Cappuccinos @ Wonderboom Junction

Closely located near our home, we decided to have a quick lunch. And as always, I needed to taste and rate the cappuccino!

I am sure that the cappuccinos would be the same at each branch, but I will still try to visit some of the other branches just to make sure hehe ;-)

So, just to keep it fair, I took a decaf and my hubby a normal, so I will also incl his rating below:

Presentation - For me and hubby it was a 2/5 as there was no artwork, the cup was just plain but at least u get a yummy biscuit

Foam - For me it was a 3/5, the little bit of foam I had was atleast velvet, my hubby gave a 4/5 as his foam had a nice velvet texture (and he had a bit more)

Taste - For me the taste was a dissapointing 1/5 as the espresso had a burnt taste and the ratio was very off so it left just a bad mix overall, but hubby gave a 4/5 for his taste as it was the complete opposite

Atmosphere -Both of us gave a 3/5 as we like cappuccinos but on that specific day the managers was yelling at their staff the whole time which just made us very uncomfortable.

In summary, I had better and although I think they discriminate against decaf cappuccinos (lol), I will try a different branch in the future and hopefully turn around my dissapointment.

Ritual Cafe

Located right next to Lulu Coffee Shop in Sunninghill (right across PwC), its a restaurant where our team mostly get together at least once a week for a breakfast. Its kinda our ritual now lol.

Not only for the fact that they have good food, the beverages also compliments it nicely. You can have ur normal bacon and eggs, or u can opt for the fresly baked pastries such as croissants; red velvet cupcakes... (not good for our "diets" at all)

But enough of the mouth wathering food, how was the cappuccino?

Presentation - 5/5 as u always get a very nice artwork on the foam together with a cookie in a black mug or cup

Foam - 4/5 the foam has an extremely nice velvet texture, but sometimes there is just not enough

Taste - 4/5 the taste is wonderful but sometimes the balance is not 100% (due to not having enough foam), but when the ratio is correct u just cant get enough

Atmosphere -3/5 previously the place was known as J's but had a revamp and became Ritual. So with the revamp the setting and furniture changed to a more lighter atmosphere but with very retro (i.e. uncomfortable) chairs and tables added.

Overall, we are very happy to go there every week (and believe me, we dont mind to switch places in order to get good food and drinks...) and continue doing so if their quality stays exactly as is!

TSG Fourways

Xmas lunch time and the alcohol is flowing lol. Its always a good time at PwC when you know that the year is coming to an end and vacation time is around the corner.

Offcourse I could not resist ordering a cappuccino (free of charge hehe) and the results were not too bad.

Presentation - 2/5 no artwork, not even a sprinkle or dash of anything else than just a blob of foam

Foam - 2/5 thr foam bubbles was too big thus leaving it with a very foamy texture as opposed to a nice velvet melt in ur mouth sensation.

Taste - 3/5 the ratio was completely wrong but the beans was not burnt so the taste was still there. The problem with not having the correct ratio of foam etc is that the contents are too hot and can damage the taste.

Atmosphere -4/5 was almost like primi restaurant in Menlyn, with the music as the only exception (Taylor Swift was our music for the lunch lol). But other than that, a place I will recommend.

Intro

Because of my love for cappuccinos, I have decided to start a blog and rate each cappuccino that I drink from now onwards. Yes, yes, I know, what the hell do I know about the technical elements of a cappuccino... Well, I am a self proclaimed guru and I will try as much as possible to also get the comments of those around me. Afterall, taste differs!

My ratings will be based on the below criteria and I will award a mark out of five in each category, five being good and one being bad.

Presentation - how the cappucino is presented and whether the barrista did a bit of artwork etc

Foam - whether the foam is a velvet texture, meaning that the bubbles is small and the milk was cold and fresh

Taste - that the ratio between milk, espresso and foam is correct and that the beans were freshly grinded and not burned during the process

Atmosphere - everyone knows that a great atmosphere of the shop or cafe also contributes to the whole experience

I hope that you like reading my blogs and that you can also share ur own taste experiences with me... Im always looking for the new best cappuccino out there ;-)

Lulu Coffee Shop

Located right accross PwC Sunninghill, its our local coffee shop that caters for the normal coffeeholic like me and the adventereous beverage drinker, having a wide variety of flavours. It has many additions like fresly baked muffins and cookies, but also the best feature is that the shop is already open at 6am in the morning when I arrive at work!

It reminds me a lot of Starbucks, mostly because of its prices lol. But I have seen this chain develop also in areas such as Sandton City and Cape Town!

So here is how I have rated the cappuccino:

Presentation - 3/5 although there is no artwork on the foam, they at least give you the option of cinnamon or chocolate sprinkle

Foam - 3/5 the foam has a nice velvet texture. Another way to tell whether it is good foam is when you stir the cappuccino and the foam does not swirl with the milk and espresso mixture.

Taste - 5/5 the balance of the three elements is correct and the beans has been fresly grinded which makes for a lovely taste (and makes u wonder why you didnt just take the grande size lol)

Atmosphere -4/5 the nice thing about this shop is that you only get hot beverages and a few pastries sold there, it is not a restaurant so the atmosphere makes u feel like ur sitting in NY city life.

Overall, a very nice coffee shop, one which I have and still will continue to visit. Schedule a meeting with me at PwC and we will have a cappuccino at Lulu ;-)

Jire Cafe - Moreleta NG Church

This has become a Sunday tradition in our church group, whereby we get together, order a cappuccino at Jire then sit and chat about life. The Moreleta NG Church is located in Moreleta Park, Pretoria.

Strange you might think that I chose this as my first review, but sitting and drinking there combines some of my most important things in life... God, family, friends and offcourse cappuccinos lol.

But lets get to the review, the cappuccino at Jire gets the following scores in my categories (5 being good and 1 being bad):

Presentation - 2/5 as you do get a touch of cinnamon on top of the foam but thats it

Foam - 3/5 this has not been the worst I had but certainly not the best, not a velvet texture and too much air bubbles

Taste - 3/5 the beans had a burnt taste but on the second round the only problem was the espresso to milk ratio

Atmosphere -3/5 it being at a church and all with lots of bright lights but at least there are tables and chairs for comfort.

Summary, not too bad for a sunday but good enough if nothing else is nearby.