Asbury Roastery, Asbury Park, NJ

 

I don’t know if it was the clever coffee ring in their logo or the smell of fresh ground coffee I drove around with all day, but Asbury Park Roastery has me hooked.

I planned the day we went to see 2cellos around two things: shopping and food.*

*But you knew that already, I’m sure.

When I realized that the Count Basie Theatre was pretty darn close to Duck Donuts, I decided the concert date was the perfect time to try them out. However, that then meant I needed a coffee place and that I would also need to coordinate my timing for everything.*

*Local coffee joints, bakeries, etc never have the same set of hours.

That was where Asbury Park Roastery came to play. Though it was a little shy of a half hour away from Duck, the Jersey Shore Premium Outlets are only ten minutes away, giving us more than one reason to head for the area.*

*At The Table being another excellent reason to be in the Asbury Park area that day.

The Roastery has two different locations in Asbury Park: one off the boardwalk in the Grand Arcade of Convention Hall) and one on 2nd Avenue. We went to the one on 2nd Avenue and are saving the boardwalk location for a warmer day.

It was a little awkward upon first entrance into the roastery because there is no menu to be seen. However, in all fairness this location is their roasting shop, and upon first entry it is more than obvious that the location is mainly used for that purpose.

We have visited a few coffeehouses that don’t make espresso drinks and only serve the three or four different blends they roast, also with no menu on display. Fortunately, at Asbury Park Roastery they are roasting up so many beans, espresso drinks are a part of their drinks capable of being ordered.

I had a craving for a vanilla latte, but they were all out of vanilla. Instead I ordered a latte with a simple syrup and Hubby ordered an iced latte with salted caramel syrup.

My drink was the best latte I have had in a while which I can only assume is testament to their espresso beans and the beauty that is sugar and water. It wasn’t overly milky or bitter, but was slightly sweet and creamy.

I was in love with my coffee. So in love with it that I barely noticed Hubby hardly drinking his. The salted caramel flavor had overpowered his drink, and not in a positive way. I took a sip and understood completely why he wasn’t drinking it*, which made me sad that he wasn’t experiencing the same goodness as was in my cup.

*It’s quite possible we are far too salty characters to start with and that this would not be your experience.

We purchased a pound of their light roast which drove around with us all day. Every time we got back into the car we were met with the light, sweet aroma of our grounds. It was so beautiful, I almost wanted to leave the coffee there so Hubby’s car would always smell so lovely.

But I couldn’t. If it smelled that good, I could only imagine how delicious it would taste.

Thought we still have a pound of coffee from another recent coffeehouse adventure that we haven’t gotten even a quarter through, we have been sipping on the sweetness of Asbury Roastery every day since and loving every bit of it.

Asbury Park Roastery
803 2nd Avenue or
1300 Ocean Avenue
Asbury Park, NJ