Bedford Stuyvesant Coffee Houses

Over 40 years ago, Senator Robert Kennedy invited starchitect I. M. Pei to tour Bedford-Stuvyesant. Pei said, "Like most ghettos, Bedford-Stuyvesant had no focus. There are endless streets leading from nowhere to nowhere." Later Pei went on to design Restoration Plaza and a few other projects in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

Over the next few months, I will write about the focus of Bedford-Stuvyesant today. There are many places for visitors and locals to enjoy these days in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

My first focus is the many coffee houses that are in this old Victorian neighborhood. I have to say for me to write about coffee is like a Eskimo writing about living in the Caribbean: I have never had a drop of coffee in my life. I will not talk about the coffee per se, but I do want to highlight some of the cafe/coffee houses in Bedford Stuvyesant that we all should support and visit.  Many of the owners I do know personally and all are really great people who treat you like one of the family. 

• First I want to spotlight the long-running Bread Stuy on Lewis Ave.  Bread Stuy has been a staple of Stuyvesant Heights for some time now and with their laid back atmosphere, I hope we all have many years of the community doing business with them.
•  Common Grounds on Tompkins is another establishment that has been around for a few years. The service is always met with a smile and the top quality of the products makes you want to come back for more.
•  Tiny Cup on Nostrand feels like the North Bedford Stuyvesant Commons with all neighbors of that area meeting and catching up. This place is very popular and once you go inside you understand why.
• The  T-Cup Cafe on Throop was very much needed in the area of western Stuyvesant Heights. Always very clean I feel like I can eat off the floor.
• The atmosphere at Colander Cafe on Bedford Avenue is adorable. It's really well laid out, lots of seating, lots of outlets for computers.
• Ms. Dahlias on Nostrand is another long over due cafe. This location in the neighborhood really needed somewhere nice to sit and relax. This is the place for the people of Bedford Corners to get there cucumber lemonade in the warmer months.
• Saraghina is a success story located in the Stuyvesant North section of Bedford-Stuyvesant on the corner of Lewis and Halsey is better known for the restaurant.  Many people may not know that this a place during the day is a little coffee house with the best blueberry muffins in NYC.
• French Press Bed-Stuy is right down my line with honoring the rich history of Bedford-Stuyvesant. On Franklin close to Fulton this interesting place has fresh bread from Balthazar and I hear it has the best coffee east of the Mississippi. Only opened a few weeks, I want this place in the neighborhood to be around for many years to come.  Can't wait to see the outdoor area in the future.
• Liquid Oz on Malcolm X has the best hot chocolate that I have ever had in my life. This place makes you feel like you're not in a coffee house, but in your own kitchen and these guys know how to do things the right way.
• Bringing a bit of the 1950s sophistication back to Bedford-Stuyvesant, I hear If you like Choice in Clinton Hill, you will love Crave. The very retro style place with the nice rear is on Patchen Avenue, across from the Excellence School.

Coming Soon: Mac Landing on Halsey next to Royal Rib is certain to bring the original London Coffee house to Bedford Stuyvesant. Another new kid to the block is Blu York on Fulton near Marcy that you can read about here:

I heard a rumor that a big coffee corporation turned its nose up at Bedford Stuyvesant pretty much saying that we are too poor and ghetto.  One corporation told a landlord  that they would rather open up on a dead end street in a more "together neighborhood."

I am personally glad these big companies feel this way. Who needs their burnt coffee here anyway stinking up the place? We have places that are unique and very special to Bedford-Stuyvesant. Which coffee house is your favorite?