New Yorkers take their coffee very seriously, so naturally I had to check out several spots considered to be at the top of the NY short list serving the best brew in town.

At the top of my list is Stumptown.  Located in the very happening Flatiron area of New York, Stumptown is a European style stand-up coffee bar.  No sitting around whiling away the day here, this is business.  With no tables, limited pastry items and an abbreviated coffee menu you have to figure the coffee has to be good and you’d be right.  I ordered a picture perfect cappuccino.  Smooth, rich and delicious to the last drop.  Thank goodness they had the sense to open one in Los Angeles.

Next stop was The Randolph on Broome.  This is the spot if you like your coffee served up in dive bar style.  A mish-mash of flea market furniture gives The Randolph a bohemian feel and you can just imagine some kind of poetry readings happening here.  I decided this was the type of place to sample an honest cup of joe so that’s what I ordered. The Randolph brews up a variety of roasts from The Brooklyn Roasting Company.  My cup was a dark, slightly smokey roast which suited me just fine.  I left feeling I had channeled my inner beatnik.

Finally on my short list was 9th Street Espresso.  9th Street has a number of locations but I checked out the one in the Lombardy Hotel on 56th Street near Park Avenue.  I have to admire a coffee bar that has the confidence to stick to only four basic coffee drinks in a world populated by coffee drinks whose names you can barely remember.   I ordered an espresso with milk.  Dark and strong, smooth with no bitterness. Worked for me.