The best drink at 1418 Coffeehouse is: everything. Literally, try everything. 1418 Coffeehouse is a staple in Downtown Plano, serving blends from Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters. 1418 has gone through a change in logo—and now functions as a nonprofit—but inside the cozy, dim cafe, nothing has changed. You’ll find the same homey couches and armchairs, the same crowd of regulars chatting and working. They sip coffee in the day and switch to wine and craft beers at night. I have nothing but praise for the baristas behind the counter; 1418 Coffeehouse’s quality is the best it’s ever been.
I order a pourover or a cortado when I’m testing new coffee shops; both drinks require a little more skill than the average latte. Cortados in particular can be picky little creatures. A barista who can whip up a perfect cortado can do anything.
A cortado is a Spanish drink: espresso mixed with a roughly equal amount of warm milk in a Rockefeller glass. A cortado treated right should have a denser, slightly cooler milk than a latte, with no more than half an inch of actual foam. Milk is at its sweetest around 130 degrees—that is how a cortado is meant to be served. For reference, 1418 Coffeehouse typically steams lattes to 150; Starbucks steams them to 170. Getting the milk to the exact right temperature and exact right consistency requires an experienced hand, particularly if it’s finished with a rosetta or a heart. It’s part-science, part-art and all instinct.
Most of all, 1418 Coffeehouse is about coffee, community and compassion. Get to know your baristas and be nice to them. They’re pretty cool.
Pro tip: They have Pumpkin Spice Lattes all year. Just saying.
1418 COFFEEHOUSE
Hours:
- Monday – Saturday | 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
- Sunday | Closed
Where: 1418 K Ave., Plano
More: 1418coffee.com
