Buzzed in Ballard
(caffeine buzz, that is)
Where in Seattle can you possibly go for a weekend stroll, and NOT encounter at least a few choices to stop and get caffeinated? Well, I do hear that there’s a few pockets of caffeine silence in the middle some residential neighborhoods, but luckily that’s not the case in Ballard. Not that Ballard is strictly a residential neighborhood part of the joy of living here is that you can find apartments and high tech condos on the same block as turn of the century Scandinavian style houses, brick buildings that used to house old style grocery stores, fishing supply shops, bars, and frightening hotels that are now filled with boutiques and other tiny small businesses just down the street from a brand new eco-friendly sustainable library building. Don’t like walking across the cobblestone-style bricks on Ballard Avenue? Head a block south west and you’ll see train tracks that have been slightly reclaimed by nature and fishing boats being repaired in tiny shipyards. To add to the contrast that makes up Ballard style, just beyond those train tracks they’ll start building a swanky hotel soon.
Yes, Ballard is made up of a mix of old and new, history and the future. Walking along Market Street, you’ll pass an old Carnegie Library, built in 1905. Now there’s a high-end restaurant inside. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that one hundred years ago someone was walking up those stairs, hoping to find a book and a comfortable wooden bench to spend a rainy Saturday. Sometimes it’s hard to forget the history of the neighborhood, though, too. Local businesses are still influenced by the Scandinavian heritage of the area, even if the owners have not a drop of Northern European blood in their veins.
How does coffee fit into the mix? The best coffee shops in Ballard fit in so well, that it’s difficult to imagine a time without them. Tucked into historic buildings, furnished with earthy decor, each of my five favorite coffee shops not only fits into the style of Ballard as a neighborhood, but without them, the neighborhood would surely suffer.
My drink of choice is a latte, double tall (or grande, if I’m feeling reckless) with vanilla rice milk to be specific. Not all of the coffee shops in the universe have rice milk; in fact, it may seem strange to many folks that they can get milk out of a grain of rice. I don’t think that any of us want to think about that too much, except you should know that regular cow milk is more forgiving in an espresso drink than rice milk. Rice milk allows much more of the flavor of the coffee to come through, and the rice adds a bit of sweetness to the coffee that regular milk lacks. So, if the coffee is scorched, if the espresso is pulled to fast or too slow, if the grind is not just right, a regular person might not notice so much when they’re drinking a latte made with regular 2%. But bring rice milk into the mix, and there’s not as much room for error. I’ve become very picky about my latte as a result.
My pickiness is not only tolerated, but also rewarded, when it comes to patronizing the smaller, independent coffee shops in Ballard. At most of these shops, you’ll encounter the owners when you visit, or at least a regular barista, or coffee artist, that has worked at the shop long enough to know the machine, know the coffee, and know the customers. Not just a counter clerk here, pushing buttons and making brown liquid come out, no no no. That will not do. If I’m going to be making my grandfather roll over in his grave every time I spend $5 on a cup of coffee, it has to at least be GOOD.
To start our coffee tour, we’ll start at the Ballard Locks. Walk this wonderful park a bit to get your thirst up. Check out the boats going through the locks, visit the water birds (sometimes there’s even a heron or a loon!) and admire the gardens. Then, when you leave, turn east to head down Market Street.
Karma Coffee is easy to miss, since the storefront is a little overwhelmed by the industrial style shop building that surrounds it. But they’ve done a wonderful job of inviting nature to stop by; a miniature garden invites you to the front door, and in the warmer months there will be chairs outside. Once you walk in, though, you realize that it’s a little like Mary Poppin’s bag, much larger on the inside that it seemed from the street. Comfortable chairs and tables are watched over by rotating art on the walls. And, surely the barista will say hello before your eyes have adjusted to the dim, but clean and friendly, light. Alas, Karma Coffee does break my first rule of a good coffee shop: they don’t have rice milk. They do, however, make a darn good Americano, and for the sake of the atmosphere, I’ll allow the lack of rice milk to slide.
Across the street, Firehouse Coffee is in, you guessed it, an old firehouse building. You can see photos of the old building on the walls, which is almost the only way you’d be able to imagine this coffee shop once being a firehouse. After only being here for a few years, Firehouse looks like they’ve been in this space forever. It’s comfortable, friendly, warm, and inviting. Sometimes too inviting, as kids seem to feel quite at home here. Luckily, a small room is made just for kids, filled with toys and tiny tables. I love this. Keep those kids contained. Please. In warmer weather, a balcony on the roof is wonderful for spending summer afternoons reading and sipping your caffeine of choice.
Firehouse also has the best lunch selections of any of the Ballard coffee shops: daily soups, grilled sandwiches, wraps, and salads. Plus a selection of the standard coffee shop fare such as scones, bagels, muffins, banana bread, and other evil treats.
These perks are why I like Firehouse Coffee. The actual coffee is average. Usually acceptable, but not as good as my other favorite Ballard coffee shops. Luckily for them, their coffee always tastes better when you can sit on their nice balcony in the summer, catching a breeze from Puget Sound, or next to their fireplace on a cozy chair in the winter.
Keep heading east on Market Street. Turn north on 24th and walk up to 59th. It’s only a few blocks; Javabean is usually worth the walk. Perfectly located for folks who live in the neighborhood but don’t want to venture to Market Street, Javabean is almost always busy. The tables are arranged nicely, though, so even when it is overly crowded, you won’t necessarily feel crowded.
Javabean usually wins the various “Best of” contests, possibly due to clever campaigning on their part. Their lattes are acceptable, although not as smooth as I like. Their “tower” size is practically a Big Gulp of coffee, especially if you add extra shots of espresso. Javabean really shines when it comes to their great pastries. Jumbo slabs of coffee cake, cookies encrusted in frosting, muffins that are monster sized, and bagels that are slathered in a week’s supply of cream cheese are all reasonably priced and make up mediocre coffee.
Are you over caffeinated yet? No? Walk east on 59th to 20th, then south across Market Street. Turn to the left and walk just a bit down Leary Way to The Chai House, aka Morning Glory Chai. Wind chimes and outdoor wooden chairs and tables will greet you to the physically largest of the small coffee shops in Ballard. There are plenty of tables, soft chairs and sofas, and The Chai House is the most easygoing of all of these coffee shops about sitting and hanging out for a while. They have unique pastries, too, that are all baked daily, right next to the chai pots. Yes, they brew their own chai, too, which is available all over the city at other small local coffee shops. But I love their lattes. Usually.
The quality of their coffee is sometimes the best ever, sometimes the worst ever. It really depends on the state of the barista, what time of day it is, whether Mercury is in retrograde. Assuming that all of those things are aligned just perfectly, their lattes are GREAT. If you’re getting rice milk, like I do, be sure to ask for the vanilla rice milk, because it helps it all work out so much better.
I’ve saved my favorite coffee source for last. Stroll back to Market Street, and walk west. Tucked away in an alley between Ballard Avenue and 24th is Seattle’s best kept and tiniest secret. Nervous Nellie’s Espresso Company is squeezed into a miniature space, but there’s still room for you to sit and treat yourself to the best latte in Ballard. The owner is a perfectionist when it comes to coffee, and will often make second espresso shots if she doesn’t think the first ones are up to her high standards. It’s about the look, the smell, the feel of the water pulling through the machine how it all works together is a mystery to us civilians, but it results in a smooth and artistic cup of coffee. I’ve become so spoiled by Nervous Nellie’s that if this shop is closed, my day is ruined. All other coffee become substandard for me once I became addicted to Nervous Nellie’s coffee.
Plus, this coffee shop offers something unique: a toast bar. Yes, toast. Who would have guessed that this comfort food could become such an obsession for Nellie’s patrons? It does, though, and it seems that every customer has his or her own particular toast obsession. Toast is made from thick sliced local Great Harvest bread and slathered with any combination of tasty toppings such as real butter, cheese, jam, peppers, garlic butter, peanut butter, caviar and seasonal treats. Go ahead and try a mixture of toppings you might not normally think of eating. I recommend the jam, cheese, and butter.
Now that you’re completely buzzed on caffeine, stroll around this historic neighborhood, peruse the mix of old and new buildings, and check out the boutiques and small shops for the perfect little gift for yourself. Ballard is a special neighborhood, and not only because there are so many wonderful coffee shops to be visited. Beware: you may just want to move here.
