The Steaming Bean
Durango, Colorado
The coffee house is a magical, magical place. And amazingly difficult to get right. (See: Starbucks.) There must be the proper ratio of overstuffed chairs, tables to work, and dreadlocked baristas. Or something similarly liberal. Oh, and there has to be mind-blowing coffee and good music. The Steaming Bean does just that and more. Since 1991, The Bean has been roasting shade-grown beans and delivering sweet caffeine to southwestern Colorado. Since moving to Durango, I’ve taken it upon myself to explore and evaluate all the coffee chops in town (literally) and after careful consideration have named The Steaming Bean to have the best atmosphere and coffee.
I first went to Zacatacos in high school with friends from my French class. (There isn’t any French food on the South Side, okay??) At the time there was just one tiny, family-owned Zacatacos in Chicago’s West Lawn neighbourhood. I loved Zaca then, but I didn’t come to fully appreciate them until trips home from college. By then my Urchin frugality had kicked in and I was actively saving for future trips abroad. I was trying not to eat out a lot. In a clear effort to thwart that plan, Zaca opened a new location even closer to my house. I couldn’t resist. Then a miracle happened: vegetarian tacos at Zaca are only $1.50 each. And they’re not measly tacos either. They’re stuffed full of vegetarian refried beans, avocados, onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and lettuce. I can barely eat two without feeling incredibly full. I’m happy to announce that Zaca has since opened two more locations and is doing as well as they deserve to. If you happen to find yourself on the South Side of Chicago, make Zacatacos your first stop. And your last. And probably one in the middle, too.
Ever find yourself sitting at a bar and think, ‘Gee, I wish this place was also an arcade.’ Well, dream and you shall receive, especially if you happen to be in the neighbourhood of Williamsburg in Brooklyn. Not only is Barcade unpretentious and welcoming to guests of every sort (my visit there saw a couple straight of a Calvin Klein advert drinking red wine and reading the Sunday paper at one table, a trio of psychobilly fans at the bar, and a very hyper dog sniffing every square inch of the place for crumbs), but it also has video games. Did I mention that yet? Rows of old arcade games, from classics like Tetris, Ms. Pac-Man, and Frogger to cult games like Crystal Castles and my personal favourite, Rampage. Barcade doesn’t have a kitchen, but no sweat! Guests are welcome to have food delivered there from neighbouring establishments.
