Yes, this is a food blog. But it's my blog and I want to talk about coffee. I love coffee and I think I am reaching a coffee awakening in my life. You see, back in my hometown, I was strictly a Cuban coffee guy and wouldn't really try any other types. Since moving to Japan, I have been exposed to different coffees from around the world. Some impress me while others fall short. One Sunday morning, I was all by my lonesome and decided to have a new coffee experience. I got in my car and drove to a little coffee shop known as Tribe Coffee.
Tribe Coffee
Tribe Coffee is located in the Higashiarai area of Tsukuba. It is on the main street of Gakuen Nishi road but you can't enter Tribe from there. You have to turn left at a traffic light, then another left into a narrow street, and you will finally find the parking lot of Tribe behind the main entrance. I walked into this small coffee shop ready to grab a cup of Joe.
Inside
When I walked into Tribe, I was hit by an amazing aroma of coffee. It smelled so good, I could have stayed in Tribe all day. The thing is, you can't stay in Tribe. The inside of the shop has no tables or chairs. Everything is strictly take out or drink outside. There are some tables and chairs outside so you can enjoy your coffee in the sun. Although that sounds nice, Tribe is right in front of a busy street, so all you hear are cars going by while you enjoy your coffee.
The Menu
There are two menus in Tribe. This is the drinks menu. Coffee made on the spot. The great news is, everything is in Japanese and English. A small menu and self explanatory.
The Coffee Beans Menu
The coffee beans section is unfortunately not in English. You can order any of the blends in 100g, 250g, or 500g bags. You can also just order the coffee beans or ask the staff to grind them for you. There are quite a lot of different blends like the Mexico Blend, Nicaragua Blend, Tribe Blend, House Blend, Sakura Blend, Guatemala Blend, Expresso Blend, Fire Blend, Office Blend and many more.
Before I bought any of these blends, I wanted to try Tribe's coffee first. So I ordered the coffee of the day.
Today's Coffee, Sakura Blend
Before buying any coffee grounds, I decided to give Today's Coffee a try. The coffee of the day was the Sakura Blend. Since it is called the Sakura Blend, I am guessing it is a limited time blend for spring. I admired the design on the disposal cup and then took a sip. At first, I didn't like the Sakura Blend. It had a weird strong bitter taste that messed up my taste buds. "I bought the coffee so might as well finish it" I thought. After a few sips, I found myself actually liking the Sakura Blend. I am not sure if it was the initial shock of the Sakura Blend that threw my taste buds off, but I really started to like this coffee. It began to have a less intense taste and it went down smoother. I wouldn't mind having the Sakura Blend again but I had more coffee to try.
Expresso
As much as I started to like this place, with it's amazing coffee aroma, cafe music playing in the background, and delicious Sakura Blend, I hated the expresso. I almost didn't finish it. Not even sugar could have saved this Expresso. I tried to down it in one gulp and get it over with. Sorry Tribe, not a fan of your expresso.
Expresso Blend
After drinking my two cups of coffee at Tribe. I got two bags of coffee grounds and took them home. One of the coffee grounds was the Expresso Blend.
I know what you are thinking, "you just said you hated the expresso so why did you buy the grounds?" Well, Tribe has a sort of deal with the coffee grounds. For 2500 yen you can get two 250g bags of coffee grounds and one cup of coffee. I order the two bags of coffee grounds, the Expresso Blend and the Mexico Blend, and then ordered the expresso without really thinking about it.
A few days later, I brewed the Expresso Blend at home and reluctantly gave it a try. It was way better than what I had a Tribe. I could actually drink this coffee and enjoy it. It wasn't anything out of this world, but I did enjoy it.
Mexico Blend
I wasn't sure what I was going to get with this blend. I brewed some of the Mexico Blend at my place with my wife on a Monday morning before we both went to work. I first tried it without any milk or sugar. After my first sip, I thought that it didn't need either milk or sugar, it was perfect all by itself. My God, this was a fantastic cup of coffee. The flavor was something new. An amazing coffee taste with some spice to it. My wife was also very impressed with this blend. Since then I have brewed it a few more times and have sadly run out of the blend. I love this coffee and will definitely buy it again when I head to Tribe.
Tribe is an interesting coffee shop. The smell inside the shop is intoxicating, the music is nice, and there are a lot of different coffee blends to try. Sure, I didn't enjoy their expresso so it is kind of hit or miss, but that is the exciting part.
So if you are in the mood for a coffee adventure, why not give Tribe Coffee a chance. Who knows, you might see me there, debating with myself on what coffee blend I will try next.
Enjoy!
For more information on Tribe Coffee, check out their website:
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