[Nutterbug]

Which is the best coffee place in the Lower Mainland?

[mr.x]

where else?

http://buytaert.net/cache/images-portland-2006-starbucks-500x500.jpg

[Rusty Gull]

Bean Around The World is always enjoyable.

[excel]

Tim Hortons and Starbucks are both good for me, but because of the breakfast sandwich's at Timmy's I always drink their coffee for convenience and i enjoy it. I see starbucks now offers a breakfast sandwich, gona have to try it out and i might change coffees. Overall I'm not picky ill drink any coffee.

[entheosfog]

I too like Been Around the World's coffee. And, seeing as my girlfriend works there, I get free, ahem, samples...

[Robynobotica]

They all have their pros/cons.

If you're not looking for espresso and want cheap coffee, donuts or sandwiches, you've got Tim Horton's. Although some people take their love for Tim Horton's a bit too far, in my opinion. I've known guys who support Tim Horton's like it's their Canadian patriotic duty.

If you're looking for the best mocha or a decent matcha drink, Blenz is great. Their mochas put most other places to shame. They melt real Belgian chocolate into their mochas (your choice of milk, dark, or white chocolate). And unlike Starbucks, their matcha's aren't flavouried with honeydew melon - they taste like the matcha flavour you get in green tea ice cream.

If you're looking for reliable service and a standard product, Starbucks is good. Their lattes can taste like cardboard, but they make a great cup of coffee. They properly train all their staff, so they're quite efficient and pleasure to deal with. The same cannot be said for Blenz... which I guess isn't fair to Blenz. Their Richards/Davie location is great, but their Robson/Bute location is a joke.

Does Second Cup even exist in Vancouver anymore?

But Caffe Artigiano is probably my favourite. The coffee's good, but they really excel at espresso drinks more than any other coffee shop in the city. They pay attention to the small details and they produce a high quality product. And they make the best gourmet sandwiches too!

[Rusty Gull]

^ There's a Second Cup still in the Park Royal Mall. But, like Harvey's, it's a Toronto import that's hard to find in the Lower Mainland.

Unfortunately, the one at Lonsdale Quay shut down -- and gave way to SBUX.

[Robynobotica]

The Second Cup at UBC shut down and turned into Blenz a year or two ago.

I know that as a child in the 80's we had a Second Cup at one of the local shopping malls in Richmond (Lansdowne?) but I think that closed down a few years ago.

Starbucks arrived on the scene in 1987 I think, at Waterfront Station downtown and soon spread to the suburbs. I remember my dad taking us to the Starbucks at Ackroyd Shopping Centre (where the Chapter's on No 3 Road is) as that was the first to open in Richmond. I think that was in 1990 or perhaps a year earlier. He wanted to check it out because he had heard so much hype about it. (Of course, there are now 2 Starbucks in that same shopping centre - the other's inside Chapters).

Meanwhile, Second Cups never really emerged beyond the few that had always existed in and around town, despite the growing Starbucks explosion.

Tim Horton's, funny enough, never existed in Vancouver or the lower mainland up until 1998 or so. I don't think many people realize this, at least those who have moved to Vancouver *after* Tim Horton's opened up here. But even then, Tim Horton's were rare as late as the year 2001. The only ones in Vancouver proper were located in Esso stations. And the guy I used to carpool to work with would go out of his way and make us late for work so that he could pick up his Tim Horton's, as it would be all he'd ever drink. He was obsessed with it. He was also from London, Ontario - no surprise! ;D

But it's funny... I remember watching Tim Horton's commercials during the winter Olympics as a kid and always wondering where they were. I think I saw my first Tim Horton's in Kelowna in the 80's.

Only within the past 4-5 years have they opened more TH's in and around Vancouver. So there has never been generations of Tim Horton's addicts in and around Vancouver like there had been elsewhere in Canada. And by the time that Tim Horton's opened up a few more locations in Vancouver, everyone in Vancouver had been drinking Starbucks for about 10 years.

Maybe I ought to write the history of coffee in Vancouver. Ha! :jester:

[deasine]

i love starbucks - but only for their drinks and not really their coffee... for the best coffee, it's cafe artigiano.

[G-Slice]

Um come on guys, JJ Bean is the best!

[SpongeG]

Tim Hortons and Starbucks are both good for me, but because of the breakfast sandwich's at Timmy's I always drink their coffee for convenience and i enjoy it. I see starbucks now offers a breakfast sandwich, gona have to try it out and i might change coffees. Overall I'm not picky ill drink any coffee.

apparently of all the places that offer "breakfast sandwiches" Tim hortons is suppossed to the most healthy - or the one with the least fat or something

[SpongeG]

does anyone like WAVES?

they are spreadking like crazy

i heard their coffee sucks though

but i wondered why they are always so busy and its apprently the free wireless

[MichaelChampion]

Starbucks when I'm on my way to work or just need a coffee, Artigiano for when I want to actually taste good coffee, best lattes in the city.

[Robynobotica]

but i wondered why they are always so busy and its apprently the free wireless

Waves reminds me of Blenz before Blenz started to refine and standardize their image.

Honestly? I don't think you have to have good coffee in this city for it to be popular. Free wireless + coffee shop = success in Vancouver.

[entheosfog]

does anyone like WAVES?

they are spreadking like crazy

i heard their coffee sucks though

but i wondered why they are always so busy and its apprently the free wireless

Getting a seat in Waves on Commercial after 10pm is near impossible, especially seeing as it's one of the only coffee shops in the area open past 10. Plus there's the free wireless thing, too. I prefer their coffee to Blenz, though.

[Rusty van Reddick]

Um come on guys, JJ Bean is the best!

Amen- I love to stay with friends near City Hall so I can hit JJ on Main every day.

Other Vancouver standouts:

Caffe Artigiano
Wicked Cafe
The Elysian Room
Cafe O
49th Parallel (Artigiano's roaster which now has a standalone cafe on 4th St in Kits)

There are a couple of reputable places in West Van but I don't know their names.

[Distill3d]

to be honest, and this may sound odd, but Blenz played a large roll in my relocating from Calgary to Vancouver. i find the quality of the product and the customer service better then that of Starbucks.

[mr.x]

to be honest, and this may sound odd, but Blenz played a large roll in my relocating from Calgary to Vancouver. i find the quality of the product and the customer service better then that of Starbucks.

wow....it's just like how people all across from Canada move here because the pot is better.

[LeftCoaster]

Bean Around The World is always enjoyable.

Amen, bean around the world takes the cake for me... that or Artigano, but there isnt one close to me.

Delany's is also a great spot on the north shore and beginning to expand agressively... look for it to be a big local player in the future

[Distill3d]

wow....it's just like how people all across from Canada move here because the pot is better.

lol so i've heard, don't touch the shit myself, so i wouldn't know

[MistyMountainHop]

wow....it's just like how people all across from Canada move here because the pot is better.

Hence the poll option, "Some other joint "

[Hong Kongese]

Umm I am surprised that so far nobody mention of the big M. Actually, its coffee is pretty damn good.

[Rusty Gull]

Umm I am surprised that so far nobody mention of the big M. Actually, its coffee is pretty damn good.

HongKongese, do you really think so?

I was under the assumption that while McDonalds in the U.S. has moved to a higher quality, gourmet coffee to compete with Starbucks, McDonalds Canada is still serving up the same mediocre java it was 5 years ago.

Any retailing experts on this forum who have the lowdown on the coffee at McD's? Value-wise, it's certainly the best bang for your buck. Heck, for $1.85, you can get a large coffee, a muffin and a Province at the golden arches... that's a twoonie going a lot farther than at the local SBUX.

[djh]

Which is the best coffee place in the Lower Mainland?

Well if you're talking about the best coffee *place*, the answer is completely different to which place serves the best coffee.

Artigiano serves the best coffee in my opinion - it's not even on the vote list.
JJ Bean is the best coffee place in my opinion - again, it's not even on the vote list.
Also worthy of mention would be Take 5.

Sorry to add more places to the list, but I'd rather while away the hours in any of those 3 places than your average Starbucks/Blenz/Tim Hortons

[dreambrother808]

The best coffee and coffee place is at Gene, a new business situated where Kingsway splits off from Main. It's that wedge shaped corner between the two streets. I was blown away by the quality of the Americanos and the view plus the minimalist feel of the cafe itself are quite something.

[Hong Kongese]

HongKongese, do you really think so?

Yes, don't know why, I just like it's taste. May be I am cheap.:)

[agrant]

Well if you're talking about the best coffee *place*, the answer is completely different to which place serves the best coffee.

Artigiano serves the best coffee in my opinion - it's not even on the vote list.
JJ Bean is the best coffee place in my opinion - again, it's not even on the vote list.
Also worthy of mention would be Take 5.

Sorry to add more places to the list, but I'd rather while away the hours in any of those 3 places than your average Starbucks/Blenz/Tim HortonsOf course they are on the list. Everything else is under 'Some other Joint'. :D

According to a WE newspaper readers choice poll, JJ Bean is the Best Coffee Chain. :tup:

Personally, I go for almost anything that is self serve. I tend to guzzle coffee, rather than sip it like some pontsy yuppy twat. :notacrook:

[quobobo]

Yes, don't know why, I just like it's taste. May be I am cheap.:)

You're not the only one, some people in Toronto did double-blind taste tests and they liked McDonalds best.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/news/canada_world/story.html?id=9af404dd-0e49-4fee-bc57-01be823174ff

[bugsy]

http://photos22.flickr.com/26008998_c6438dd107.jpg

Starbucks is superior. I just can't get enough of these.