Turkish coffee

[lperry]

I have never been a serious coffee drinker. I even made it through grad school without picking up the habit (although I have been known to down a rather large quantity of dark chocolate covered espresso beans...) I have unappetizing coffee memories and experiences, like the teacher's lounge in grade school (the acrid scent of burnt coffee and cigarettes), and long lines with cranky baristas at coffee shops full of stressed students. Realizing that I am in the minority, and with apologies to the 99 percent of the population that loves American coffee culture and thrives on it, for me, coffee equals the rushing and stress that I try semi-successfully to avoid.

Enter Turkish coffee. Tiny brass ewers set over low flames and heated gently, always watched, until they bubble up. The foam delicately spooned into a tiny cup, the ewer heated again, and a slow, careful pour. The aroma of warm, rich, dark roast and cardamom, relaxed sipping, and then a moment spent reading the grounds and contemplating the future. This is the coffee for me. A relaxing ritual that requires at least fifteen minutes of slowing down, *and* a new set of pretty little gadgets. What's not to love?

So the issue now is that I bought a small package of boon (the cardamom scented coffee) overseas, and I don't know where to get more. At some point I will buy one of those pretty brass grinders - a big, electric burr grinder isn't what I'm after with this experience. But for now I need to supply myself for a couple of months to make sure I'm going to become a true addict. I am hoping to find a local source for some ready-to-go Turkish grind from a shop that has decent turnover. Or maybe even a shop that will grind to order. Has anyone seen it around? Maybe the Mediterranean Bakery on Pickett Street?

[zoramargolis]

You might check with Aphrodite, a small Middle-Eastern grocery next to the Duangrat Asian market on Route 7 in Bailey's Crossroads. They have hookahs on sale, so they may well know from Turkish coffee.

[Mark Slater]

Google is your friend

[Ferhat Yalcin]

this store in Fairfax has it. www.amitymeat.com

they also have online store and do the delivery. the brand you should get is `kurukahveci mehmet efendi`

[monavano]

lperry, I like your thinking with regards to coffee culture and hope you can find what you need. I just had a knowing chuckle because all these years later, I can still conjure up the smell of the teachers lounge at my grade school.

Let's see....smoke, old butts, a melange of cooking foods, body odors and the polyester fabrics and old carpet which stored every molecule of the reek. Bad. Just bad.

eta: I *think* that there is a Mediteranean bakery/store in the Van Dorn shopping center. Perhaps someone can confirm that.

[lperry]

Let's see....smoke, old butts, a melange of cooking foods, body odors and the polyester fabrics and old carpet which stored every molecule of the reek. Bad. Just bad.

That would be the smell. I can't possibly be the only person traumatized for life...

this store in Fairfax has it. www.amitymeat.com

they also have online store and do the delivery. the brand you should get is `kurukahveci mehmet efendi`

Thank you! The brand I got in Egypt is Yemeni - I have no idea how it compares to anything else. The store will be a bit of a drive for me, but it is by the Super H, so it gives me an excuse to go there as well!

-Linda