Brewed Awakenings - Kemptville

I met my mother in Kemptville for grocery shopping fun and a coffee date. Just off Hwy 416, past the two roundabouts on the way into Kemptville is Brewed Awakenings. This shop is in a little strip mall on your left as you're driving into town. Let me tell you, I'm so happy to have found a great place to stop for coffee halfway between Ottawa and Brockville, I drive I make often.

Mom and I both ordered Americanos with an extra shot. They only put one shot in a medium sized cup, and I always need something a little stronger than that. The coffee was great! They roast their own beans and it's nice and fresh. The staff were nice a friendly!

Also tempting are all the treats displayed in the case. I'm not having sugar right now, but wish I was so I could have one of their Nanaimo bars.

The only thing I would change about this place is their lack of Splenda. I only use Splenda or Stevia in my coffee these days, or nothing at all. I was fine with just cream and cinnamon this time, but was really craving something sweet.

You can read more about Brewed Awakenings in Kemptville here:
http://www.brewedawakenings.ca/index.html

Coffee Stops!

Please excuse my list. These are places I have stopped at. I intend on posting about them, which would explain the list. Clearly I need a little reminder as it's been so long since I posted that one lonely post about Steamy Bean.

- Black Coffee, Whippletree Junction
- The Beaver Post
- Raw Sugar, Ottawa
- Cafe Fantastico, Victoria
- Moziro Coffee Roasters, Shawnigan
- Bridgehead
- Starbucks, Kamloops
- Starbucks, Brockville
- Cafe Roma, Commercial Drive, Vancouver,
- Cafe Trailhead, Lake Louise
- Coal Creek Coffee Company, Laramie, Wyoming
- Starbucks, Rock Springs, Wyoming
- Main Street Artisans, Evantston, Wyoming
- Huckleberry's Espresso Inc, Rawlins, Wyoming
- Penny's Diner, Rawlins, Wyoming

I can't believe that I missed out on visiting a coffee shack in Wyoming. They were all over the place. On the edges of parking lots in little shacks...in the cold Wyoming winter...

I will add to this list later. There's more.

The Steamy Bean

Pictured here is The Steamy Bean Coffee Co. in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. After a long time driving we made an overnight stop at a motel near here. We had a delicious breakfast down the road and the waitress directed us to the great coffee here. The servers were friendly, the coffee was much needed and a perfect start to our day of driving. It's also not out of the way for those passing through.

I had my usual Quad Americano for the drive. Nice and strong. I paired it with a treat and tried the Kelp Seed Bar (Includes oats, rice syrup, vanilla, kelp powder, millet, raisins, honey, sesame seeds, cinnamon, pumkin seeds, sunflower seeds, cashew butter and flax seeds). All I can say about the bar is that I should have bought another one for later. So good!

The Steamy Bean is located near the corner of Great Northern Road and Second Line, in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario: 357 Great Northern Road

Here are some facts about Steamy Bean:

- They use Cameron's Coffee which is all organic and fair trade.
- It's a mother/daughter team (Yay for local businesses).
- They sell Numi tea (which is one of my favourite tea companies - try Honeybush).
- They serve lunch as well as pastries.

Check them out at http://www.steamybean.com/index.html

Going West

Last September, my boyfriend and drove west to Vancouver Island. It's hard to find a good coffee on the way when you're trying to make good time and don't venture too far from the highways. Some areas are like coffee deserts. The next few posts are about a few of the places we stopped for coffee between Brockville, Ontario and Vancouver Island.

Stopping for Coffee

Something you'll notice when traveling with me is my need to find a good cup of coffee. Not just any coffee that you might purchase at a popular chain, but a really good coffee. A really great cup of coffee can be prepared many different ways, but one thing that's true of them all is that it's made by someone who cares. Someone who cares about the bean and how fresh it is, how it's roasted and how it's prepared.

If you're behind the wheel and I'm the passenger, I'll rarely ask you to stop at a Tim Hortons drive-thru. I'm more likely to check the main street or the strip malls. If there's good coffee I'll find it.

I guess this blog will be updated as often as I stop for coffee. Otherwise, I'll post about places I have been before. Here goes.