Review. Yordprom Coffee

The picture may be fuzzy but those are cars parked in the free spots out front.

I'm the type of guy who drinks coffee every day.  I like good coffee but I'm not a coffee snob - when I need a fix, I'll drink bad coffee and when desperate I've even been known to reheat a cup in the microwave or even buy one from a vending machine.  I drive through Dunkin Donuts at 5 AM and, working at the airport, I drink more than my share of Starbucks. These are not my favorites but they're fine in a pinch.  I'm just being honest here, I'm not a big enough coffee aficionado to be able to get into the nuances of a special free-range bean grown at exactly 7000 feet on the south facing slope of a volcano that was picked by virgins during the vernal equinox and then roasted by elves one bean at a time.  I have no desire to try a cup brewed from Indonesian Kopi Luwak beans that have passed through the complete digestive system of a cat even if it were free (it goes for up to $80 a cup - people actually pay that much for a cup - no kidding!). Having written this, I'm certain that I've managed to alienate more than a few "coffee people" who take their coffee more seriously than me.  This is just a heads-up: even though I appreciate a good cup, I really don't know enough about coffee to review a coffee shop based solely on the coffee and I just wanted to let you know where I'm coming from.

For several reasons, I like hitting local coffee shops over the chains.  First and foremost is that I like buying local. Second, when I'm going to hang out in a coffee shop to maybe read the newspaper, I like being comfortable and the locally owned coffee shops tend to be the most comfortable.  Finally, it's for the coffee. Although I am not the perfect "coffee guy", I think I can discern the difference between a good and a bad cup of Joe.  I tend to like the coffee served at what are considered the better coffee shops in town.  I've also found that I enjoy a pour-over drip individual cup a bit more than something that's been sitting around a few hours.  My pallet isn't good enough to fully appreciate some of those coffee's that are brewed in an apparatus that looks more like a science experiment, complete with beakers and test tubes, than any familiar kind of coffee maker although those things do look cool and I am a sucker for things that look cool.  Oh yeah, almost forgot, this is supposed to be a review of Yordprom.

OK, so my camera sucks. Matching furniture and pleasing colors.

Yordprom is located at 722 Congress Street in the West End (just beyond Hot Suppa! - a couple blocks from Longfellow Square) in an inviting building set back from the road to accommodate off street parking.  Off street parking in-town - plus one for Yordprom.  I rarely park there because, for me, walking to my local coffee shop is part of the appeal of going out for coffee but if you're someone who sometimes has to drive in-town for a cup of coffee, non-metered parking right out front is hard to beat.  Next is the décor.  Unlike many in-town coffee shops whose décor seems to be comprised of whatever was left laying around after demolition with walls painted in colors made up of mismatched cans from the "returned" section of the paint store (all things that I kinda like), Yordprom features very appealing colors with comfortable matching furniture throughout but they got rid of the couch which I miss.  It's clean, as in very clean.  Tommy, the owner, is a clean freak and that extends to the restroom and patio.  It's air conditioned in summer and there's a gas fireplace for winter.  There's a TV which I've never seen turned on.  Free Wi-Fi.

As comfortable and pretty as the place may be, I've never stopped in just to hang out without actually ordering something to drink.  The coffee is very good.  I usually get a medium roast pour-over drip coffee which I'm told is an Ethiopian Sidamo - I'll take their word for it.  When I'm in a hurry, there's the pre-brewed Sumatran which happens to be excellent as well.  To be honest, I like this as much as the pour-over but all the cool kids are drinking the pour-over these days and I want to be one of the cool kids.  The coffees are all organic free trade from several places including SE Asia, Africa, and the America's.  They make great latte's and there's a Vietnamese iced coffee that is my favorite warm weather drink.  To sum it up, the coffee is way better than most places and as good as any.  They also have a batch of organic loose leaf teas that I have never and will never try (I don't do tea in a coffee shop) although I've seen people drinking it and they appear to be happy.

Great coffee, free parking and matching furnishings are not the only things that set Yordprom apart from the others.  The outdoor patio and garden.  Some places have sidewalk seating which is good for people watching but every now and then it's nice to get away from it all, to have some peace and quiet and to enjoy the outdoors without breathing the exhaust from passing buses. Yordprom boasts a private garden that has to be the envy of every other coffee shop in town as I don't think any place has anything comparable.

OK, that's a bit better.  The garden.

Then there's the food.  Like other places, there are a variety of pastries available.  They're sourced from several different bakeries.  I'm not sure if there is a standard rotation of the goods for sale - it does appear to change regularly which keeps it fresh.  There are limited choices of breakfast and lunch sandwiches   There are often Thai dishes as well (the owner is from Thailand) which can be a real treat.  A great Tom Kha Gai soup and hopefully, when it gets cold outside, he'll bring back some curry dishes.

Finally, the place is as dog friendly as the restaurant inspectors allow which I guess these days means you can't hang out inside with your dog - I'm not sure what the current policy is for chilling with Fido on the patio but if the city is ok with it, Yordprom will be as well and your dog will probably get a treat from the staff.

Bottom line: I don't know if I'd walk past some of the other really good coffee shops just to grab a cup at Yordprom but I certainly wouldn't pass by Yordprom to go anywhere else either.  Basically, it's a really nice coffee shop with excellent coffee, free parking and a great garden.  Giving this some more thought, I just might pass by some of those other shops just to have a cup in that great garden before it gets too cold. 

Congress Street (part 2, The Walk Home)

Mini Restaurant Row at Monument Square

Once you leave Monument Square for the walk down Congress Street to the West End, one enter a unique world - one that at its essence is pure Americana.  It is a picture of contrasts.  It's got a combination of some of the best and worst of what Portland has to offer from successful businesses and great restaurants to homeless (and often mentally ill) people, pawn (and porn) shops and second hand stores.  If the Old Port is for the tourists, this part of Congress Street - the Arts District - is for the locals and the more adventurous visitors. This is the real Portland, complete with all its blemishes.

It's about seven or eight blocks from Monument Square to Longfellow Square.  Mr. Google says it takes about 3 minutes to drive that length of Congress St.  In that 3 minutes, you will pass about 26 places to eat, 5 coffee shops, many art galleries, a college, 5 live music venues, a few jewelry stores, a florist, several places to get your hair done, a bridal shop and even the childhood home of America's most famous poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.  That's a lot of stuff.

The first thing I notice during my stroll along Congress Street is the people.  This has changed over the past few years.  About a decade and a half ago, after leaving the immediate vicinity of Monument Square and it's business people you would quickly notice mostly a hodgepodge of what at first glance looked like street people.  Yeah, there were a lot of street people although most of them actually lived in the surrounding buildings, many existing on small social security benefits, whether from retirement or some type of disability. Like you would see in many cities, we had (and still have) many people talking hands-free as they walked, but unlike other places, ours do so without the benefit of a blue tooth.  These people were supplemented by some transient younger individuals just, well, passing through. There were a few eateries that stayed afloat by feeding the lunch crowd and those brave souls going to Civic Center events.   As an aside, making note of how just about everyone tries to avoid people talking to themselves, TA and I now use this as an anti-mugging strategy.  When we see a potential mugger/rapist heading towards us at night, we start talking to ourselves. The greater the perceived threat, the more elaborate our own show sometimes culminating in a full blown argument with a non-existent adversary, complete with swiping at legs and arms while yelling "...get it off me!  Get it off!".  So far, so good.  The theory: even bad people don't want to deal with crazy people.

Cutting hair for over 50 years in the same location.  You want stories?  Hang with this guy for a bit.

And then things started to change.  David's moved from the Old Port to Monument Square which was a ballsy move at the time. The City Council designated this stretch of Congress Street the Arts District which had a pretty big psychological effect on the area. At the urging of the Libra Foundation, LL Bean moved in as did Olympia Sports (both now gone).  Local 188, originally at 188 State St, joined Cafe Uffa at Longfellow Square.  The State Theater was transformed from porn movie house almost back to its original grandeur with legit national touring bands.  555 brought us some real upscale dining and a tipping point was reached.  The Maine Collage of Art (MECA) took over the abandoned Porteous department store building which brought new life to a too-long desolate section of the street. People who only a couple of years ago feared walking down this stretch of Congress Street started to make it a destination and that's where I now find myself walking several times a week.

I still walk past plenty people talking to themselves or sitting against a wall not looking too good but they are now only a small percentage of the total.  There are real life tourists at the Longfellow House.  I know this because I see them when I sometimes grab a sandwich and eat it in the open-to-the-public garden behind the house.  It's a hidden gem that I try to hit if only for a walk-through once or twice a month to see how the garden changes with the seasons.  Continuing up the street you pass MECA with its freak show of a student body - I say freak show in the most affectionate way possible because I think these kids add so much to the vibrancy of the area.  Sure, to an old(er) guy they may have a few more piercings and tattoos than I like to see on otherwise attractive young people but I probably had a bit too much hair and wore too much tie-died clothing back in my day.  I really like walking past MECA and often step into its galleries for a look around. Talking galleries, there are a ton of them - some you have to look hard to find as they're often on second floors like the one that shares space with the florist.  The biggest gallery of all, of course, is the Portland Museum of Art (PMA) which may not be the Louvre but it is a pretty darn good museum.

Port City Music Hall

Then there's the music.  I've not made it into Port City Music Hall or Geno's (I won't add a "yet" at the end of that statement as I may have to grudgingly concede that I might actually be too old for these places) but have been to shows at the State and One Longfellow Square.  I've seen some interesting music at Local Spouts where I'm certain I could wear some of my old Grateful Dead tee-shirts and fit right in.  Blue is another favorite even if my aging eyes say it's a bit too dark for me inside.  The place has the feel of somewhere you would go to in the Village (Greenwich that is) in the 60's where you would snap your fingers instead of clapping your hands.  Even Otto has live music once or twice a week and, even though Empire has exchanged it's B, B, and B (the always popular burger, beer and bourbon all for $6) for dim sum and dropped the "dance" from it's name, you can still get your groove on upstairs.

The change that has made the biggest impact on the street has to be the food. Wealthy people sampling tasting menu's at 555 and David's or grilled octopus and ouzo at Emilitsa.  Budget minded students grabbing a slice at Otto.  There's great vegetarian fare at the Green Elephant.  Bacon dusted fries at Nosh.  You want ethnic?  How about 4 Japanese places, a few Thai restaurants and throw in some Greek, Indian, Mexican, Chinese and French just to keep it interesting.  Did I mention this is all along a seven block stretch that only a few years ago was on its way to becoming a mini Detroit?

"Hank" Longfellow (I assume his friends called him Hank) sitting in front of LFK, Pai Men Miyake and Petite Jacqueline

It's not all Monet and foie gras on Congress Street just yet and hopefully it will never get there.  We still have used furniture shops.  We have Joe's Smoke Shop and Paul's (Quality Foods!).  There's the Senior Citizen Barber Shop - yes, I've been and am happy to report that I'm still a couple years shy of my discount but the guy cutting hair has been in that spot for over 50 years.  Now here's a guy with some really good stories. There's still the porn shop which baffles me in this day and age of the internet.  What can you get in that place that you can't get from your home computer?  Wait a minute, don't answer that because I don't think I really want to know.  And the people. Sure, there are now middle aged couples out for the fine dining.  There's the hipsters with their tight jeans, tight jackets and bowling shoes.  There are your rougher biker types and your preppies as well as the art students all in search of something that can be had on this little section of downtown.  Then there's the classic failure of urban design that is Congress Square.  And there are still the retired and the ill, both physically and mentally in the same numbers as in years past, only they've become outnumbered by everyone else.  Yeah, this is the land of freaks and misfits.  I fit right in and I love it.