86 Garden St
Hoboken, New Jersey

It was inevitable I was to migrate north in search of some of those more sophisticated beans in and around the Big Apple.  However, my first stop turned out not to be NYC, but Hoboken, New Jersey. The first stop the morning after a long car ride saw me at Legal Beans.  I asked for a ristretto. “A What?” “Uhh, a doppio?” “A What?” Clearly my country Victorian accent was not serving me well as these plain speaking Jersey residents couldn’t understand a me even a bit. “An Espresso – make it a double”.  I’m guessing my Shepparton bush ocker still wasn’t quite digestible enough, as what came back was a good quarter cup of joe with a taste like an ashtray (although to be fair, I’m a non-smoker so let’s consider that comment with some context).  Survival instincts took over,  in the form of two packets of raw sugar and a healthy dose of half and half.  But it was too late mate, she was gone…..