Seattle Trip Report (8 Reviews)
All the shops and roasters I tried while visiting my friend in Seattle!
Let’s Get the Ratings Out of the Way
- Cafe Allegro: 8.5/10
- Cafe Vita: 8/10
- Cafe Ladro: 8.5/10
- Zeitgeist: 6.5/10
- Good Weather Bike & Coffee: 7.5/10
- Lighthouse Roasters: 7/10
- Monorail Espresso: 3/10
- Fonté: 2/10
Overall Impressions
I was struck by how much more prevalent darker roasts were in Seattle - it was my impression that most specialty espresso was in the lighter range of roasts to bring out more of the differences between varietals. Almost every shop I visited served a pretty dark and heavy-bodied roast for their espresso, and few places changed their roasts out with the seasons.
I spoke with Collin from Cafe Ladro about the coffee culture in Seattle:
We were really ahead of our time in the 90s, but most places haven’t been updated since then. You would probably find fewer shops serving lighter (and better) roasts in a newer place like Portland. Things are even worse in San Fran - they were killing the game 30 years ago, but if you go now it’s mostly the same stuff.
That being said, there were still some great spots roasting beans in-house. Cafe Ladro (where I met Collin) and Cafe Vita were wonderful. Cafe Allegro was a hidden gem I would absolutely swing by again, especially given how close it is to the 1 metro line; I had two coffees with an old friend there before hopping on the 1 to catch my Amtrack back to Portland, but I could have stayed much longer. The Good Weather Bike & Coffee cafe-and-bike-repair-shop-combo served a really nice Herkimer espresso blend, who roasts their beans a few neighborhoods away.
Collin mentioned Superjoy Roasters in Portland, and though they are on my list I have not stopped by there yet.
Cafe Allegro: 8.5/10
Hidden in an alleyway in between a used bookstore and a pizza joint, Cafe Allegro had the most enjoyable espresso of any of the cafes I visited in Seattle. The barista had a t-shirt reading Where the hell is Allegro? paying homage to the cafe’s obscure location.
I felt a sense of relief when I took my first sip of Allegro’s espresso and felt familiar waves of fruit wash over me. For most of my coffee-drinking life I considered myself more of a dark-roast kinda guy, but since getting more into espresso and going back to darker roasts, I feel like my taste has developed to like well-done lighter roasts far more.
I got notes of berries (strawberries?) and dried fruit. The listed flavor comps were stone fruit (?) and chocolate. I didn’t get much of either of those, but I still loved it (and went back for a second).
The barista mentioned a cafe in northern San Fransisco named after the Italian city Trieste after which Cafe Allegro was designed; maybe if my espresso journey takes me that far I’ll give it a try! Definitely stop by if you have some time near the 1 line in the University District.
Cafe Vita: 8/10
I had the Cafe del Sol, a house-roasted medium blend. It was pretty good - the first >=8 score of this Seattle trip. I experienced medium body, balanced flavor (not nearly as dark as my previous shots) on the nutty side of sweet. The flavor comps on the bag read milk chocolate, caramel, dark cherry; I mostly got the caramel.
Nothing mind-blowing, but I would have it again.
Cafe Ladro: 8.5/10
This was the first specialty espresso place I got to visit. I had the Ladro house medium blend with milk chocolate, dark cherry and caramel flavor comps, but the strongest flavors I got were nuttiness/hazelnut and vanilla. I found a really mild finish, I wasn’t punched in the nose by bitterness or dryness like many of the other shops.
This was a really nice espresso! If you’re in the West Queen Anne area you might want to stop by.
Zeitgeist: 6.5/10
This smaller German coffeehouse with aged brick walls was a nice environment and okayish coffee, but wasn’t overly impressive to me. Unfortunately, they didn’t seem all that busy either - I could see myself coming back if I needed a place to work or if I knew there would be a more busy or upbeat energy, but this was not my favorite place. I had the Jackson Street Blues roast from Fulcrum Coffee Roasters.
Good Weather Bike & Coffee: 7.5/10
Good Weather was interesting - the cafe environment was serene, tucked into an alleyway in Capitol Hill near a secondhand sportswear shop. I was excited to see them serving Herkimer’s espresso blend; I wanted to try these beans from a Herkimer cafe front, but I didn’t get the chance.
I got a lighter body, almost like a black tea and a much lighter roast than some of the other (read: worse) shots I tried this weekend. I tasted soem chamomile and dried fruits, maybe raisins/craisins.
Lighthouse Roasters: 7/10
This neighborhood roaster was filled with dogs, and the cafe bar shelved probably a dozen kinds of dog treats. The roast was too dark for specialty espresso, but I would absolutely have an americano or latte of their house roast. I get the sense the neighborhood patrons stop by for a coffee and grab a bag of their house roast for their drip machine at home. An extremely small and cozy shop with maybe 4 small tables right next to the roasters and at least half a dozen bags of green coffee beansready to be processed.
If I lived next to this cafe, I’d probably be drinking far more americano for how enjoyable their cafe environment was.
Monorail Espresso: 3/10
The cute window-only cafe front was unfortunately not very good… Very dry, very dark, HEAVY body. The smells from the cafe and from my espresso were wonderful (I still love a dark-roast) but my espresso was not very good. My friend’s vanilla latte was great though!
Fonté: 2/10
Fonté was unfortunately the first espresso in this entire journey that I could not even finish. Extremely dark and heavy-bodied, my mouth puckered up with bitterness with both of the sips I could get down. Very unfortunate.
Thanks to my friend Emma that stuck with me and my annoying coffee flavor charts and endless cafes :)