#plate21

When I see the words “Coffee Quest 419”...my interest is immediately piqued. You might say it’s my dreams come true--a reason to spend excessive time and money in local coffee shops. While Christina and I love coffee and usually make at least one coffee shop stop a weekend, we almost always go to Plate 21. We know we love their product and vibe--and, by this point, we’re familiar to them and that’s a nice feeling (I never have been one to dream big-- just please notice me, adorable barista). The Coffee Quest 419 pushed us to visit coffee shops we rarely or never visited. While not every experience was perfect, the overall experience was worth it. So, next you’ll find a little synopsis from my perspective of each coffee shop stop and a snarky (or not) one-liner from my wife, who lives and breathes to say it like it is.

Plate One: First stamp Ordered the nitro Best decaf coffee ever Baristas were noticeably quiet Spacious environment (which  made it feel empty and cold) Christina- “Best decaf ever.”

Dragon’s Roost: Second stamp Ordered the coconut frappe (painfully sweet) Torani brand syrup Desserts Games-shop and play there if you bring your own Big tables Super friendly baristas Serve Glass City Roasters coffee Perfect napkins Christina- “I think you should do your review and then have one liners from me. Like, that Dragon Ball Z place? Wtf?”

Brew Coffee Bar: Third stamp Ordered an iced matcha latte Offer blended drinks but no fruit smoothies Cookie Doughlicious Boochy Mama’s Kombucha Toledo-opoly Quiet atmosphere Many students working on their computers Hartzler Dairy Christina- “Why does this taste like milk? My stomach hurts.” Christina

Maddie & Bella Perrysburg: Fourth stamp Ordered the Cherry Cordial cold brew Super friendly baristas So many drinks sounded awesome--they helped us decide Nice vibes Christina- “[eyebrow arched] Cute.”

Black Kite Coffee & Pies: Fifth stamp Went for the beer sampling (which was a little awkward but I’m a little awkward, so) Kristin Kiser was super friendly Christina- “Good vibes.”

Glass City Roasters: Sixth stamp Ordered the smoked bourbon hazelnut cold brew with a “little cream” Small space Friendly barista Great vibes Barista helped us decide on what to drink Christina- “My second favorite.”

Maddie & Bella Toledo: Seventh stamp Ordered cold brew with vanilla Out of cherry, out of root beer, in the middle of brewing a tea we wanted, made two teas instead of one but gave us both Relatively friendly baristas Really cold (temp-wise) inside Made friends with a super nice person and her daughter while sitting outside the coffee shop Christina- “Why do you have things on the menu that you don’t actually have?”

Plate 21: Eighth stamp Ordered the coffee frappe with vanilla (all house made syrups) and chicken pesto panini Best baristas Sandy gave us bones for our dogs and said “They’re our customers, too.” Best coffee frappe on planet earth--just the perfect amount of sweetness with the best coffee flavor Serve Madcap coffee Friendly, welcoming environment Efficient in getting orders out Christina- “My absolute favorite, hands down. Not sure why people go anywhere else in Toledo.”

Sip: Ninth stamp Ordered cold brew Friendly baristas Awesome seating areas--plenty of space upstairs to hangout and set up shop to visit or get work done Offer blended drinks, including fruit smoothies Christina- “Don’t bother with coffee here, but the mango smoothie is on point.”

Claro: Tenth stamp Ordered the matcha frappe (effing perfect) Baristas aren’t super friendly Kind of a cold, quiet environment but really nice poetry on the walls and a useable record player, typewriter, and Toledo coloring books Christina- “Love the poetry on the walls, prefer their smoothies to their coffee drinks.”

The Flying Joe: Eleventh stamp Ordered cold brew Multi-roaster Flat vibe-not somewhere I want to hang for long which works well because it’s located at Levis Commons--byeee Christina- “Uhhmmm?”