as we admire this vibrant hibiscus bloom somewhere along D Street.
Around the corner from the Encinitas arch was yet another coffee shop we wanted to try...
Ironsmith Coffee Roasters is the latest craft coffee shop to open in Encinitas and is at the end corner of a strip of businesses. You can't miss its deep royal blue walls...
I really loved their handy chart explaining the espresso to milk ratio. It appeals to the visual side of me. I never realized that much milk went into a mocha or that much water went into an Americano coffee.
One of the owners, Raul Macias was there serving today. The gal who helped us was super chill; she was the one who made my first flat white. I'd been seeing it advertised at Starbucks and saw that it was a drink popular "Down Under". I wanted to try Ironsmith's version first.
In their case are sweets from a local bakery (I forgot the name, oops). Hardly anything was left but we bought one sea salt chocolate chip cookie to share for later. There isn't a lot of seating here and what seating they had was all taken so we had to take our coffees to go.
Raul making Bert's Ethiopian pourover. Like the good folks at WestBean and Bean Bar, he was a very cool and patient barista. He was very knowledgeable and not pretentious at all. Bert asked him a lot of questions about the roasting process and how hot the water should be, etc.
My first flat white...which was very milky but smooth. No extra sugar required. I'm getting used to this now.
Bert's Ethiopian which also didn't require any additional sugar or cream. It was pretty fruity tasting.
Ooh, an aloe vera plant!
Their roasting machine:
The sea salt chocolate chip cookie from unknown bakery. I need to start making my chocolate chip cookies with the sea salt. I like the contrasting flavors.
On the way back to our car which was parked at the train station parking lot. Look how tall TC is now. She is now 5'2".
After having had two coffees today (my cortado at Lofty Encinitas Roasting Works) plus this, I was definitely caffeine'd out!
Aaand there goes the Coaster train....
Articles/blurbs about Iron Smith:
"I met the gang at Ironsmith Coffee Roasters, Caliandcoffe blog, January 7, 2015
"Roast Highway". SD Reader, February 18, 2015
"Welcome Ironsmith Coffee to Encinitas" by Moonlghtbeach Dental, March 17, 2015
"Hot cup of science", SD Reader, March 25, 2015
"The 16 essential coffee roasters in San Diego", SD Eater - Ironsmith comes in at '16'.
plus a super short video from tastemade
Iron Smith Coffee Roasters
458 S. Coast Highway 101
Encinitas, CA 92024
(760) 230-2311
www.ironsmithcoffee.com + their FB page
+ reviews from that four lettered site and tripadvisor
The vibe was pretty low key over here. The folks working the counter, especially the owner, were all pretty nice and friendly. That's how it should be instead of treating customers like dumbasses, ha ha. But seriously, we enjoyed their coffee very much and hope to visit again one of these days...
2 comments:
Kudos to you for trying new coffees and having that much, haha. My stomach would probably kill me. I've been curious about the flat white, too, but it's hard for me to drink hot coffee. I will live vicariously through you! I also love that visual sign showing the amount of milk/water. Excellent design.
I love that sign. I actually have it saved so I can refer to it. Yes, I am branching out and I can honestly say That I can now tell which coffee places are better and which ones serve swill. Charbucks, I'm talking to you.
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