Posts by Simon Grigg
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Hard News: Because it's about time we…, in reply to mobsta,
The aforementioned Fuel in Hong Kong has queues out the door. Even at 10pm at night.
Yeah, but HK, especially the island, like Singapore's CBD, are kind of exceptions to the rule. They are both very westernised. The point I was trying to make was that we perhaps shouldn't limit our coffee horizons to the Australasian stereotype of what good coffee is.
But....
Oh yes..
You get that too ;)
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Hard News: Because it's about time we…, in reply to Dismal Soyanz,
Until recently, Starbucks in Asia were cruising on a lack of real competition. I hear anecdotal evidence of people who have lived in places like Oz and NZ going back to Asia and starting cafes.
That's not really fair at all. New Zealand styled coffee isn't as common but it's also not often demanded unless done so by tourists and expats, especially once you leave the bigger urban areas. Start a cafe if you wish but it will have little to do with selling coffee to most people born in Asia.
There are coffee carts (which usually serve espresso plus about 10 other varieties) in every mall, big or small, and on the streets, in the tourist zones or not, across many towns and cities in the region. And it can be very good.
In Asia, at least in SEA and China, Starbucks is not primarily a coffee chain - it sells fruity or chocolately fluffy things for the kids and young adults. You go elsewhere for a coffee hit.
We travel the world, New Zealand included, with Kopi Bali or Kopi Jawa packets (very finely ground dark coffee which you simply pour hit water over and wait two minutes before partaking). It sells for about $3 a kilo and it's delicious & addictive. And we're obliged (nay, required) to bring it back to New Zealand for friends.
In any small one bejak town in Indonesia, Malaysia or Thailand you can find incredible coffee - it just may not come out of an espresso machine. The best caffeine hit I've had anywhere on this planet can be found in a small riverside retro cafe in Ratchaburi - slow dripped black syrup onto a bed of sweetened milk.
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I wasn't there yesterday for obvious reasons but this review of the mighty Kill City in the Herald simply sucked eggs:
it's Pop caught between New York Dolls and Rolling Stones rawk and enough saxaphone to sink the Love Boat.
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Wonderful, wonderful words, Emma.
I didn't know your mum but I shall be thinking a lot about her today.
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The brand new Miss America has gets all cogent on y'all about Wikileaks.
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Hard News: Holiday Open Thread 2:…, in reply to recordari,
Can you still get this? I want one.
It was on the magnificent 2 x 12" (vinyl only). Only 400 pressed and long gone I think.
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If we are going that way....
I loved this at the time and love it more now: perfect pop from Nige, Dave and Trevor
may not make as much sense on underpowered computer speakers
It does....
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And then take it right back home:
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Might as well go all the way (the city may have changed but the sentiment is the same):
The downside to all this is that the likes of Deep Forest built a whole career from all these guys
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Ok, if that's the way it's going: