lingering mouth feel that I described earlier. The easiest way to explain it is how a wine feels "big and chewy". The Santa Lucia and the Gacokwe both had a big, lingering mouth feel that was smooth and lingering. I am sure it makes no sense to anyone reading. So if you live in town you can find a cup at Spro on the Avenue while you wait for Madcap to make its way East.

Thanks for signing my Sun Allie and Jay! Kris, I'm coming to find you to get your signature. Who knows, maybe we will open a coffee shop one of these days. I have to start collecting our "wall of fame" items too. I'm hoping a Coffee Pilgrimage to Costa Rica may be necessary soon.

Madcap Coffee in Grand Rapids, Michigan

 

Christmas brought us to Michigan via road trip. We drove eleven and a half hours from Baltimore. We woke up the day after our drive and decided to head north another 45 miles to Grand Rapids. The coffee pilgrimage continued. E. was excited to check out Madcap Coffee. Seemed a bit crazy but there was no traffic and it was a gorgeous, cold winter day.

I grew up in Michigan and my oldest friends are spread out across the Great Lakes state. We called my buddy Andy on the way up north and tried to meet up with him in GR. He works in the building next to Madcap but was watching the kids so his hot wife could get extra Christmas shopping done. It was such a tease to be so close to them but we were on a coffee mission and had to get back to The Zoo in time for Baby Nephew's baptism. Loved talking to you Andy and had such a nice time in your town. The museum is killer and we got an extra present for my grandmother in the gift shop. As always, YOU ROCK!

E. didn't know that I had already put in the request with my Momma and brother to pick up a few bags of beans for his stocking from Madcap. He of course also bought a few bags. The thing with way fancy coffee is you can't really stock up on the stuff. You want the beans to be freshly roasted, within a few weeks. So we later picked up a bean storage can from Waterstreet Coffee Joint in Kalamazoo. 

The coffee altar at Madcap is raised just slightly, begging for the customer to come and worship the brews. My Episcopalian mind imagined the bean "bags" as kneelers and E. going up for communion in his "church" of sorts. This large open space had nave-like qualities with exposed brick and great acoustics. The choir of espresso machines and milk steamers worked in harmony on our visit. 

The beans are roasted in the "lower crypt". This church metaphor works...even though it may be a bit much.

The term Madcap comes from the play on Mad Cappuccino. 

Third Coast espresso was the gift of choice from my family to Eric. I love the detail on the packaging that had a fabric label.

The place was not that busy when we arrived so E. had lots of time to discuss his options.

I love pretty things. I'm still wooed by latte art and I'm finally beginning to actually taste the difference between my lattes too. This latte was the perfect temperature, using locally grass-fed milk, that showed off the coffee vs. scorching my tongue. 

E. ordered the coffee flight.

There were two single roasted cups and one blend.

It was one of the highlights of our Christmas trip. Just sneaking away for the morning. My family was like, "You drove where? For what? Coffee? I don't get it." It's okay guys. You don't have to get it.

Charlie, you are the heart in my latte. Thank you for our adventures.