M. Suzanne Terry

I am excited to host my first guest in our Coffee Shop Road Trip series. I “met” (i.e., on the Internet) Jennifer Seay in the Online Writing Community via Andilit.  I think you’ll enjoy reading about her coffee adventure in Las Vegas.

The assignment: Find a local coffee shop

The chosen target: SambaLatte Torrefazione in Las Vegas, Nevada at 750 S. Rampart Blvd. Suite 9, Las Vegas, Nevada 89145 (702) 272-2333

The verdict: I’m not going to find what I’m looking for in Las Vegas – a quiet place with posh seating – but this is not bad at all. Especially the croissant. Nom, nom, nom.

See, I’m a country girl that loves the city. To a point. What do I hate about the city? Traffic (not much of a problem here in Vegas unless you’re near the tourist corridor on a Friday night) and too many people (always a problem).

I have to admit, I’m not a coffee drinker on a regular basis. I drink tea. Green tea. Black tea. White tea. Mostly I drink Earl Grey. Sometimes Earl Grey Crème when I can find it. But, on this occasion I went for the, what I would term, froofy drink.

A Nutella latte.

And it came with foam art that stayed through the entire cup. That’s probably a good thing, I wouldn’t know – this might be the first time I’ve ordered a latte. Which might explain why I’m typing so fast!

Here’s the thing about this coffee. It wasn’t bitter. It tasted like coffee. Did it taste like Nutella? I don’t think so, but that’s probably good because I find Nutella to be quite sweet most of the time. As a side note, I haven’t experienced the burning in my stomach that I always experience after a coffee. (If you’d like to experience the effect of the coffee on my system, just read faster and faster until you sound like a chipmunk!) Whee! I probably shouldn’t drive like this…

Perhaps I shouldn’t have paired a sweet (but not terribly so), caffeinated drink with a chocolate croissant. A perfectly flaky, melt in your mouth, croissant with a touch of chocolate buried between the light, crispy layers. Did I say nom, nom, nom already?

SambaLatte is a local coffee shop that started here in the Summerlin area of Las Vegas. It now has a second location on Jones and Sunset (with a drive through) and they’re opening a location at the Monte Carlo casino resort very soon. So, if you’re in Vegas you can get SambaLatte coffee without leaving the glitz and glamour of the Strip. If it is important to you they source their beans from small and sustainable farmers from Brazil and around the globe. And they do seem to have a recycling program in place as well as using to-go cups made with a percentage of post consumer content.  I had my turbo boost … I mean, latte … as a dine-in so it came in a ceramic cup – no waste! Especially since, in my haste to get my dirty little paws on the croissant, I forgot to procure a napkin…

Once I finally got comfortable, the other people in the shop faded into the background – that fade was helped by the subdued music playing over the sound system. My best guess in regards to the music would be something Brazilian, but I didn’t ask. The shop has a second level, which was where I wanted to be so I could look out over the other people down below, but that seems to be a popular hangout so I ended up at a bar in the corner. Which worked out well enough. There were lots of places to plug in, which I would’ve used if I had brought my power adapter. Oh, and wi-fi. Good wi-fi, even – included with a purchase. Other than the upstairs area and the bar I sat at there were little tables with the tiny café chairs that are always less comfortable than one would hope, an area in the front with padded benches and a few tables outside in the sunlight. Today would’ve probably been a good day to choose the outside, but I didn’t want to take up a four-top as I was a single.

Looking back at the menu now, I may have to come back and try the tea. They have “Lavender Earl Grey” and something called “Eros” which is described as “Black tea with orange and vanilla”. And, almond croissants that were sold out when I arrived around 10:00. I do love a good almond croissant…

Jennifer grew up in the southeastern United States eating dirt and drinking goat’s milk. She wrote her first story when she was six years old titled “The Cats in the Carillon.” It was approximately 200 words and had three sequels. Her current piece is approximately 100,000 words and the main character is not a cat. She lives in Las Vegas, Nevada with her husband and two furry editors. She burbles about her book, cats, and life at mercurialforte.wordpress.com.