...official blog of Cafe Evoke Catering - Oklahoma's premier specialty coffee catering company...
About Cafe Evoke Catering
Café Evoke Catering is Oklahoma's premier specialty coffee catering company.
Complete menus and information kits are available for download at CafeEvoke.com. Please feel free to email us through our website or call 405-606-2200 if you have any questions about incorporating a full service specialty coffee bar for your next special event or for your office.
Thank you for choosing a Fair Trade coffee catering company. We look forward to a long friendship.
I just got an iPhone a few weeks ago - yes, I know. There are several things I love about it and several things that blow my mind. I love that it pushes information between my phone and computer. That has proven to be hugely valuable when keeping up with contacts, emails and calender events with Cafe Evoke Catering. The apps though?
There are so many random apps it is not even funny! In fact, I only have 3 apps on my phone - UrbanSpoon (Jenni loves it), Twitterfon and the flashlight (sounds random but I have actually used it for catering!). I see people with 9 pages worth of apps on their phone but as I look through the app store, there are just not that many that seem even worth it to download! Maybe I need to look through the ones that you pay for.
I first heard about Coffee Buzz through Barista Magazine and I sorta liked the idea. Yes, I'm hooked on Twitter so why not have another account for coffee related stuff?
Has anyone used this? Here is a bit about the app:
image taken from CoffeeBuzzApp.com
The app comes in at $3.99 on most occasions but actually is on sale right now for $0.99 and can be purchased through iTunes. Here are the feature breakdowns they talk about on their website:
Finds great places for coffee nearby using your iPhone's location awareness
Shows recent Coffee Buzz drinkers & activity both nearby and everywhere
Lets you share your favorite coffee hangouts with others around you
Tweets your coffee drinking activity to your Twitter account
Can automatically update your Twitter location
I like the idea of being about to find coffee location no matter where we are - which will come in hand as we head out to Crested Butte tomorrow. I will play with it and let you know in a few days.
Cheers to coffee related apps for the iPhone! Oh, and if you need me, I will be in the backyard with the "light saber" app chasing the dog...
Jenni and I are taking to the road on Friday for a much needed (and anticipated) trip. This is a type of trip that feels like a homecoming as well as a vacation. While we understand that we will not be able to fully get away from the busy life that is Cafe Evoke Catering, getting in some turns, snow shoeing, drinking some nice beers and just being away will be nice.
There are many things I plan on doing while hanging at my parents place in Crested Butte and while most will have to do with relaxing and taking in the normal winter happenings, how can I step away from coffee?
I have had this itch lately to learn more about coffee and espresso and the industry that we call home. I feel like I need to get to know those 18 hands that touch this product before it gets to mine and then yours. So, I am going to take some time while I am there to begin exploring deeper into this industry - taking a look at pricing and trade and also more about origin and varietals.
I also plan to stop at the handful of shops that call Gunnison and Crested Butte home - maybe even stopping as we see things on the way. Here is our route:
I have driven this so many times in my life and I do not remember much in the way of specialty coffee and/or espresso so we may be taking our own on the way. If we see it, we will stop and keep you updated!
We are always up for suggestions if you know of something that is on the blue line in the above map!
We will also be taking this time to work on creating a bigger and better Cafe Evoke Catering. We will be talking more about that soon, I promise! Blogging will continue once we get to Crested Butte.
Let's just call this a bit of a "coffee and ski retreat" - sounds good to me!
Leaving the Northwest was hard in many ways. One of them was leaving an area where you could drink local and have some of the best beers ever! I know, I know, sounds crazy but having great beer so near was fantastic.
Well ladies and gentleman, there is a new local brewery just getting going in OKC! Here is a bit from NewsOk.com:
You can check out COOP Aleworks online or if you are the Twittering type, you can follow them as well. Their website is brief but has the information you need - phone numbers, office hours, etc.
Nick Trougakos of NewsOK also recently shared an email from the brewmaster of COOP Aleworks Chase Healey who talks about the operation:
“COOP Ale Works is all about local pride for the city and Oklahomaas a whole. We are a small craft brewery located at 51st and Western in OKC. COOP produce several ales and lagers which will hit the market March 2nd. Everyone involved at the brewery is beer crazy, so our influences come from all over the place when it comes to our beer. Our initial release will include:
Native Amber, a well balance American amber ale
Zeppelin Wheat, which to me connects with many of the different wheat styles, making for a very refreshing experience
Horny Toad Cervesa, a light beer with a hint of pilsner malt and hallertaur hops to keep things interesting, and
DNR, our Belgian ale. At 10% ABV, its the biggest beer being made in Oklahoma. Made with Belgian malts, loads of candi sugar and Trappist yeast, it’s an awesome beer.
We have many other beers in the works which will be released later in the year. We look forward to being a part of the beer community in Oklahoma. If people want more info they can contact me at Chase@coopaleworks.com.”
We are hoping that we will be able to work with these guys in the future - more on our ideas for that later on (time is not right, you know?).
My goal in the next few weeks (probably when we get back from a little trip back west) is to get over and take a tour of the brewery, taste some beer and get to know at least one of the men behind the brew.
Welcome to this week's Coffee and Tea Festival. This is a weekly gathering of interesting posts regarding coffee and tea. Not just about the products but about the people, places, things and ideas that coffee and tea influence. Did you catch last week's version over at Behind the Bar? If not, break and check it out and then get back here!
I'm going to start this edition with a bit of a tea lesson. I really do appreciate tea but do not know much - to be honest. As a catering company, we are always working on better ways to store our coffee when we are on the road and then when we are back at our showroom. But what do we do with our tea? Traci Hayner Vanover presents Proper Tea Storage Methods at her blog - Drink Better Tea - Tea Information & Resources - Tea Enthusiasts Blog.
I was reading this post and really began to realize that tea is much like coffee or any other product that has the ability to go stale or take on flavors not native to the product. This means it is even more important to take care. As she says, you made the jump into fine teas and not the grocery store generic, take care of it!
There is quite a bit more about tea over this blog so get over there if that fancies you!
Let's get to coffee now. Did you hear about the latest from our friends at the green mermaid? If not, here is a post that talks more about their newest product in their "high quality" arsenal. Here is a story from Smart Money about the new product Via.
What are your thoughts? Let's open it up here! There is one part of that piece that makes me a bit sad: "Consumers want coffee that is good enough, not the greatest cup". And that was said by Mike Ferguson of the SCAA! I will leave it to you on what your thoughts are.
Our friends from Batdorf and Bronson Coffee Roasters are heading to Ethiopia and are going to be blogging about it. If you have not had a chance to go to origin, their upcoming posts should be a pretty honest look into the trip and what all is going on.
Here we go again, another shop is taking away the 20oz size - thank you! Here is bit about Intelligentsia Coffee's decision to cut their 20oz drinks and what people (and the local news) is saying about it from Deaton: Got Coffee?.
Oh, and for those that thing there is more "caffeine" in a 20oz latte from a 16oz - most likely you are wrong. I think there may even be a comment on the post about that. Many shops still use double shots in both the 16 and 20 oz drinks so really you are getting more milk - that's all.
Billy Wilson is up to it again with his new store Barista set to open soon. You can read about it over at Oregon Live.
And finally, a late "Happy Birthday" to my friend Chris over at Arizona Coffee. Way to go! And because it is your birthday, I thought about sending you some of what Ilana (aka the Hip Hostess) is serving up over at her blog The Hip Hostess. Espresso, chocolate, cookies, dang. I wonder where the coffee comes from?
That will do it for this edition. Keep 'em coming!
Do you have a submission for next week's Coffee and Tea Festival? Check out the ways to submit your post on anything (recipes, Fair Trade news, coffee house openings, new gadgets, etc) that is coffee and tea related. This edition will run on Friday, February 13th at Behind the Bar.
As always, I am willing to let someone else host this festival. If this might interest you, please email me at blog @ cafeevoke.com and I will pass along all the information that you need.
Ok all brides and friends and family of brides, we wanted to take a second to tell you about an upcoming bridal fair that is happening on Sunday at the Palace Event Center in El Reno. This is your chance to get face to face with some of Oklahoma's top wedding vendors. Of course, Cafe Evoke Catering - Oklahoma's premier specialty coffee catering company - will also be there spreading some top shelf specialty coffee!
This is the second year of this show and the organizers are putting together some very cool things. Here are a few bits of information that you probably need to know:
Date/Time: Sunday, February 22nd, 2009 from 1-4pm.
Admission Fee: FREE!
Door prizes will be given away every 10 minutes.
Cake, catering and punch samples will be available.
You will have the opportunity to participate in an actual Dove Release.
Fashion show starts at 2:30 with gowns provided by Bridal Boutique and tuxes provided by Tuxedo Junction.
Register for your chance to win the GRAND PRIZE for a FREE VENUE rental!!!
Numerous gift items will be available for purchase (even great for Mother's Day)!
Cash Bar will be open featuring $2.00 Mimosas and $4.00 Cosmos.
The Chateau will be open for viewing from 1:00-4:00pm. Open House at The Manor from 2:00-5:00pm.
If you went to last years event, this one seems to be a new and improved version. We have been talking to Jen - the motor behind the boat - and she has been telling us that they expect this show to be hands and feet better than last years.
Heck, the show is free!
Put it this way, if for no other reason, come on out to the show and have a cup of coffee or other specialty drink with Cafe Evoke Catering. We will have our deluxe coffee bar there live and kicking out the best specialty coffee in Oklahoma.
Send us a comment to let us know you are coming so that we can be looking for you!
A New Home for Oklahoma's Premier Specialty Coffee Catering Company
We have been working on this for quite some time and it has finally happened! Cafe Evoke Catering - Oklahoma's premier specialty coffee catering company has a new home!
No, we are not opening another catering operation or moving across state lines again. This time, we are moving down the street to an all new showroom! Here are a few pictures of where we were with it a couple of weeks ago:
We are very excited about the final product that we came up with for this space. It is going to be a great place to get to know our clints better and to also get to know our community in a fuller way. You can expect many things to happen at our space - commonly referred to by us and our "studio mates" as "1708".
From art openings to music and other things, we hope we get a chance to meet everyone!
Oh, speaking of "studio" mates, we teamed up with two other great folks in getting this all put together.
First, the photographer Josh McCullock - your friendly neighborhood photographer - what, you thought I took the above pictures?? He has an amazing eye and somewhat took charge of making this all happen (I needed some help that is for sure!). We love his work and look forward to working more with him and his lovely wife in the future. Oh, and for you folks that have a spot for babies, visit their blog to see photos of their newborn!
Our second mate is the great Linsday Gibson of Gibson Events! You may have seen her spread in the newest Brides of Oklahoma magazine. If you need your event to catch that special spot in peoples minds - or your own - she is your go-to. She is also taking on much of the design stuff in the new showroom which has been great!
We are shooting to have the doors open at 1708 NW 16th here in OKC by mid March. We will keep you updated as we move forward. If the address sounds familiar, that is a good thing! We have joined some of the awesome businesses in the Plaza District! You can follow all sorts of updates on their blog.
We are super excited!
This is just one of the many great things we hope to roll out for you in the coming weeks. We have already begun getting loose ends connected for the other news we want to share with you - we are just not quite ready!
Much more to come soon. I will also try to get a few more pics of the progress at 1708 for those that are interested.
I just have a few things for this fine Wednesday. First, our thoughts and prayers go out to those that were affected by yesterday's tornadoes across Oklahoma. Here is a video clip from KOCO Channel 5 News in Oklahoma City. Crazy stuff for a February.
I know many people where at the edge of their seat yesterday watching, waiting and hoping that the tornadoes would pass.
Be well everyone that is beginning the clean up efforts - both emergency folks and also those that are having to do the thing we all in Oklahoma hope we never have to do - go through our houses and find what we can.
The next bit of stuff is on a much lighter note.
I have mentioned some "big news" happening with Cafe Evoke Catering. Today could get us closer to telling everyone about at least part of it! We have been working hard on at least two big deals that we think are going to help us spread the word on specialty coffee in Oklahoma City and we could not be happier with the progress. Again, I (like Obama always says) do not want to supersede the big announcement but keep checking back for more on this!
Hope everyone has a great Wednesday. We uploaded new pictures to CafeEvoke.com - go check them out!
In the past few weeks, Cafe Evoke Catering - Oklahoma's premier specialty coffee catering company - has had the awesome opportunity to serve at two great events in town - Wide Open Corners and Chocolate Decadence. If you missed either one of these, dang!
We took a few photos - nothing too special - while we were there to show you what you missed. Here are a few clips:
Wide Open Corners:
Chocolate Decadence:
If you went, you should write a brief comment about what you thought of it and also what you thought of the coffee. That is one of the things we love best about doing events like this - meeting new people and hearing about what they thought!
Just a short post for Monday. I know that my "lost" voice has no effect on my blogging but, hey, it's Monday!
Only a day late, here is the first (sort of) edition of the Coffee and Tea Festival. This is a weekly gathering of interesting posts regarding coffee and tea. Not just about the products but about the people, places, things and ideas that coffee and tea influence.
I’ve rarely been tempted by tea, And coffee does nothing for me. Cappuccino, however — Can’t miss it. Not ever! Addicted? Heck no! I’ll take three.
It is always good to know what coffee does to you. It's not bad for you, right? VW presents Greetings from my deathbed posted at Wide Awake in Wonderland. I like it. Keep drinking, don't be afraid, these visions are here to help you!
Ok, thanks for those first two - the ice is now broken! As many of you that read A Thought Over Coffee often may know, we love talking about the social aspects of coffee about as much as we love talking coffee itself. This next one is something many of us were watching a few months ago and I'm glad it made it into the festival! Noric Dilanchian presents Dilanchian Lawyers - Starbucks settles coffee trade mark law dispute posted at Lightbulb. This is a submission about coffee economics and trade mark law. It was triggered by a dispute between Starbucks and Ethiopia. The dispute is now resolved and Ethiopia's IP licensing strategy is in full swing."
But wait a second, where did all this coffee stuff start anyway? Well, Sam presents Coffee and Espresso. A Really Good Cup ! Surfer Sam posted at Surfer Sam and Friends, saying, "The best cup of coffee might be hot, freshly brewed coffee, a frothy latte or a slowly sipped espresso. We love this magic coffee bean. It’s stimulating and satisfying and incredibly popular.
The Best Coffee and Espresso Begins With Dancing Goats According to legend, coffee was discovered in the ninth century by an Ethopian shepard named Kaldi. He noticed that goats who grazed on wild coffee berries had great bursts of energy and appeared to be dancing. Then Arabia make coffee popular and was the first to roast the beans. They called coffee “the wine of the bean.” The word coffee probably comes from the name Kaffa, the province in Ethiopia where it was grown." He gets in to a lot more in his post.
We love the community that is the coffee and tea industry and we love knowing where to go when we get to a new place. In fact, one of the first things we do when we arrive in a new place is try to check out the coffee scene. Luckily, Roderick Russell presents Uncommon Grounds Coffee & Tea Burlington, VT posted at NOUMENON :: Art, Ideas, Culture & Capricious Opinion. We love getting shop reviews submitted and hope that this continues!
We cannot forget about tea! That is just as great as coffee and we were happy to see that NAOMI presented Diary From England: GREEN TEA CAN HELP FIGHT HIV posted at Diary From England. We love seeing the products we enjoy so much going further than the few minutes we sit to enjoy them.
Do you have a submission for next week's Coffee and Tea Festival? Check out the ways to submit your post on anything (recipes, Fair Trade news, coffee house openings, new gadgets, etc) that is coffee and tea related. This edition will run on Friday, February 13th at Behind the Bar.
As always, I am willing to let someone else host this festival. If this might interest you, please email me at blog @ cafeevoke.com and I will pass along all the information that you need.
We have already told you about the upcoming Chocolate Decadence Event coming up on February 5th. Here is a short clip about it that was on News9 a few days ago.
"Historic Automobile Alley cordially invites you to celebrate Chocolate Decadence 2009, one of Oklahoma City’s most anticipated events and Valentine traditions. Chocolate Decadence 2009 will be held Thursday, February 5th from 5:30 – 8:00 p.m., again at 825 N. Broadway. Held in one of the coolest venues this City has to offer, the Hudson-Essex Loft Office exudes hip, urban-chic in Historic Automobile Alley. The party showcases decadent chocolate treats from premier local restaurants and caterers while featuring smooth jazz, flowing wine and champagne, gourmet coffees and the ever popular Valentine auction. Chocolate Decadence enjoyed another sold-out crowd in 2008 and the same is expected this year. Purchase your tickets early so as not to miss the most decadent event of the year!"
(note: I am having a problem getting the embedded video to work - I apologize for that!)
Here is the information again in case you missed it last time or have not heard about it yet:
Date: TODAY! Thursday, February 5, 2009 Time: 5:30pm - 8:00pm Location: Hudson-Essex Loft Office Street: 825 N. Broadway City/Town: Oklahoma City, OK
We are going to have a great signature drink available - with a combination of chocolate, espresso and raspberry and/or orange, it will be a sure "not to miss" experience. Trust us, you will not want to just see the pictures over the event once we post them, you will want to be in the pictures!
Tickets to Chocolate Decadence 2009 are $50 and may be purchased at DowntownOKC.com, AutomobileAlley.org or by phoning (405) 706-7484. All tickets must be purchased in advance. Must be 21 to attend. Business attire requested.
Tickets ordered after January 31st, will need to be picked up at the WILL CALL booth the night of the event.
For more information, email us at chocolatedecadence2009 {at} yahoo.com
image taken from CoffeeBuzzApp.com
