2nd Annual Coffee Expo of PR & Lunch too

Me First Mate and I had been looking very forward to the Coffee Expo.. it did not disappoint.  When we got there at 10:30AM, the Expo had only been open a couple hours.

This was also an opportunity to check out the Dr. Pedro Rossello Convention Center of San Juan, built in 2005.  It is yet another jewel in the crown of Greater San Juan.  A beautifully designed, massive steel and glass structure.  The surrounding grounds and reflection pool are also quite impressive.  It stands as a grand tribute to artful, but functional architectural design.

It is located very near the Old San Juan district and Condado.  We had to cross over the bridge into Old San Juan before doubling back to get to the Convention Center.  After the double-back, you will see the new Sheraton Hotel with the Convention Center located behind it.  From the front of the Sheraton, you cannot see the Convention Center.. we had to double-back a 2nd time to find parking.  Doh!

There is plenty of parking here, which is kind of a novelty for San Juan.

Parking was a flat $6 bucks per car… typical of this venue.  There was also a Home Show going on too.  Even with both shows, traffic in and out was not bad.

There had been a fair amount of local press about the Coffee Expo, including a large presence on the Web and a bunch of Facebook chatter.

Entrance to the Coffee Expo was FREE! 

What’s more, many vendors offered free samples.

I like free.
Free is good.

Once inside, a rep from the Expo took me to a spot where I could shoot from a high vantage point.  I could see most of the show floor from there.  A special thanx goes out to the guy who showed me around.  Arrg!!!

By far, the most elaborate display was put up by Cafe Don Pello and Pomarrosa Cafe.  It resembled a small scale Spanish church.  You can see it in the foreground of the over-view shot.  Inside, it was standing room only.  Friends say it is one of their most favorite brands.  We tried it… it was exceptional and we plan to visit them the next time we are in Ciales.  They had a nice display of old coffee grinders and artifacts from days gone by.  The Pomarrosa Cafe Gourmet Website is here, available in both Spanish and English.

One of our favorite labels, Aroma del Cielo from Hacienda Monte Alto had a large booth so we were able to score a few bags to take home.  A medium dark roast with no bite, but very full flavor.

Gustos Espresso Bar had a large presence and was doing a brisk trade via their booth.  I love the graphics on their van.

Sandra Farms in Adjuntas is a private label coffee entirely grown, harvested, roasted and bagged before it ever leaves the Hacienda.  We plan to make a trip that way, the next time we are in the area.  The couple that runs the place were very friendly.

They got their start in 2001 and have been at it ever since.

Monin’ Gourmet Coffee Flavorings had a very attractive booth featuring a wide assortment of their products.  The guys were very busy, but paused long enough for me to get this shot.  Thanx!

Yes, even Starbucks was represented.  They have their own variety of 100% Puerto Rican coffee.  Small barista shops and stands are much more common in San Juan that the rest of the island.

Though it’s a little hard to make out in the photo, the giant stove-top espresso maker actually conceals an espresso machine mounted to a bicycle.

This guy has been featured in the local media on several occasions.

Espresso to-go!

One of the big attractions of the show was a giant coffee cup that would hold 2,750 gallons of coffee.

It was crafted from aluminum and lined with foam insulation.  The promoters had a bank of coffee makers running continuously to fill it.  Why would they do that you ask?  Because they wanted to break the Guinness World Record of 2,010 gallons set by a group in Las Vegas.  And they did!

Guinness had a representative on the floor to verify compliance.  This  record breaker is very likely to make the new Guinness Record Book coming out in 2013.

It was a popular backdrop for locals to get their picture taken.

Besides coffee, there were other beverages on display and for sale.  I had never heard of PR Tea, but it is something I want to try.  They have a Website that features tea and coffee.

Mia Dolce Passione is another very unique product.  A rum and chocolate based liquor produced in small batches, here in Puerto Rico.  I sampled one of each of the 3 flavors and it was delicious!  Dark chocolate, white chocolate and white chocolate with a taste of strawberries is available.  It reminded me of flavored Pitorro, but much smoother and richer.  The dark chocolate was my fav.  They have a Spanish Website with part of it in English which is good, but a couple of the pages wanted me to install Microsoft Silverlight…  like that’s going to happen.  Silverlight?  Really?

One of my favorite vendors was the old guy selling Mi Madre Pique made here in PR.  Pique is a traditional Puerto Rican condiment and can be found in pretty much every grocery store in Puerto Rico.  Even Walmart.

I have the recipe to make Pique from scratch.

The Department of Agriculture of Puerto Rico had a large booth selling locally made bath products, condiments and potted plants for $5 each.  Seemed like a pretty good deal.  Over at the Coffee Expo organizers table, they had event T-shirts and live coffee plants for a mere $3 dollars per.  I would have scored a few if I had a place to put them… next year, for sure.

One last mention- Toro Verde (‘green bull’) of Orcovis was there promoting their Zipline adventures.  This is definitely on my hit-list of ‘must see’ activities. They had a beautiful full color brochure outlining their various trips.  Good thing me First Mate can read Spanish as there was very little English to it.  They claim they are the largest aerial park in the western hemisphere.  I look forward to checking them out.  They have a Web site, but it’s entirely in Spanish.

The vendors mentioned were not the only ones at the Coffee Expo… I simply do not have the room to cover them all. We left around noon, just as the live music was setting up.  There was a large dedicated area for folks to sit and watch the performers.  By this point, the Coffee Expo was starting to get crowded.

We had a great time, met a bunch of real nice folks and will be back next year!

We wanted to take a lunch break before heading back home so a couple of friends suggested we try Hacienda Don Jose in Condado.  It’s a local establishment serving Mexican and Puerto Rican Cuisine.  The prices were fair, especially when you consider we were in the middle of ‘Touristoville’.  On a par with most Mexican sit-down restaurants on the mainland.

It was raining when we left the Convention Center, but gradually improved as we chatted and waited for our food.  Service was very courteous.  I ordered the garlic chicken as recommended by our friends, me First Mate ordered chicken Flauta off the Mexican part of the menu.  Me friend ordered garlic chicken as I did, and his wife ordered Mofongo, a classic Puerto Rican dish.

This is one of the few restaurants in Condado with a direct view of the ocean out the back.  We sat at a table off an open window.  The shot I got was taken right after the sun came out… it was spectacular.

They have a full bar, but since this was lunch and I had a long drive home, I had iced tea.

The food portions were very generous… not knowing what they would be like, me First Mate and I ordered separately.  If we come back, we will split one of the main dishes as we usually do.  They were that generous. 

All in all, everyone seemed to like what they had ordered.  My garlic chicken was great… it came with rice and beans and a little bit of shredded salad.

They have an ATM on site and state that they have ‘wifi’ service for customers.  The waitress spoke perfect English.

I have no reservations about recommending this place to all.

One last note about parking- there is none.  We had to park about a block from the restaurant and it cost $6 for the 1.5 hours we were there.  Typical for the Condado and Old San Juan.

As I’m so fond of saying-
we had another fantastic day in Puerto Rico!

In the process of preparing this post, I stumbled onto a new (to me, anyway) English language Puerto Rican News Website.  ‘News is my Business’ is now featured in the sidebar on the right.  Very well done, BTW.