Cup 'O' Joe, Petach Tikva

The other day I met my cousin for lunch. I had been babysitting for my grandson who had been sick so I was ready for lunch and of course a cup of coffee.

We met at Cup 'O' Joe (Cafe Joe) in Petach Tikva Mall. This restaurant is one of the chain of Cafe Joe Restaurants throughout Israel.

The restaurant is spacious and has a pleasant atmosphere actually a group of people were celebrating a birthday while we were there.

Menus are available in both Hebrew and English. There is a nice selection to decide from including various selection of sandwiches, salads, wraps, toastim, quiches, soups and other dishes.

We decided to have a sandwich filled with goat cheese and pesta which came with a very nice salad, my cousin had an espresso and I had a latte coffee which was absolutely delicious.

There is no shortage of wonderful desserts to enjoy with your cuppa.

Ilan's Coffee House, Kfar Saba

I had some things to do in the city and as I woke up to a beautiful sunny day I decided to get the bus into Kfar Saba. I met a friend at the bus stop who also had a couple of chores to do and we decided that when we both were finished with what we had to do we will meet up and have a coffee together.

I asked my friend where she likes to go for a coffee and she immediately thought of Ilan's in Canion Arim. Actually I also like going to Ilan's so when I finished what I had to do I called Rachel up and she told me she had finished what she had to do and was already waiting at the coffee house.

Ilan's is on the second floor of the mall and the tables are all spread out on wooden decking, it is very pleasant to sit there and enjoy a coffee. You can order sandwiches, cakes and pastries which are scrumptious. My friend ordered an ice coffee as it was quite a hot day and I ordered an espresso and was recommended to try the mocho espresso........it was delicious!

Eran's French Backery

Once a week I take the bus over to my daughter's place to help out. I pick up one of my grandchildren from the kindergarten and the two bigger ones are brought to her flat. I give them some lunch and try and keep them busy to their mum comes home from work. The bus ride from my home town takes about an hour and a half so when I arrive in the town my daughter lives I am usually a little too early to pick up my grandson so not too far away there is a cafe on the corner of Rehov Ben Gurion near Machon Mor.

Two young people have taken over this cafe which they have named "Eran's French Backery" from an older couple who I also got to know quite well and were very friendly. This young couple are just as friendly and  do everything to make their customers happy. They serve all types of sandwiches and their toasted sandwiches are very delicious you can choose what fillings you want in the sandwiches. The sandwiches come with a small tasty salad. As well as sandwiches there are a variety of cakes and pastries to choose from. I usually have a sandwich with a large espresso coffee to give me the energy to deal with my little grandchildren.                            

My Morning Coffee

It is cold and miserable outside and I knew the best thing I could do is make myself a nice hot cup of coffee to take away the winter blues. Oh yes it really works my delicious cup of coffee with two whole wheat buscuits have put me in the mood do to some housework.

The other day my husband and I had to go into the city to do a few chores. Of course I cant vist the city without sitting at a coffee bar and have a coffee. It was not lunchtime so we  had a sweet cheese cake each with our espresso coffees.

We were sitting at the Cake Shop in Kfar Saba, there are quite a few tables outside on the tree shaded pavements, it was also a beautiful sunny day and many people had the same idea as us. I love sitting sipping my coffee talking to my husband and seeing everyone sitting there enjoying themselves.

There were mothers with young babies and older people that were making the most of the gorgeous weather knowing by the weekend it would be raining again. Some people were eating toasted sandwiches with their coffee some like ourselves had one of the delicious cakes that they bake in their cafe. Others sat reading while sipping their coffee. One thing for sure we all left feeling perked up!

The Coffee Bean And Tea Leaf

If you want an exceptional cup of coffee I recommend The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. The company was founded by Herbert Hyman in 1963. It is a Los Angeles based company with more than 750 branches in 22 countries.                                                               

The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf go all over the world to get the finest coffee beans.

We had a delicious espressso and a cake each in Canion Arim, Kfar Saba.

Coffee Body Scrub

If you love the aroma of coffee and are looking for a natural way to beat cellulite at home  - ground coffee. Coffee is a wonderful, natural anti-oxidant which is why it is ideal to use for beauty treatments. It will offer you the benefit of neutralizing free radicals under the surface of your skin to prevent damage to your cells. This will reduce the appearance of age and also prevent disease.

Using ground coffee to remove or reduce cellulite has been around for a while. Many women claim success from using this well known remedy.

Expensive cellulite creams have one think in common - caffeine, rather than spending a fortune on expensive anti-cellulite products you can make your own treatment with caffeinated coffee grounds that actually works a treat. Ground coffee can also be used as a exfoliant. The course nature of the substance helps to remove the dead skin and will firm and tone your skin.

Coffee Body Scrub

2 cups of coursely ground coffee

1/2 cups of raw sugar or sea salt

2-3 teaspoons of olive oil

Put some plastic sheeting on the floor of your bathroom.

Take a hot shower to moisten your skin and open your pours.

Stand on the sheeting and apply coffee mixture to you cellulite areas using your hands or a loofah mitt.

Using wide cicular motions rub the coffee exfoliate onto your skin with strong pressure.

Shower off, skin dry and apply body lotion.

After giving yourself a treatment relax with a delicious cup of coffee!

Espresso

  

Espresso is a concentrated coffee brewed by forcing hot water under pressure through finely grounded coffee. Espresso has a thicker consistency and a higher concentration of dissolved solids, and crema than other coffee bewing methods.

All the flavours and chemicals in an espresso coffee are very concentrated which is why espresso is the base for other drinks like cappuccino, macchiato, mochas and lattes.

The first espresso machines were introduced at the beginning of the 20th Century, the first patent being filed by Luigi Bezzera of Milan, Italy in 1901. Until the mid 1940s, when the piston lever espresso machine was  introduced, it was produced only with steam pressure

                                                                                  

Preparation of espresso required an espresso machine. The act of producing a shot of espresso is called 'pulling a shot' which required pulling down a handle attached to a spring-loaded piston, forcing hot water through the coffee at high pressure. Today it is more common for the pressure to be produced by steam or pump. This process produces an almost syrupy beverage by extracting and emulsifying the oils in the ground coffee.

             

Espresso is the main type of coffee in many parts of the world. In addition to the Italian style of coffee, coffee chains offer many variations by adding syrups, whipped cream, flavour extracts, soy milk and various spices to their drinks.

Variations include, Affogato, Americano, Antoccino, Black eye, Bom bon, Breve, Carajillo, Cappuccino, Corretto, Cortado, Cubano, Espresso con Panne, Flat white, Guillermo and Iced coffee.