Cold brew culture, NYC

Walking the streets of every borough of New York I saw one common sight, the New Yorker with coffee in hand. On every corner you can find a small coffee shop and there is a cold brew culture here that resonates with my coffee drinking soul. The sun is beating down on me as I walk from Greenpoint to Willamsburg and Brooklyn. I need respite from the spring heat so I duck into Sugarburg where the cool interior welcomes me. It is late morning and a large majority of the tables are occupied by that are breed of animal that works from a coffee shop.

I sit down and join them, making a start on my blog. But the city calls and eventually I exit this haven, icy cold brew keeping me company.

The space between is filled with visions of intricate architecture interspaced with modern art on street walls. I almost don’t feel the need to go to a gallery as this feels more relevant and brings colour to a city of shaded greys.

Next stop is Konditori for another cold brew and bagel. These give me the fuel to make it all the way to the Brooklyn Bridge and beyond. Cars whiz by on either side, the humming pitch gets lower as I cross the centre of the bridge. Graffiti and multicoloured padlocks adorn the sides as tourists have left their mark like a flag on top of Everest. I ponder why someone feels the need for this as the sound of a thousand steps on the wooden walk follow me to the other side and I step onto Manhattan soil.

Last coffee stop is at Bean and Bean on Wall Street. Here I observe a different kind of animal loading their veins with cold brew caffeine. Suits walk in and suits walk out but the common thread with the rest of NYC is that cup of dark liquid that puts a sparkle in their eye.