Our Third Queens Swap is Coming!

Image by Meg Cotner

For those of you who follow my foodie adventures know that I'm involved in a lot of different aspects of the food scene - eating, cooking and trading too.  Together with my wonderful colleagues Meg and AJ, we organize Queens Swap, a bi-monthly food swap targeted to the Queens community.

The last swap, held in September at Fresh Start Market was another smash hit, and we're back at it again this month with a third iteration, this time in LIC.  Graciously hosted by our friends at Sweetleaf LIC, the insanely delicious coffee house that serves the legendary Stumptown Coffee, our 3rd Queens Swap promises another afternoon of culinary adventures.

Part of what I really love about the event is getting exposure to passionate and genuine food lovers, who take pride in making, growing and foraging their food.  They experiment with new techniques and I find that I learn new things about food I couldn't get from any type of cookbook.  It's just a great big food think tank. 

So with that, I sincerely invite you to join us for the next one.  Here are the deets:

3rd Queens Swap Event
Sunday, November 13th from 4:00 - 6:30 p.m.

Sweetleaf LIC - 10-93 Jackson Avenue, LIC
917.832.6726
www.sweetleaflic.com

RSVP here - the event is free!

Cool Down With Sweetleaf - And Not Just With Coffee

Well it certainly seems like summer is upon us.  While I can't complain, since I prefer the warm weather to a harsh NY winter, it has been pretty hot and sticky outside. 

One way to fend off the discomfort that sometimes comes with the humidity is to keep yourself properly hydrated.  And yesterday while my brother and I were walking back from Greenpoint, Brooklyn back to LIC, we stopped at Sweetleaf for a much needed liquid refresher.

Although Sweetleaf is known for their coffee, they also carry interesting, herbal and fruit teas, which can be made iced.  Each tea is prepared especially for you, so the process takes about five short minutes.  Fruit teas are highly recommended iced, as their fruitiness really stands out when chilled.

Here are the 2 varieties we tried:

Coconut Lavender - This was my tea and it was really excellent.  Light in color and in taste, it was slightly bitter with a lovely coconut accent that hit your palate after each sip.  The lavender was more present in smell than in flavor, which I was fine with.  Since this concoction was slightly bitter, I sweetened it with a few glugs of simple syrup. Yum!

Blood Orange Citrus - My brother chose this tea, which couldn't look and taste more different than mine.  First off, it was bright red/dark pink and tasted tropical, with a hint of orange zest at the end - like the effect that the coconut had on my tea.  And contrary to my tea, this one didn't need to be sweetened, as it had natural sweetness already built in. 

Service and Cost:
The service was awesome, as always, and very personal.  We received good recommendations about tea flavors and even a detailed explanation about why they now carried different baked goods and less chocolate (they changed their baker, and the Nunu chocolates are coming back in the fall).

Costs are moderate, and for two medium sized iced teas, we paid a total of $5.50 ($2.25 each).

3 Mmmms

Sweetleaf - 10-93 Jackson Avenue, Long Island City NY 11101
917.832.6726

7 Train to Vernon Blvd/Jackson Ave
www.sweetleaflic.com

Groupon Queens Edition is Here - 50% Off SweetLeaf

I'm so delighted that Groupon - the online coupon-sharing site - has expanded into Queens.  Its debut was this Monday, featuring a great deal from Artopolis and today is another enticing special from one of my favorite coffee shops in LIC, SweetLeaf (thanks for the heads-up Kim!)

The deal offers you 50% off of drinks, snacks and other treats from SweetLeaf.  The "groupon" costs $3 for a $6 value.  This is so worth it, I think, as SweetLeaf is known for their amazing, free trade Stumptown coffee and freshly baked muffins and pastries. They also offer delicious handmade chocolates by Nunu, which are to die for, especially the hand dipped salt caramels.

The deal goes until midnight tonight, meaning that you can buy the Groupon until then and you can use the coupon until August 21, 2010. Enjoy!

And if you recommend Groupon to friends and they buy stuff, you get $10 in your piggy bank to spend on fun deals. I already got mine.  Sign up here.

Sweetleaf - In Coffee House We Trust

Sweetleaf - 10-93 Jackson Avenue, Long Island City NY 11101

917.832.6726

7 Train to Vernon Blvd/Jackson Ave

www.sweetleaflic.com

I was excited to try this well-known LIC java house, mainly because it's known for excellent Stumptown brand coffee.  My friend and Joey in Astoria colleague, Meg tried it the other day and was very pleased.  Since we tend to have similar tastebuds, I was really looking forward to it, bringing my bestie Kimberly along for the enjoyment.

Atmosphere:

From the very first minute I stepped into Sweetleaf, I knew it was something special and different from the run-of-the-mill coffee houses like Starbucks and Peet's.  I loved its comfortable, homey vibe with a couple of small tables, upholstered benches and fun little knick knacks and mementos everywhere you looked. 

The upbeat rock music completed the indie vibe and made me feel like I was back at my favorite college coffee house, Espresso Royale, where I used to study for hours and play my favorite music from the jukebox.  I think that's one thing that Sweetleaf is missing - a fun, little juke box to complete the nostalgia.

Coffee and Food:

Kimberly and I both ordered cappuccinos, and she also got a wheat bran muffin to nibble on.  

I loved how gorgeous the cappuccino looked--the foam was shaped like a sweet little heart and I absolutely loved the effect.  The coffee itself was awesome--strong and aromatic but not so potent that it made me jittery.  For me, a great cup of coffee doesn't need many embellishments, and I hardly had to put sugar in this, it was that good.

Although I wasn't hungry, I just couldn't pass up trying Kimberly's bran muffin.  Mmmm...it was divine.  As Meg rightfully pointed out, the words "bran muffin" and "divine" scarcely end up in the same sentence, but this was fantastic.  First off, it wasn't oily and had a slightly crunchy outside with a soft chewy inside.  And as Kimberly rightly pointed out, it tasted homemade and even healthy.  Not sure how much butter was in it, but it didn't feel heavy at all.

Service and Cost:
The service consisted of one barista behind the counter, and she was very competent.  I liked that she carried through the indie/rocker look, sporting a cool, short haircut and a barely-trying edgy outfit.  She was hip and fit in completely with her surroundings - we dug it!

Costs are high but you get premium quality and it's worth it.  Two cappuccinos and a wheat bran muffin set us back $9.  I'd go back any day!

3 Caffenaited Mmmms