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This combination food/espresso café and bike shop sits across the street of The Independent (née The Kennel Club). They have some nice, open air seating along the dingier Divisadero St. sidewalk, parklet-style, and there are several indoor café tables. The menu includes beer, wine, and sandwiches, but they take their coffee the most seriously out of their non-bike consumables. They offered private label biker roasts from Ecco Caffè but have since switched to De La Paz. And yes, there's a whole bike shop in the back. We never got what bicycles had to do with espresso - from the various cafés around the country to charitable organizations - any more than, say, school bus drivers. But no matter, they have a two-group La Marzocco Linea behind the pastry case, although they're about to move things around to showcase all things coffee in one corner. Using the Linea, they pull a shot with a mottled medium brown crema of modest thickness. The barista smelled the cup before serving it, which is a good sign. It's a modest-sized shot with a lighter body - not thick or syrupy in the least bit, but not thin or watery either. It has a Central-American-leaning and semi-robust flavor. Served in classic brown, thick-walled Nuova Point cups with the occasional World China porcelain cup to cover for past breakage.
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