Cafe Oranje

289-260-5279

312 King Street East

Hamilton, Ont.

Chris@cafeoranje.ca

Tweet @cafeoranje.ca

www.cafeoranje.ca

**updated**

This cafe has been a long journey for the 2 owners, I have been following Cafe Oranje on twitter and Facebook for quite a while thinking it was open already.  When it was announced on the last week of August it was official! I quickly gathered one of my partners in cafe hopping and planned a trip to King Street!

I was greeted and served by Amy one of the owners of the cafe and she was happy to tell me about the coffee, why they picked it and the roaster (everything is locally sourced).  We found street parking very easily and seating as well.  I ordered a medium roasted coffee, pour over method and it came nice and hot and fully flavoured. Lovely!  

I was really happy with my coffee, free parking across the road before 9 (we didn't get that) and the service.  The day we went the poor airconditioning was working overtime and not keeping up too well. We understood because it was the third day the cafe was open.  We enjoyed the location because the great bookstore next door, we got a book and figuratively chilled (I'm not listening to the OED description of literally).

1)coffee- $2 8/10

2)roasted- locally roasted by Rob House called Hero coffee (special blend to enhance the properties of the beans to be flavoured like the beans that were originally Dutch sourced. 8.5/10

3)service- fast and friendly 9/10

4)assessibility- some street parking but a city lot is directly across the road 8/10

5)flavour- great, full flavour 8.5/10

6)Eco- friendly- china cups in house, unknown if the cafe recycles, cafe Oranje carries soy and almond milk 9/10

7)cup size- attractive, large mugs 9/10

8)food- Neil had a tasty cookie baked by Cake & Loaf on Dundurn, freshly baked 9/10 (vegan food now available)

9)ambience- clean, austere furniture paired with rustic, brick antique building (very cool). 8/10

10)wifi- yes, upon request.  10/10

*Cafe Oranje is one if the biggest social media savy cafes around! Check them out and enjoy the regular tweets and Facebook updates!

* 9/10 overall for wonderful new cafe to enjoy great coffee with a Dutch theme!

Sestres- pastry and Coffee Shop

Vegan and Gluten-free Shop

191 Ottawa St.N.

Hamilton, Ont.

L8H 3Z4

www.sestrespastries.com

Sestrespatries@gmail.com

905-545-5040

Hamilton Ontario has a few special areas to shop with strong communities and interesting places to shop, Ottawa Street is one of them.  I have been going to Sestres for quite a long time, since it opened a couple years ago.  I am a huge fan of small business, friendly service and environmentally responsible shops and this one meets the criteria very well.  

When you enter Sestres you are met by a large array of pastries that are separated by gluten-free or vegan, honestly you would never know if you judged by looks and taste alone.  They have all kinds of coffee service too including the choice of soy milk in all the drinks.  When I went for a coffee recently they had begun to serve lunch as well, limited choices but delicious and safe for consumers that want to eat and not worry about their diets.

1) coffee- small- $1.60 med.-$1.89 large-$2.00 8/10

2) roasted- unclear where in Toronto but organic and fair trade 8/10

3) service- excellent, friendly and prompt 8.5/10

4) accessibility- Ottawa and Cannon Street with street parking or local lot 8/10

5) flavour- 7.5/10

6) Eco-friendly- china cups available in cafe, Eco sourced 8/10

7) cup size- 3 sizes to choose from with decent size 9/10

8) food- vegan/gluten-free food and pastries that would appeal to anyone 8/10

9)ambience-small,friendly and family friendly 8/10

10wifi- ????

*overall 8/10 support one of Hamilton's wonderful family owned cafes on a wonderfully eclectic street! 

Red Hill Coffee Trade

Fair trade Certified and Certified Organic Coffee

75 Lancing Dr. Unit E.
Hamilton, ON
(905)516-9669 by appointment
Twitter: @thecoffeetrade
Facebook: Red Hill Coffee Trade

I cant think of anything more lovely than spending a sunny, weekday strolling along James Street North doing some window shopping and walking to the Downtown Farmers Market. On this particular day my plan was to buy some freshly roasted coffee that I hadn't tasted before. On this occasion I went to the Red hill Coffee Trade set up conveniently as you walk in the main doors off York Blvd. and walk up the stairs. Owned and operated by Jason and Rachel Hofing, this is one of Hamilton's little treasures. I couldn't help myself, I plied Jason with lots of questions regarding coffee, their practices and grinding procedures; I was met with enthusiasm and good hearted responses despite being busy. I bought a pound of Dominican Republic beans and a coffee dripper, both proved to be an excellent investment. I plan on doing an article on grinders and why beans are ground at different coarseness for different coffee makers, at this time I needed a coarse grind for my French Press.

I made my first pot of Dominican the next day and was so impressed by the flavour, sweetness and aroma (so quiet in the mornings these days without the grinder waking us up:).

It is one of the nicest things to have fresh, tasty coffee that is roasted locally, organic and fair trade purchased!

This isn't the usual review but if I did, it's a 9.5/10!

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