Victrola Coffee is one of those places that is tailor-made for the neighborhood that it inhabits. If it wasn't there, it wouldn't be anywhere, and a cafe very much like it would be exactly where it is...or isn't. Wasn't? What I'm saying is, walking down the street, this cafe comes up like the inevitable wrong diagnosis halfway through an episode of House. That doesn't mean this is a generic coffee shop.
This surprisingly deep little coffee shop manages it's cavernous qualities by lighting it's depths with a soft golden glow that mitigates what would otherwise be an abyss of a retail space. With clever lighting, artwork and spacious windows, the abyss is translated into a fantastic coffee shop that manages to be large while maintaining a nice cozy atmosphere. It might have been the discussion I was having with my friend about my employer (Starbucks) but the barista did some truly impressive foam art atop the soy latte she was crafting for me. Too bad I ordered a cappucino. In any case, the beverage was fantastic, as was the environment.
Check out Victola Coffee's website for the ubiquitous claims of superior coffee knowledge and passion. Oh, there might be directions to the coffee shop too.
Showing posts with label Capitol Hill. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Capitol Hill. Show all posts
Monday, January 12, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Russian Civic Center Swing
You know the scene: the crowded mass of writhing bodies. The sweat, the strangers. Yeah, the seamy underbelly that is our city's Swing dance scene. If you're under 21, there aren't too many well known options to get your fix. The most popular is probably Century Ballroom's Sunday night all-ages dance. The music is great and there's always an abundance of people to dance with. Unfortunately, that abundance of available dancers also means an extreme lack of space to...do anything. Thursday nights at the Russian Civic Center on the back side of Capitol Hill present a welcome alternative, though the lack of crowd has its cost.
The first thing I noticed is that this dance was a community thing. There was no bar, no low lights, no bouncer at the door checking ID's and stamping hands. This also meant that I could bring in my bottle of water without shoving it into a purse. At Century, you feel like you're somewhere doing something. At the civic center, you just feel like you're dancing, which isn't necessarily the most horrible thing ever, but it doesn't exactly feel like the wild night-life you'd always envisioned growing up in the boonies of Utah.
It's also harder to disappear into the crowd after an awkward dance. With an attendance struggling to reach 30 people, it's hard to find anything vaguelly resembling a crowd. If you've never been a single guy working the floor at a dance hall, you don't know what I'm talking about, but let me just make it clear that it is very important to be able to disappear if things go south, or if that girl that you really wanted to dance with finally escaped the clutches of the creepy old dude. Speaking of creepy old dudes, there are significantly fewer of those, making the dance hall much more high schooler friendly.
Long story short: If it's Thursday night and you just want to dance, the Russian Civic Center is a good bet, and at $5 a head, it's not too hefty wallet-wise. Plus, there's no creepy walk on Broadway late at night. But, it might be a good idea to bring a date, because the pickins are a little slim if you're hoping to work the floor.
Although we seem to usually be fans of making you do your own homework, I don't like to watch someone suffer, so here's a little website to help you on your way.
The first thing I noticed is that this dance was a community thing. There was no bar, no low lights, no bouncer at the door checking ID's and stamping hands. This also meant that I could bring in my bottle of water without shoving it into a purse. At Century, you feel like you're somewhere doing something. At the civic center, you just feel like you're dancing, which isn't necessarily the most horrible thing ever, but it doesn't exactly feel like the wild night-life you'd always envisioned growing up in the boonies of Utah.
It's also harder to disappear into the crowd after an awkward dance. With an attendance struggling to reach 30 people, it's hard to find anything vaguelly resembling a crowd. If you've never been a single guy working the floor at a dance hall, you don't know what I'm talking about, but let me just make it clear that it is very important to be able to disappear if things go south, or if that girl that you really wanted to dance with finally escaped the clutches of the creepy old dude. Speaking of creepy old dudes, there are significantly fewer of those, making the dance hall much more high schooler friendly.
Long story short: If it's Thursday night and you just want to dance, the Russian Civic Center is a good bet, and at $5 a head, it's not too hefty wallet-wise. Plus, there's no creepy walk on Broadway late at night. But, it might be a good idea to bring a date, because the pickins are a little slim if you're hoping to work the floor.
Although we seem to usually be fans of making you do your own homework, I don't like to watch someone suffer, so here's a little website to help you on your way.
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