I Live In NYC and Still Get My College Town Coffee Sent to Me
Not even the big-name brands compare.
I'm not afraid to come right out and say it — iced coffee season lasts all year for me. It doesn’t matter if it's below-zero in the dead of winter, good luck prying the cup of iced coffee from my cold hands.
But let’s be honest, not all iced coffees are alike. While I would love to go out and purchase a barista-made beverage every day, that's not always financially realistic. And when I started working in New York City, I found that not even the big-name brands were piquing my coffee interest. Which is what brought me back to Rook Coffee.
Rook Coffee is a small, 300-square-foot coffee shop in Long Branch, NJ, conveniently located near Monmouth University where I attended college. Back then, I would take multiple trips a week (sometimes a day) to get my Rook Coffee fix. Lines would extend out the door for a cup of bold, aromatic goodness. Since I graduated, Rook Coffee has grown and expanded in Central Jersey and along the Jersey coast, garnering thousands of fans from all over Jersey. Unfortunately, there are no storefronts in NYC or the North Jersey area (all you Central-Jerseyians are so lucky!).
As one of Rook’s biggest fans, I decided it was worth it try out the bottled version of my favorite coffee shops and have a few bottles shipped to me. And let me just say — it made all my iced coffee dreams come true. Bitter aftertaste? Gone! The need to water the coffee down? No more! Cold coffee that actually tastes like coffee and not licorice? Absolutely! I’ve had the chance to try a few different flavors: Mocha Style, Traditional Style and (my personal fave) New Orleans Style Cold Brew, and, dang, this coffee isn’t messing around.
Each style has its own melody of different flavors that balance out perfectly. The Mocha Style is silky, smooth and has notes of dark chocolate that give you the perfect hint of mocha coffee without all the chocolate syrup (I have had enough of the pool of chocolate sauce at the bottom of my cup). Traditional Style is classic coffee at its finest — it’s vibrant, bold and you get the lightest touches of citrus with each sip. (I love to add vanilla almond milk!) Lastly, the sure-fire crowd-pleaser and most popular style is definitely the New Orleans. It’s out-of-this-world delicious! Blended with chicory, it’s like melted coffee ice cream and dark chocolate are coming together to bring your morning brew.
You can buy their bottled coffee in two-packs or four-packs, and two-day standard shipping is available nationwide. Who needs one $4 cup of iced coffee when you can have multiple cups of iced coffee from your refrigerator? Rook Coffee also comes out with limited releases, so following along on Instagram will give you access to new flavors first. Summer may be coming to an end, but iced coffee season isn’t!
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