Cafes
Sense Appeal Coffee Roasters
Sense Appeal Coffee Roasters is the coffee shop I've been waiting to find. Some of the most delicious coffee I've ever had, a groovy bare brick space and an impressive rotating food menu, make this a coffee shop everyone in the city should hit up.
Open for only a week and a half, the guys at this shop gave out free coffee for the first week to announce their opening. According to the owners, there was almost a constant line-up to the back of the store for the entire week.
When I first walked in, I was greeted by a smiling Sameer Mohamed, and given a choice of espresso to chose from. "Show me what you've got," I said. Mohamed is the kind of barista who loves to get excited about coffee and explain in great detail what it is that you are drinking. This passion is why the owners of this shop have Mohamed in charge of their coffee program.
The shot was passed to me, and I instantly understood these guys are the real deal. A thick, elastic head of crema with consistent tiger-striping had my mouth watering before I could even pick it up.
"Give it a stir," I was instructed, and let me just say I love when baristas do that. There is nothing better than a barista who knows exactly how an espresso tastes best. He was right, this shot was absolutely fantastic. Smooth and sweet, I couldn't get enough. A blend of Panamanian beans, this was honestly one of the best shots Ive ever had. Tasting that coffee reminded me of the first time someone pulled me a shot of BlackCat in Toronto.
By the time the second shot came around, I really wasn't sure if it could be as good. I was starting to regret the order in which I tried their coffee. Was the best over? Definitely not. The second shot, a blend of South American and African beans, was also outstanding. Slightly beefier than the first shot, and a sharper sweetness to finish, this shot was a winner.
Besides espresso on the menu, Sense Appeal serves seasonally changing signature flavoured lattes, but don't let the name "flavoured latte" freak you out. These drinks aren't made with a sugar syrup. Instead, they are flavoured with natural reductions, purees and caramel. Owner Peter Adamo is a sommelier, and brings much of his experience with food and drink menus to this shop on Spadina Ave., explaining to me that no menu of his is static, and that everything on the menu has been carefully considered.
In an attempt to get a better understanding of the kind of food and coffee to serve, the fellas at Sense Appeal are going to be using their customers as a sample to determine specific coffee and food pairings in the shop. Daily-made brioche and varietal polenta scones, are often gone before noon each day, and despite the fact that it was opened less than a fortnight ago, the neighbourhood knows these guys have got a good thing going on.
The coffee used in this shop is sourced through both a direct-trade relationship with a number of South American coffee farmers, and through auction. Adamo has a keen sense of what's good, and favours his system for the sake of equitability and control. For example, with the system in place, Sense Appeal can avoid importing coffee from regions they know haven't had a good harvest, in favour of a good crop. Once their coffee arrives, it is roasted locally and left to rest and de-gas for a few days before serving.
Before turning into a coffee shop, Sense Appeal was roasting coffee in an exclusive agreement with select 5-star hotels.
A shot of espresso will run you $2.25, a latte $3.75 and the French press of the day (16 oz) is $1.75.
Sense Appeal, at 96 Spadina Ave., is open from 8-7 Monday to Friday and 9-6 on Saturday. 
Photos by Dennis Marciniak
Discussion
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I couldn't possibly agree more. This might be the finest espresso in the city, both in taste and in how it's sourced.
The bar is raised for everyone.
Sameer from Sense Appeal
i can't wait to try it out ... too bad you don't have anywhere out front where I can tie my dog up :(
Otherwise, I would have visited sooner!
We will work on having something out front for your dog. Wish you the best and see you soon!
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Peter Adamo
Thank you for your post. We are very heavily focused on our coffee! Everything that we do in addition to that is based around the coffee. The idea is that we would like everything that we do to compliment our primary objective, which is, our coffee!
Cheers,
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Upon returning during the second week, I saw that they had put up stickers over the old prices and increased them significantly. This just left a really bad impression in my mind and have not been back ever since. Their Bh americano is tasty but still not as good as Jimmy's which is still one of my favourite coffee shop.
I'm in.
Thank you for stopping by and checking us out. I am glad that you found our BH americano tasty. We believe that we did mislead many of our customers by our initial free promotion week, having those prices on the board. That menu was placed there simply for a visual indication of our lettering. We should have taken it down before opening our doors, and that was a mistake on our part.
We would love to have you come back and try our other 2 styles of americano, I would in your case recommend the OA americano.
Best,
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Good luck, hope you're successful!! Good to see an alternative roaster in TO that doesn't have black and oily beans in their hoppers !!!
http://espressosnob.wordpress.com/2010/11/20/nov-20-senseappeal-coffee-spadina-ave/
I was eager to try some of the magic they are said to serve!
I found the guys working there friendly and helpful, visibly proud of their coffees. (One of them even spoke to me in French, after I told him from where I am originally - that's a great way to make a customer feel welcomed!)
The cafe itself is not big, unfortunately it doesn't have much seating available, so it's not the place where you'll linger on the entire morning. Also, when I went at 2 pm, there was no food left.
However, seating or no seating, desert or no desert, I'll be definitely going back, as their coffee alone is worth the visit! I found their OA Americano smooth and flavourful, and the Turkish shot I was given to try was suprisingly good. (I admit, I still prefer my Turkish coffee done the old-fashioned way, but theirs was close enough to the real thing).
Thank you for your post. You are correct in saying it feels a little awkward. What we are hoping to achieve by asking is that if it is not, we would love to be able to better our product so that it is one of the best.. We will make sure not to ask that way again.
Best,
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Haven't come in yet, but can't wait to, and love how there is food also!!!
Xxx
We hope you can make the trip out soon. As for the website, we are working on it and will definitely let you know when we make update it. Looking forward to seeing you.
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
I am sorry we could not serve you when you stopped by on the 31st. We were in the process of ironing out our new coffees for the season and as a result had to spend that time tweaking our blends. I really hope you can stop by again and introduce yourself... I will be glad to give you a full tour of our coffee menu.
Sincerely,
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
NB I had soooooooo much caffeine yesterday that my heart palpitated so fast that almost jumped out of my mouth!
It was an absolute pleasure teaching you and Gina on Sunday. Hope you make it sooner rather than later!
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Thanks for the post! Your girl gossip is always welcome! Will definitely make you something special the next time you are in!
Cheers,
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
I am very sorry for the batch of coffees you received at SENSE APPEAL. Some of our baristas are still undergoing intense training. I hope you stop by once again and give us the opportunity to make it up to you on-the-house. Please introduce yourself and I will be glad to have those re-made for you. We will also give you a guided tour of our coffees.
Sincerely,
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Thanks for the kind words. Hope to see you again soon
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
<3
Appreciate the props! Come by for a few more espresso shots.. got something special lined up! Maybe get you that Cap too...
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Sameer from SENSE APPEAL
Plus, I think Sameer is an excellent name. :)
The bad: A little twerp at the cash who thinks he's on stage - doing his little jig routine. Gross. Worse - he called one of my friends "Sweeite" or "Hun". Soured what could have been a lovely java experience.
I'm glad that your coffee was amazing. My way of interacting was intended to be friendly and down to earth, but based on your comment I may have taken it too far. I appreciate your honesty because it'll make me more aware of my actions from now on. I invite you to return and walk you through a tasting, on us.
Sincerely,
Markus from SENSE APPEAL
MARKUS JIG IZ NOT GOOD, BUT GOOD THAT HE REPLIEZ & IZ SORRY!!1
KEEP ON, KEEPIN ON MARKUS.
BUT NO DANCIN, OK?
XOXO,
LOLCATS
Is he still roasting, or is he sourcing?
What's the deal?
Loving the new double espro machine set-up.
Couldn't part with the old Della Corte? or just needed more eye candy?
It is people like Peter - and Johnny at Jet Fuel - who are going the distance to bring European-quality espresso (et al) to Toronto. The city is a long way from 'world class', but through the efforts of dedicated pros like these fellows and their colleagues - we advance step by step. These are VERY expensive ventures with no small amount of behind-the-counter risk.
When you adjust your roast, bean and grind relative to the day's barometric pressure - well, you've got my vote. 5 stars.
Mantenere il buon lavoro!
I see I do.
On a lovely Saturday morning I enjoy the walk from St. Clair and Bathurst to Sense Appeal. Order my half pound of L beans and the oh so delightful Turkish latte.
I actually look forward to my Saturday morning coffee for a change. When I bought a home machine, I really needed to source a decent bean, why brew at home with crappy coffee, I want my guests to enjoy and taste what good coffee should be.
I don't care that it's small, it's the warm atmosphere, friendly smiles and the smell and taste of fresh ground and brewed coffee that keeps me coming back.
I've told everyone I know about it, posted on FB in case I missed someone.
Sense Appeal never go away, I'm spoiled now.
Looking forward to trying the other one. Hopefully it won't be watered down.
My only quam is that one barista who wears a flat cap is always so sour. Then the others seem to walk on egg shells around him. Lighten up man, part of the reason I love going in there is for the great personalities..
Cheers for the great work guys!!
Do you sell the whole beans with the date when it was roasted??
can I buy the beans by half a Lb??..Thanks