I had my first Swiss café crème in Zurich at the Bauschänzli Restaurant, located on an island which is a relic of the city’s baroque fortifications and where the Limmat empties into Lake Zurich. The machine “pulled” a shot of espresso that poured a “syrup” of reddish-brown crema into a medium-sized cup. I added some steamed Swiss cream and—voila—Café Crème to die for… I was in coffee heaven. Since returning from Switzerland, I have been looking for “coffee heaven” wherever I go.

So, my little notebook in paw and my palate ready for the challenge, I set out in search of coffee adventure in the South Shore region of Nova Scotia, convinced that amid the genuine maritime spirit of fishermen, farmers, artisans and artists, a fine brew was to be found. I’d heard rumors (sly grin).

I traveled north along the #3 Highway along the coast of the South Shore (in fact the famous lighthouse route), beginning with Liverpool. Here’s what I found.

1. Lane’s Privateer Inn, Liverpool—Family Lane, owners: The Inn, which has 27 guest rooms, is a mix of gourmet gift shop, bookstore/café, diningroom, pub and outside patio. It was a hot day and I wandered outside into their shaded patio to enjoy their house coffee, a medium roast from Mills Mountain in Sackville, NS called “Mariners Cove” blend. I sat back in the pleasant shade of the “Tuscan” patio, graced with grape vines and fence art by Neil Menzies (no nails were used!) and drank the pleasant coffee: a rich not overly dark coffee with pleasant lingering aftertaste. I enjoyed some live music over a Crème Brulee with a hint of Acadian maple. I decided I had to come back for their bread pudding with orange whiskey sauce and an espresso. The Inn also serves a wide range of meals (e.g., fresh local clams, mussels). Linda Lane, one of the managers and, yes, one of the “Lanes” informed me that a wine tasting was occurring later in the evening. Coffee and wine? Why not? Contact Information: 27 Bristol Avenue, Liverpool; tel.no: 1-800-794-3332 or 902-354-3456; http://www.lanesprivateerinn.com.

2.  Woodpile Carvings and Café, Liverpool—Elizabeth Brown, owner: This place is not much to look at from the outside, but upon entering the funky gallery-style café, I was hooked. Local art hung on a rustic brick wall on one side, where patrons were enjoying a quiet chat over some fine java. On the other side, owner and wood carver Liz Brown kept her on-site studio. I’m told that at least 25 artists are featured in the café at any given time, from watercolors and folk art to glass art. I caught a glimpse of their soup of the day—potato-leek and bacon soup—and then felt my mouth water at the displayed butterscotch pie, baked that morning. The café features an eclectic variety of soups, salads and sandwiches for a diverse lunch crowd and has been favored in “Where to Eat in Canada”. As I looked around, I thought the food nicely reflected its surroundings.

Self-described as “urban coffee chic”, The Woodpile gets its coffee from Citavo Coffee in Halifax and brews dark and medium roasts, as well as special coffees such as espresso, cappuccino and latte. I ordered a cappuccino and settled on one of the chairs to enjoy the local artwork, then found myself eyeing a particular carving…  Contact Information: 181 Main Street, Liverpool, NS, B0T 1K0; 902-354-4495; http://www.woodpilecarvings.com.   

3. Wildwood Café, Bridgewater—Aaron and Maria Brown, owners: The Wildwood Café is located on King Street, Bridgewater’s funky old main street with a view of the river. Oli introduced me to this charming café with patio directly on the street, where we savored a delicious lunch of a chicken soft-taco with daily house-made salsa and cream. Their daily soups are exquisitely complex and elegantly flavorful. After spotting their exotic bakery featured out front, I had to sneak back on my own and went to heaven on their pear-cream pie. Oolala! This Spanish-inspired cuisine is worth a post all on its own (later) but for now we’ll focus on their excellent coffee. Wildwood brews a rich medium to dark roast coffee as well as special coffees like espressos, lattes and cappuccinos. Aaron Brown studied with the best in Seattle, learning an uncompromised European style of coffee making.

“The secret,” he confides, “is in the beans.” Scott Gouthro of Quest in Bridgewater (and the most consistent roaster and top 3 roasters in the country, according to Aaron) provides beans for Wildwood. Aaron pointed to my espresso with one of his signature raised brows and assured me that the beans were no more than four days old. My whiskers curled with delight. Here was a man who took coffee very seriously, even if his slanted grin and twinkling eyes reminded me of a cross between a young Jay Leno and Billy Crystal. “My job,” says Aaron, “is not to screw up the roast.” Aaron’s job is to get the right grind and volume. He adjusts these depending on the humidity, temperature and weather, prescribing to the SCAE “Gold Cup Standard” to achieve the balance between beverage strength and correct extraction of the bean toward a “perfect cup”. Wildwood staff pride themselves on their European aerated-style foam, which does not cater to the “pop-foam” crowd as promoted in some of the popular “gourmet coffee” chains. This ensures that the genuine full body of the espresso is not clouded or

 compromised.

When I sat myself on their patio, the café was hopping with patrons who were clearly enjoying themselves eating, drinking coffee and laughing in great conversation—from intellectual topics to local events. I was reminded of the cafés in Paris I used to frequent in the 1980s when I was a student at the Sorbonne, where lively discussions on politics, philosophy and pop culture resounded. A bit of a Voltairean, Aaron loves to cook, along with chef Maria (his wife) but confesses that he likes entertaining even more. His philosophy is simple yet elegant: to make people happy and the world a better place one person—and one coffee—at a time.

Aaron and Maria don’t do the traditional promotional route for Wildwood Café. You won’t find a website or adds in the newspaper. They rely on word of mouth and recommendations from satisfied and long-standing patrons. From what I saw, this works very well for them. But you will find them on Facebook; they are strong believers in social networking and I couldn’t agree more. Go look for them and find out what their soup of the day is. Then go and chat over a coffee with Aaron about politics, why the sky is blue or why everyone should cycle (he’s a funny guy but takes his cycling seriously). Contact information: 425 King St., Bridgewater, NS, tel. no. 902-530-2011. Wildwood Café is on Facebook.

4. The King’s Plate, Mariner King Inn, Lunenburg—Susan Reibling, owner: I came to this historic inn with friend, SF writer Nina Munteanu, to celebrate Christmas last year and was treated to a wonderful medium-dark roast that was rich and smooth and reminded me of the magical café crèmes I came to love in Switzerland. Susan Reibling has preserved the elegance of the rooms in this 19^th Century Victorian inn and restaurant. I felt like—well, a king—as chef Konrad Haumering and manager Beverly Jollymore kindly gave me a tour of their equipment and treated me to an exquisite platter of petit fours (all Toulouse-size, I might add!) and smooth espresso in their elegant front parlor. As I devoured a pistachio chocolate opera made by the hands of French pastry chef Jean-Pierre Gallois of Gourmandise Avenue Patisserie Fine (in Eastern Passage), Konrad

 cheerfully told me of plans to eventually host afternoon teas and pastries. I thought: bonus! The hotel’s restaurant now offers breakfast (for patrons), lunch (in summer) and dinner. And go check out their new chocolaterie, C’est Tres Bon just down the street!

The Mariner King gets their coffee from local roaster Scott Gouthro at Quest and Konrad informed me that they are still warm when they arrive! For a full experience of rich flavorful coffee, wonderful pastries in a rich elegant setting, this place is a special treat. Contact information: 15 King Street, Lunenburg, NS, B0J 2C0; tel.no. 1-800-565-8509 or 902-634-8509; website: http://www.marinerking.com.

5. Biscuit Eater Café and Bookseller, Mahone Bay—Alden Darville and Dawn Higgins, owners: I have many fond memories of this café described by its owner as “simple but sophisticated”. I came here often with my good friend Oli to enjoy their lunches and signature soups, like their Szechwan carrot soup with house-baked biscuit, under the trellis of grapes on the back deck. ”Soup is like wine,” says Alden, “you should feel it on the tip of your tongue then savor its essence and finally its lingering aftertaste.” You just know that a place like that is going to have excellent coffee!  Alden and Dawn get their coffee from roaster Scott Gouthro at Quest in Bridgewater. They get it at least weekly and follow the SCAE “Gold Cup Standard” of grinding and brewing (essentially the alchemy of turning a coffee bean and water into a perfectly extracted cup of coffee.). Their dedication to excellence in the whole dining experience is reflected in their membership in the Slow Food Movement, an eco-gastronomic organization devoted to preserving local food traditions and natural products. Slow Food “brings together pleasure and responsibility and makes them inseparable”, something those at the Biscuit Eater have embraced.

While Dawn is the biscuit-maker, the Biscuit Eater augments with genuine French pastries from chef Jean Marc Riant of the Boulangeri la Vendéenne in Martin’s River. Alden’s smile beams with incredible wattage as he fixes joyful eyes on me and tells me how a patron visiting from France could not tell the difference between the croissant and espresso he’d had at the Biscuit Eater and one he’d had at home. The Biscuit Eater is recommended in the latest edition of Where to Eat in Canada.

Aaron, of the Wildwood, affectionately calls Alden his brother in espresso. Mondays Alden is over at the Wildwood (indeed, I saw him when I was there!) and Sundays Aaron is over at the Biscuit Eater. “It’s an incestuous business!” laughed Aaron. It’s a small business, like a family, when you love the craft as these people do and as virtuous social entrepreneurs, they wisely promote cooperation over competition. Bravo! I say. Go find the Biscuit Eater, enjoy their friendly staff, excellent food and wonderful coffee. Contact information: 16 Orchard Street, Mahone Bay, NS, tel. no. 902-624-1253; http://www.biscuiteater.ca.

6. Eli’s Espresso Café, Mahone Bay—Eli and Trixie Frankel, owners: I discovered this great place to drink coffee and eat and people watch when I first came through Mahone Bay, in search of a place to stay in Nova Scotia. Eli, recognizing me as Oli’s friend (more on Oli, the dog, later), gave me a seat on their covered deck facing the bustling international tourists of Main Street. I basked in the desultory notes of international accents from Britain, Australia, France, Germany and Switzerland as I savored a cucumber, cheese and tomato sandwich with fresh fruit alongside a darkly rich cappuccino made with Kicking Horse Coffee beans (the #1 organic Fair Trade coffee in Canada). Like all good coffee places, Eli gets his beans weekly and grinds his blends fresh for customers. Eli adopted the “Kick Ass” blend as his house blend…Of course: you have to know Eli and his casual friendliness spiced with dry humor. This “cup of attitude” mixes Indonesian and Central American roasts to create a dark flavorful coffee “guaranteed to kick some sense into you.” Alex, who took my order told me that Trixie, a certified pastry chef from Germany, bakes all the yummies on the premises. Someone told me that Dame Judy Dench had come to this café and loved it. Well, they can add Toulouse LeTrek to that list now.  Contact information: 538 Main Street, tel. no. 902-624-0001.

7. Kiwi Café, Chester—Lynda Flinn, owner: The Kiwi Café lies nestled in the heart of the charming seaside village of Chester, an eclectic mix of shops, art galleries, cafés and wellness studios and one of the wealthiest communities in Nova Scotia. Kiwi Café is the vision of Lynda Flinn, who brought what she’d learned as a barista in New Zealand. She found the Java Blend, Halifax roasters since 1936 (they won the Krupps Cup of Excellence Award) and gets freshly roasted beans every week. Kiwi Café house blends include a medium-dark roast of Aztec and Mexican beans and a dark roast of Peruvian and Mexican beans.  Of course, they don’t pre-grind their coffees and their coffee is freshly brewed for the customer. The Kiwi Café takes pride in its signature “Flat White”, an espresso with steamed and foamed cream blended into a rich, full bodied “café crème” that reminded me of Switzerland—which I enjoy being reminded of. Their cappuccinos are also very smooth, rich and not overly foamed so the full bodied flavor of the espresso sings out like a sweet aria. Enjoy a great Nova Scotian meal of fishcakes and house salad with house-made mango salsa alongside a flat white on their pleasant outdoor deck. It doesn’t get much better than this. Contact information: 19 Pleasant Street, Chester, NS, B0J 1J0; tel. no. 902-275-1492; www.kiwicafechester.com.

8. Julien’s Patisserie Bakery & Cafe, Chester—Didier Julien and Laura Mulroony, owners: I found Julien’s quite by accident as I was strolling up the hill of Chester’s charming waterfront to see the view. Was it the complex scent of fresh butter croissants and brewed coffee or the sign and inviting patio? I entered and knew I had to stay and sample something from this the genuine French Patisserie, Bakery and Café . Didier Julien is a Master Baker, Patissier and Chocolatier who apprenticed in France from age 14. Along with a wide deli selection of imported cheeses, Julien’s offers fresh butter croissants, French pastries and a wide selection of delicious European artisan breads, all made at dawn every day. I sat outside to savor a butter croissant with espresso and was transported back to my old haunts on Place Saint-Michel on the Left Bank. I will have to return for their renowned lobster sandwich to experience a genuine maritime flavor. T.A.N Coffee in Wolfville roasts their coffee, which comes to them at least every week and is, of course, ground and brewed fresh. My espresso was smooth, full-bodied and sufficiently complex to make my whiskers curl with pleasure. Contact information: 43 Queen Street, Chester, NS, B0J 1J0; tel.no. 902-275-2324.

9. The Trellis Café, Hubbards—Wilma Raaymaker and Dennis Mansour, owners: I stumbled onto the Trellis Café in Hubbards as I was traveling along the lighthouse route to Peggy’s Cove. Something about the “character” of the building, its inviting patio and the inviting sounds of live music drifting out through the open doors told me to stop. Their motto is “Real Food since 1985” and they proudly serve home cooked meals with fresh ingredients alongside fresh-ground Fair Trade organic coffee. The Trellis preferentially uses local ingredients, Wilma told us, and their cooks take pride in the “down-home” healthy food that is baked and made totally on the premises. The coffee was good and the ambience wonderful. Contact Information: 22 Main Street, Hubbards, NS; 902-857-1188; www.trelliscafe.com.

10. The Dauphinee Inn, Hubbards—Rhys & Kim Harnish, owners: I saw the inn from Highway #3, a charming old (circa 1800s) bright blue building that reflected off the calm waters of Hubbards Cove. I got there by crossing an old wooden bridge over the Fitzroy River then followed a small winding road up a small rise. The Dauphinee regularly hosts live performances on its waterside deck and marina where guests can “dock and dine”. Owner Rhys Harnish, dressed casually in shorts and polo shirt, sidled over to speak with me—it isn’t every day a restaurant is graced by a gourmet cat—Rhys described the food there as “casual upscale”. As I feasted on their catch

of the day, a lightly breaded haddock with stir-fried el dente vegetables (from their own garden!), I thought it an appropriate description. I heard other folks thoroughly enjoying the fresh mussels. The Inn’s Dining Room was the “Taste of Nova Scotia Restaurant of the Year in 2000” and serves a wonderful range of local seafood, pasta and other dishes. They specialize in Hot Rock Dining, in which the customer cooks their meal on a hot (650F) slab of granite. The Dauphinee coffee is unique in that it comes to them frozen. The slurry is thawed daily and run through a press to create a unique coffee taste with a faint “nutty” flavor. Something different… Meow… Contact information: 167 Shore Club Road, Hubbards, NS, tel. no. 902-857-1790; www.dauphineeinn.com; stay@dauphineeinn.com.

For all of you coffee lovers, here are some cool things to consider. Coffee is the largest cash crop in the world and the second-largest traded commodity, second only to oil.

Did you know that, following a 22-year study, the Harvard School of Public Health concluded that “the overall balance of risks and benefits [of coffee consumption] are on the side of benefits.” Other studies conclude that coffee consumption reduces the risk of being affected by Alzeimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, diabetes mellitus type 2, cirrhosis of the liver and gout. Scientists also contend that the smell of coffee restores appetite and refreshes olfactory receptors.

Amen! I could have told them that! I’m Toulouse the cool travel cat… :-3

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