DCist: Iced Espresso is Available at Big Bear Cafe

July 17, 2008

Iced Espresso is Available at Big Bear Cafe

The Post finally picked up on the Murky Coffee brouhaha this morning, and it appears it's been a topic of conversation at other locally owned coffee shops around town. We snapped this photo at Big Bear Cafe in Bloomingdale today. Thanks to Catherine Andrews for the tip.

By Sommer Mathis in Food and Drink | Link | Comments (32) | Recommend this! (15) |

Tags: Big Bear Cafe, coffee, espresso, Jeff Simmermon, murky coffee, nick cho, shopping

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Comments (32) [rss]

[1] | 07/17/08 02:39PM
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i love the "that's the big bear difference™" that's been added to the end!

[2] | 07/17/08 02:43PM
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simply awesome

[3] | 07/17/08 02:49PM
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yes the trademarked slogan at the end really makes it

[4] | 07/17/08 02:50PM
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too funny! i could use a good cockpunch right about now.

[5] | 07/17/08 03:03PM
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Awww..
I feel like a Big Bear hug right now.

"Unless you ask!" Now thats how to run a business.

[6] | 07/17/08 03:04PM
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"That's the big bear difference."

Can I be totally immature here and say...

That's what she said!

[7] | 07/17/08 03:06PM
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Big Bear FTW!

[8] | 07/17/08 03:07PM
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I love you guys!

[9] | 07/17/08 03:10PM
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McGillicuddy, it's "dickpunch". Get it right.

[10] | 07/17/08 03:19PM
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"that's the big bear difference™

Is that a Mr. Show "Fairsley's" reference?

I could swear I saw a Caribou Coffee ad on a bus today that said "just ice, just coffee, just right"- Murky can go for the junkpunch crowd, iced coffee/espresso for all others.

[11] | 07/17/08 03:20PM
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OK, I know I'm re-hashing here but I haven't seen anyone address this part of the "controversy": what is up with the "we will not answer questions about the hot chocolate"? That gets me more than the whole dickpunching thing.

What kind of business says they won't answer questions about their product? Is it a trade secret? What sort of questions have people been asking about it that are so offensive?

Fascinating.

[12] | 07/17/08 03:26PM
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joan, it's people! the hot chocolate is people!

[13] | 07/17/08 03:31PM
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this makes me happy. i'm going to go out of my way to visit big bear more often.

[14] | 07/17/08 03:37PM
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i wonder if Steven Segal has crazy barista skillz?

[15] | 07/17/08 03:39PM
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i'm the one who snapped the original photo. i live around the corner from big bear and can fully recommend it as a lovely, welcoming and fun coffee shop. everybody should come more.

[16] | 07/17/08 03:45PM
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shouldn't it be brewhaha

okay yeah that was a bad pun..

[17] | 07/17/08 03:50PM
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I officially nominate Big Bear Cafe for comment of the week. This made my day.

[18] | 07/17/08 04:09PM
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He He He...Big Bear make a funny :)

[19] | 07/17/08 04:36PM
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I'm totally walking right over to Murky and ordering m'self a "Junkpuncher"!

[20] | 07/17/08 04:37PM
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"OK, I know I'm re-hashing here but I haven't seen anyone address this part of the "controversy": what is up with the "we will not answer questions about the hot chocolate"?"

I don't know how much there other drinks cost but I figured he meant that he won't answer why Hot Chocolate costs $5 since that sounds pretty expensive. He probably just doesn't like it for some reason so he justs wants to screw over people who order it rather than a coffee. At least that's the way I interpret it.

[21] | 07/17/08 04:40PM
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has anyone here HAD the elusive 5 dollar hot chocolate?

[22] | 07/17/08 04:40PM
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I seriously miss working near Big Bear. Hi-larious.

You lucky bitches who get to go on a regular basis: have a turkey-apple-brie sandwich for me, please.

[23] | 07/17/08 04:52PM
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Its only worth the $5 b/c the serve it in this huge smug. I mean mug.

[24] | 07/17/08 04:54PM
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I've had the five-dollar hot chocolate and the classic cappuccino, the other two "no questions asked, no modifications" drinks, and they were both goddamned delicious. And the opacity is part of the experience they're selling with those drinks. It's not a utilitarian coffee shop.

Of course, there's apparently some controversy over whether the customer or the barista was particularly dick-ish. Having not been there, I don't know. My guess is that both did the wrong thing at some point, and that Nick Cho is not necessarily a P.R. wizard. (And I recall him saying in the Post when word of his tax problems got out that he was a shitty businessman. So... there you have it.)

But I think they should have a right to sell only the products they want in only the manner they want. No one should insist you vend something you think is terrible. I heard a story once at a kosher deli of a customer who came in and wanted pastrami and swiss. The butcher patiently explained to the man that this would not be possible, and that he could separately sell the man some cheese and some pastrami, and that when the man left the store, how he chose to use those goods was his own matter.

That about covers my philosophy.

[25] | 07/17/08 04:59PM
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I can help there, having been freshly punched in the junk for asking. ;)

the hot chocolate in question is, The No Questions Asked Hot Chocolate. That's it's name. SO, if you order it you should know what you're getting... or rather you should know not to ask about what you're getting via inferrence by having uttered the name.

Claro?

Oh, and they have a regular hot chocolate which, I suppose, you could interrogate at length. And that one's not $5. But presummablly not as laced with Awesome.

It's sort of a Rule About Fight Club kind of drink, you have to hitchup yer britches and go for it. Or, at least, that's what I inferred.

Perfectly clear. As hot chocolate.

[26] | 07/17/08 05:03PM
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I just spotted Caribou Coffee advertising its iced espresso on a bus shelter in Chinatown. I don't know if they actually did it in response, considering that they're a national chain, but still pretty awesome.

[27] | 07/17/08 05:07PM
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@Disco Stu - thank you for the image of someone interrogating their hot chocolate. :)

[28] | 07/18/08 08:58AM
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Any time.

[29] | 07/18/08 09:18AM
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This is flagrant false advertising! I went to Big Bear and didn't see a single large, hairy homosexual male. Not even a small bear. For how long are we to put up with this?

[30] | 07/18/08 10:17AM
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Glad murky isn't in the sandwich business:

"I'll have a ham and cheese"

"There you go"

"Hey, there's no cheese on here!"

"I don't like cheese"

[31] | 07/18/08 10:35AM
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"But I think they should have a right to sell only the products they want in only the manner they want. No one should insist you vend something you think is terrible."

I guess they can serve whatever they want however they want to, but that doesn't mean I have to go there.

A regular traditional cappuccino is delicious, but I happen to like mine extra-dry (loves me some milk-foam) and they won't make it at Murky. And! Not only do I not get the drink I really want, I'm treated like a leper for ordering it.

This Big Bear sign still makes me smile.

[32] | 07/18/08 03:35PM
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For the record, just 'cuz we won't junkpunch you for ordering iced espresso, doesn't necessarily mean that we like to make them.

(And also for the record, I personally don't like making any iced drinks but that's simply because I like practicing latte art.)