I never liked coffee until I got a job cooking in a small, indie coffeehouse in Richmond, Virginia. Twas around 1994 and I was looking for work. I was 24 and  had worked in kitchens for several years by then. Through a friend, I started cooking at World Cup Coffee. Within a week or two, the kitchen was all mine. All 10' X 10" of it (if that). The wee kitchen had a double sink, a small steel dishwasher, and a metal table with an industrial hot plate on top. Above it hung a big stock pot, a medium sized pot and a sauté pan. To the right was a shelf with herbs and spices. The convection oven was through the double swing doors behind the coffee bar.

 I created the menu and cooked everything for our little shop and two other shops the owners had just opened. Eventually, they scaled back to just the one shop again though. It was a great job and I worked with some amazing women. I made some forever friends and a boatload of memories at World Cup. For a while there I booked poetry readings and music there as well. It was a fantastic place to work.

And so began my work in coffeeshops and my love for coffee began with the oh-so-sweet, creamy and spicy Thai coffee.  Eventually, I weaned myself off the fattening and delicious sugary Thai brew and graduated to a deep fondness for espresso.

There is nothing quite like working in a coffeeshop. People come to you for a warm cup of caffeine imparting goodness. All kinds of people love and need their coffee. Grumpy old men who clog up your coffeehouse toilet and boast about it need coffee. Artists with or without talent need coffee. Medical students need lots of coffee and were definitely part of the coffeeshop camper crowd. Writers and real estate agents need their coffee; as do students and members of AA and NA. Business folks and sweet little penny counting grannies need their coffee. Crazy people need their coffee. Public masturbators, mothers, fathers, doctors, lawyers, judges and even the Governor needs some coffee. I love'm all and I think it is the people that have lured me into this career. If only I could make a living wage serving coffee, I just might make it my career.

I seriously considered opening up my own coffeeshop in the nineties but it just wasn't my time. For two women here in Richmond, it is time and they've opened up a lovely little coffeehouse near my neighborhood and I'm glad they did. It is in a building that Chris and I have always adored. A little corner shop with stained glass and some interesting graphics painted on the old brick near a Coca Cola ghost painting. The Globe Hopper opened a few days ago and I took my two little ones (seasoned coffeeshop customers) in to grab a latte and a treat and check out this new local business.

The Globe Hopper is well appointed. The stained glass I have admired since I moved here in 1990 was even more wonderful from the inside where sunlight shone through and created a rainbow of light on a sofa. Buddha art and handcrafted caramels were also appreciated by this trio of happy coffeeshop goers. However, the shining jewel of the Globe Hopper has to be the latte. It really was the most delicious latte I have ever had in the city of Richmond and I've had a lot of lattes. I've MADE a hundreds of lattes but this one was like a dessert. The espresso's flavor was so superior to any I've had in recent memory and the foam was perfect in every way.

Globe Hopper also uses cups made from recycled materials and corn plastic cups which are compostable. My personal jury is still out on corn plastics. I think it is great that they are biodegradable but me thinks that there must be a lot of chemicals and residual waste that goes into turning corn into plastic. <mental note: find out how corn becomes plastic>

I'll also mention that I briefly interacted with both of the owners of Globe Hopper and they were very pleasant. I wish them great joy in their business and community endeavors and if you live in the East End or are visiting us, do stop by 2100 E.Main Street if you love good espresso or homemade caramels for 40 cents !