Ants Pants Cafe
2212 South St.
(215) 875-8002
ANTS PANTS (adj.) Australian colloquial term meaning unequivocally "the best" or "height of fashion." As in, "mate, this coffee is the ants pants"
If study abroad just won't fit into your schedule, head over the Spruce Street Bridge to Ants Pants, an Australian coffeehouse and BYO that merges the food and atmosphere of its owners' international experiences.
The iced and hot coffee and espresso specialties are made with Belaroma beans, which are roasted in Australia. Additionally, Ants Pants serves both hot and cold teas, with an Iced Chai Latte that is a perfect blend of spiced tea and milk.
If you arrive with an appetite, Ants Pants has a reasonably priced caf‚ menu with breakfast (served all day), lunch and dinner. Their breakfast specialties are extensive. Be sure to try the Bacon Stack ($7.25), a tower of crisp bacon, fresh tomato, arugula, sunny side up eggs and grated pecorino romano atop a thick slice of toasted white bread. To appeal to the early morning sweet tooth, Ants Pants serves a moist CrŠme Brulee French Toast ($6.50).
With a friendly waitstaff, wireless access, outdoor seating, and a great selection of Aussie food and drink, Ants Pants is a top notch fix of the land down under.
- Julie Johnson
Green Line Caf‚
4239 Baltimore St.
(215) 222-3431
It's hard to find a coffeehouse that doesn't insist on dark plush corners, yellow interior lighting and speakers blaring Norah Jones. These stereotypical caf‚s serve as a kind of refuge, but any Penn student can find a fresher experience just a few blocks away on Baltimore Avenue, across the street from Clark Park.
The Green Line Caf‚, a flower-shop-turned-coffeehouse, is a great place to drink coffee, watch people, read, write, watch writers and maybe even watch writers watch people. The selection of aromatic teas, from the standard vanilla chai to the rarer roasted yerba mate, supplements the modest coffee menu, but it is the wide selection of food that entices many of the customers. For one, they carry LeBus's best-selling chocolate croissants among their other flaky pastries.
The caf‚ also caters enormously to the vegetarian palate, with their quiche, black bean burritos, delicious roasted tofu sandwiches and local farmers' market creations. The greatest feature, though, may be the place itself. The wide stained glass windows let in an abundance of sun, and the vintage green exterior make this neighborhood bistro even more inviting.
The line of customers is more endearing than annoying, and the cherry apple walnut bagel with whipped butter and unsweetened iced cappuccino are worth the wait anyway.
- Rachel Shah
La Colombe Torrefaction
130 S. 19th Street
(215) 563-0860
As I chat with my coffee-loving friend in La Colombe coffeeshop, I cannot help but notice the middle-aged French couple that arrives on a bright yellow motorcycle. These ex-pats are just a few of the older, intellectual crowd reading The New York Times.
La Colombe Torrefaction, an independent coffee company owned by Frenchman Jean-Philippe Iberti and American Todd Carmichael, attracts a unique crowd with its warm, red-orange walls, long dark wood counter and funky artwork. Each coffee drink is served in a porcelain cup with a "colombe" (French for "dove") design, the company's emblem.
The creativity and design does not end there. The cappuccino, which has the perfect amount of crema, is accented with the design of a fern. This design may vary "depending on the coffee maker's mood" says the barista. Nonetheless, it demonstrates that these baristas are dedicated to bringing their customers top quality coffee.
A small selection of pastries accompanies the coffee. While the pain au chocolat is buttery and flaky, the way a good one should be, the muffins are dry and fail to complement the cappuccino well.
Pastries, however, are not what La Colombe is about. La Colombe is about the "art of coffee roasting." It is about having a good start to your day, a point upon which my friend and I agreed.
- Laura Loesch-Quintin
Metropolitan Bakery
4013 Walnut Street
(215) 222-1492
If Bucks County Coffee is the Wharton of the Philadelphia coffee circuit, then the Metropolitan Caf‚ and Bakery represents the College. Bucks has stormed the tri-state area with its mixture of well-lit seating areas and an extensive menu, both of which allowed Bucks to expand into franchises throughout the tri-state area.
What Metro lacks in instant marketability, however, it makes up for with artisanal breads, joe without any frills and a bistro experience. Casual coffee drinkers beware: staples like the cappuccino and the macchiato go down strong and even a bit bitter until the very end.
What distinguishes Metro from Philly's other coffee powerhouses, though, is that the baked goods aren't just placeholders. Rather, the pastries, cakes, and baguettes arrive daily from Metro's own bakery, and when they run out, the barista can only shrug his shoulders and ask you to try again tomorrow.
To top it all off, the place is filled with grad students typing out their newest papers, and new age music plays over the speakers. Bottom line? Coffee's pretty good, food is top quality, and since the owners originally worked at White Dog, they know exactly how to make a college student feel at home.
- Derek Mazique
Old City Coffee
221 Church St.
(215) 629-9292
Old City Coffee is on a narrow, cobbled road, which fits its quaint atmosphere. Upon entering the caf‚, the strong aroma of fresh coffee beans envelops customers, forewarning that this place - no Starbucks - takes its java seriously. Rather, OCC is a place that offers quality coffee without any pretentiousness.
The front of the shop contains 19 barrels of freshly roasted beans for customers to package and bring home. For immediate gratification, OCC offers a large, albeit coffee-centric, menu with both hot and cold beverages.
The cappuccino, zinging with espresso, was full-flavored and did not leave the stale aftertaste that sometimes occurs from the steamed foam milk. The basic coffee-of-the-day, best left unadulterated by sugar and milk, was full, but began bitter. Yet this taste quickly diminished, indicating that this average brew possessed the mark of all great coffees: no lingering bitterness.
However, even this "instant gratification" was not so instant; in keeping with its noncommercial vibe, the staff was personable but slow. To accompany the coffee, OCC offers homemade goods such as apple cake ($2.95), macaroni & cheese ($6), and bagels with a variety of spreads ($1.60). Non-coffee drinks are also available for those who can't handle the beans.
- Kerry Golds
