Crossroads Coffee
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Crossroads Coffee
6156 Ridge Ave
Philadelphia, PA 19128
You should know
I actually really do not like coffee. At all. I love how it smells, and I don't mind a tiny bit mixed into something that's primarily chocolate, but on its own I don't know... I find it nasty.
Chris and I had considered going here once when we went out for dessert. A few weeks later, Brian and I were hanging out and decided to swing by.
So?
Brian and I were looking for dessert. The place had a ton of pastry, but it was the smoothies that caught our attention.
I decided to opt for a Banana, Peanut Butter & Honey smoothie ($3.45). It was rich, sweet, and delicious, but I was desperate for a glass of water by the time I was done. More on that later. Brian had a chocolate concoction that involved cookies and brownies (about $6) – and yet, he claims, was not overwhelmingly rich.
As for the water... The shop has a pitcher of water and plastic disposable cups, like most Starbucks franchises I've been to. However, the pitcher was empty, and rather than fill it, they just filled my cup from the tap. Now, Roxborough tap water has served me well in life1, but an ice cube or two would have been nice. Also, Brian later went to get water himself, and the people behind the counter seemed annoyed that they had to bother. Never mind that filling the pitcher in the first place would have avoided that. It's not like we were there anywhere near closing time.
The place was empty, except for us. I don't know if that's typical, but it seems that Crossroads has a lot of events, including poetry readings and live music.
The decor is also very cool. Crossroads features sculpted lamps and light fixtures, and on the walls, posters of French advertisements from years past add to the artistic feel.
Rating
Check it out
You may want to bring a bottle of water, but otherwise I have no real complaints. The smoothie was delicious, the atmosphere was pleasant, and I'd love to check out some of the events. Maybe I'll see you there.
The rest of the Internet
Philadelphia Business Journal considers Crossroads part of a potential revival of Ridge Ave (and I really hope that Trader Joe’s plan comes through!).
Check out some of the music featured at Crossroads at the MySpace page.
1. When I was in eighth grade, I took a scholarship test. Each section of the Archdiocese received a certain number of scholarships based on population; our neighborhood got two full scholarships, and one that was a partial scholarship with the winner receiving a full if one of the other two declined. The two full went to me and to one of my grade school classmates, and the partial went to a girl in my Girl Scout troop[link].
Once I got to high school, I noticed that there seemed to be two kinds of kids who took the bus in from Roxborough: really smart kids, and troublemakers. The water, I'm telling you.
