Year in and year out I drank that espresso, pulling it every which way you could think to pull it. But in the end, although magnificent, it was still the same espresso, day in and day out, year after year.

Working with a small company who roasts very small batches of ever changing beans taught me even more than what I learned from pulling that same blend again and again. I now have the luxury of trying single origins through our Synessos; I have the luxury of trying different blends at different temperatures; and I have the luxury of working hands on with the man roasting those beans, giving him my feedback and learning what different beans, from different regions, taste like when pulled as espresso.

Currently we are running a mixture of Yemen Matari and Rwanda Kinunu. And as the owner of a very small business, I am inviting you as customers of something small and genuinely Portland to partake in this process with us and give us your thoughts and feedback as well. And as Stumptown makes it’s way to San Francisco and Seattle and eventually to other US markets, you will have every chance to drink what is one of the best espressos you ever will taste. And as that happens, geek out with us once in a while and learn a little bit about how the upstarts operate and how enjoyable some variety can bring to your life.

Love Portland – Love Coffee.

N**k first started coming in and talking about his golf game usually wearing some sort of golf attire. Always nice, chatting up my employees, asking them about their days; their lives. Everyone likes him, everyone looks forward to seeing him. Soon he was making his way to the Acorn where he quickly made friends with those folks. Iced coffee or french pressed coffee with ice has been his standard along with sandwiches and scones and a little more talk of his game.

Next came his co-workers and we now see him everyday buying coffee three or four at a time for the dudes down at Broadway and Oak. Like I said, this man is one of those regulars everyone likes and just amazingly respectful.

Last week he gave me a slip of paper on it with his website. He would not say what it was and I admit that I left it on my desk not thinking it would amount to much. But it amounts to this - gastroerotica.com - be warned, the sounds are graphic.

Oh and yes, we are now french pressing all of or house coffee at the halfy.

At the Halfy:

Mountain Dew and Espresso:

New flickr photos.

We're not very good at holidays in the Crowsenberg's Family. Even less festive are we sentimental, but for some odd reason I live for decorating heart shaped cookies for Valentines Day. Maybe it's the fat and sugar, maybe it's the artificial food coloring, maybe it's the danger of wielding a pastry bag full of royal icing...or maybe it's the sheer pleasure of capturing the spirit of this special day of Love. This is the most romantic, most passionate, most significant and special day of the year for Lovers the world over, so don't blow it by eating at home.

The first wave of shortbread heart cookies have arrived, appearing at Half & Half and Acorn through Thursday. They're $2.50 a piece, and if it's possible to put a price on love, that's quite a bargain. The photo above shows some of my romantic creations, and the sliver of cookie and glass of milk in the foreground is evidence of my dedication to quality control.

Halfy -

Corn -

Biggy

www.scott.com

www.jeff.com

and

www.lasthope.com

All of them were just random thoughts, but the last one tripped me out so hard that I needed to blog about it. At first glance it seems like a legitimate sight trying to help people cope with the seriousness of life, but lumped in with aids and death is baldness and insurance. Weird.

Also found this little pancake gem.

Sandwiches this week include a vegan gem. Tofu-Sweet Pea Salad with Red Onions and whole Shaved Lemons.

Yum.

So on another note... I have made something today for the cafes that is both delicious yet campy:

The Buffalo Tofu Sandwich

We are also doing:
*the Pryzybilla - albacore, capers, onions, parsley and shaved lemons.
*the Chavez - turkey breast, chimichurri, red onion and cheddar
*Pittock the Fourth - escarole or dandelion, chevre and onion marmalade
*the Bobby Fisher - sweet and spicy tempeh, arugula, sherried onions and tofutti

And, the newest J K Production is out.

Peace.

We Have…

*Huckleberry Coffee Cake*
*Morning Glory Muffins*
*Apple Danish*
*Spinach in Puff pastry*

…And If That Was Not Enough

*Pumpkin Bread*
*Ham and Cheese Danish*
*Some of the Best Scones In Our Zipcodes*

So come on in.

On our menu this week we are running: turkey, chevere, kumquat, spinach. Ham, celery root remoulade, tomato. Egg Salad with sun dried tomatoes and arugula. And a vegan bahn mi – pictures of the makings here.

Throughout the weeks, we at headquarters will be bringing readers the information they need to know about these extraordinary women and the product they bestow us.

First up – Naomi.

Her contribution – Red Star Kombucha.

An organic kombucha made from green tea, which she brews and bottles all by herself out in St. John’s. I must admit, at first we were skeptics, but when she brought a case into our boardroom, we knew we had struck gold. Some members described it as soda like, but I described to be more like the sparkling wines that are currently coming out of New Mexico… sweet but fleshy, with a very fine bubble. This is not the bulk kombucha coming from people living in Malibu wearing turtlenecks, idolizing Glenn Close and sipping chardonnay – ouch!

Biggy.

My last blog which was titled Rose Bowl Parade has left me speechless. When I posted the blog, the link took you to some pictures on a yahoo website. There were at least seventy pictures of floats and such. The numbers I gave you to look at were pictures of protesters with signs saying: "Impeach", "Do not kill my sister for oil" and other protests. There were also people dressed like Abu Ghraib prisoners. As of Friday, yahoo removed all of those pictures without explanation and are now only showing pretty pictures of floats, celebrities and sportsmen.

We are no longer free.

You may see some of the photos here.

My favorites are 2, 9, 32, 36, 37, 38, 47, 48 and 53.

Knock, knock.

Keeping this one short... but back to writing. The man I am immortalizing was our waste removal manager. At the beginning of the holiday season he was waving at me and wishing me well. Then I noticed he no longer was collecting. I assumed a death of a relative and he needed to go back. Around Christmas, in the morning, I found his death specifics on a piece of paper delivered to the Half and Half.

Below is a copy of the placard.

Amore

The appointment took place in the 700 building and I rode the elevator to the eighth floor and entered an office on a corner space, which I would get the corner chair. It was a wonderful view of downtown and the 405 bridges. There was also a very visible Red Lion's head right in front of me from the Red Lion Hotel, lots of people doing lots of work while suspended eight stories up in the building next over, and a nice view of the new tram.

Looking around the room, I noticed that I was in some maxillofacial chop shop, a system of executing pariodontal precision in a timely manner. Hanging on the wall was a computer monitor and all of the appointments were in shifts with mine and three others seated at once. The doctor came in, gave me the novocaine, then went into the next room and numbed them up. Same procedure when it came time to do the work - one room then the next, always leaving a nurse behind to finish up.

My tooth did not come out easily. Must have been those long roots. I even had to re-up on the novocaine after much pulling. The pressure feels exactly like bone pulling away from bone. They stitched me up and gauzed the gap. I checked out, walked to my car and spat at least a half cup of bloody saliva. It bled for the next hour or so.

Making it home I started eating codeine and wrote this.

I keep trying to blog about the fact we have t-shirts for sale at the Acorn... I guess this is it. The design was created by Lil'.

We have them in green and yellow.

You can purchase them at the Acorn or I will mail one to you if you give me your credit card number, your social security number and your mother's maiden name.

Biggy

R.I.P. Evel... but for some reason I think you won't.