Java Joints of Jet City: Caffe Ladro, Fremont

Seattlest wishes it was at a coffee shop on Saturday, when the snow was falling in swift, wet flakes. We imagine sipping a delicious doppio espresso, protected from the cold and watching the snow fall. Instead, we are braving the pouring rain and have ended up here, in Fremont, at Cafe Ladro. We're wet, cold and crabby.

Ladro is bustling with the young professionals crowd. An entire table of six is covered in laptops, another with newspaper readers (only the business section or classifieds) and there are a number of patrons at tables for two, all of whom seem to be on early morning coffee dates. There are clearly things happening here, but none that involve the casual coffee shop stranger.

A man in leather pants stands up and says loudly, "Is there an English teacher in the house? I've got a serious grammar question." The patrons stare uncomfortably and go back to their typing, reading and dating.

We get in line, still shaking the rain off of our coats and step up to the bar. We start to fumble for the beverage we'd like to order, "Can I have...uh..."

The barista replies, "yes," and starts to make us our beverages. The psychic barista is right on, preparing us extra strong Americanos. The espresso here is rich, nutty and full-bodied with a dark finish, reminding us that Ladro espresso is not for pansy coffee drinkers.

The pastries at Ladro are well-made and dessert-like; a little too sweet for the morning, in our opinion but undoubtedly good. We relent and have the rhubarb pie-- an offering that is not found at any other Seattle coffee shop (of which we're aware).

The staff and the coffee at the Fremont Ladro have chased away our rainy day blues, but the Sunday clientele feels like the Seattle that everyone complains about: an insular group of people who are difficult to engage.

"Ladro Machiatto" , a photo by Jeff Carlson, came from the Seattlest Flickr Pool. Drop your photos there and you might could get famous too.