Underground Café


Underground Café has just opened on 20th Street, and it adds more than one creative twist to the Riversdale neighbourhood.

First of all, the street-front façade has been torn down and replaced with a sheltered patio. Enormous vases contain sculptured plant arrangements, so now we can sit outside and bask in our all-too-brief Prairie summer.

Secondly, Underground Café isn’t just one business – it’s two. The coffee shop fills the front of the space, while Beaumont Film & Record is at the back. They’re two friends, supporting each other with complimentary businesses.

Finally, Underground Café has imported a taste of Edmonton. They are the first coffee shop outside of Edmonton to serve Transcend coffee.

Saskatoon’s Coffee Culture
Dallyn Guenther, Underground Café's owner and barista, grew up in Saskatchewan but moved to Australia and New Zealand where he became immersed in the local coffee culture. “After Italy, I figure New Zealand has the best coffee culture,” he says.

But Saskatchewan is evolving, and Dallyn decided to return to his roots and contribute to Saskatoon’s growing coffee culture. He’s delighted that Collective Coffee is just a few blocks away and hopes that the two businesses can work together to bring coffee drinkers to Riversdale.

Rock Star Specialties
In addition to coffee in all its various forms, Underground Café offers a number of specialty drinks named after rock stars. Otis Redding is vanilla gelato and espresso, while Joan Jett contains melted cinnamon hearts, espresso and steamed milk.

But if you’re not a coffee drinker, don’t despair. Dallyn will soon be serving Steeps tea (out of Calgary).

I had an Italian soda and it was the best I’ve ever had. Dallyn uses unsweetened SlushPuppie flavouring with just a touch of vanilla syrup for sweetness, and it is so good!

Dallyn has installed a long bar counter as he hopes to expand into soups and salads for lunch.

Neighbourhood Centre 
Underground Café is next door to Village Guitar & Amp and Paved Arts. So, in addition to their regular hours, the coffee shop will be open whenever there are events at either location.

Beaumont Film & Record is run by Scott Gowen. Shelves of vinyl records line one wall, and there is a collection of CDs, cassettes, DVDs and Blu-Ray.

Dallyn plans to host a games night with a tournament ladder on Thursday evenings. Both Scott and Dallyn are excited about the board game, Settlers of Catan. “It’s a strategy game for people who don’t like strategy,” Scott explains.

Location & Hours
Underground Café is located at 430 20th Street West (between Avenues D and E).

They are open from 7 am to 6 pm from Tuesday to Sunday (closed Monday) and will stay open late on Thursday evenings.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Flavourful Saskatoon, August 28, 2017

Image
The Next Great Food Business Public Tasting, Sept. 7 The Local Kitchen is hosting a public tasting with samples from each of the finalists in the Next Great Food Business competition. Finalists are: King’s Jerky, Kind Condiments , Smoke and Salt BBQ, Bannock Express , and Voodoo Van . Wine Tastings Guess the most expensive wine (Sept. 8), sample some Rhône wines (Sept. 22), or attend the 2017 Premier Showcase Wine Dinner (Sept. 28) sponsored by Saskatoon Co-op Wine Spirits Beer. Premier Showcase is also offering a Portugal with a Splash of California wine seminar (Sept. 29) and a Women & Whisky seminar (Sept. 30). Refresh and Renew I had a chat with Trent Loewen about his plans now that he has sold Earth Bound Bakery. He is heading east to visit chef friends in Ontario and then off to New Zealand to explore what's happening there. After 9 years with a single focus, it's time to explore new ideas. Interestingly enough, the bakery's new owner is a business
Read more

The Golden Towns of Beaujolais

Image
Heading north out of Lyon, you pass through a long tunnel and exit into a lush green countryside leaving the city far behind. You then turn and head up the hill onto winding roads between a patchwork of vineyards. Many of the vines are really old with short, thick, twisted trunks and a thin stem of green leaves and buds. These are the Gamay vines of Beaujolais, interspersed with a few fields of greener, leafier Chardonnay vines. South Beaujolais, just 45 minutes northwest of Lyon, encompasses 25 medieval villages of orangey-gold stone (limestone and iron) that is surprisingly vibrant (I had been expecting something lighter, similar to the Cotswolds in England). Some of the villages still have the remains of 14th century castles. Oingt is classed as one of the most beautiful villages of France and it really is lovely. You can take a walk around the town on the former ramparts and the church is austere and beautiful. I was on a half-day tour , which combined stopping to
Read more

Petra Market: A Mediterranean Grocery

Image
Tucked away in a strip mall on Primrose Drive (north of Lawson Heights Mall) is Petra Market, a treasure trove of food products from the Arabic countries in the Mediterranean. I’m fascinated by grocery stores full of unknown-to-me products but also a little nervous about trying things, so I was really happy when Nour Dabbour, the owner of Petra Market, showed me around and told me about the different items. Nour is trying to stock products from as many Middle Eastern countries as possible. He even stocks the same product from a number of different countries because he says that each country’s product tastes slightly different. Za’atar , a spice mix, is a prime example with packages from Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, and each one is a slightly different colour with a slightly different taste. The most popular areas of the store are the nut and treats bars with an amazing assortment of Middle Eastern candies and mildly spiced nuts. Nour gave me a variety to try and I’m real
Read more

Spelt and Millet: Ancient Grains for Today's Healthy Diet

Image
When I was growing up, whole wheat flour and rice were exotic options. Now we have a whole range of intriguing choices – buckwheat, spelt, millet, kamut – the list goes on and on. My problem is that I don’t know very much about some of these grains, so I arranged a phone call with Nicole Davis, the Owner/Manager of Daybreak Mill near Estevan. Daybreak Mill grows and processes approximately 18 different kinds of flour, whole and de-hulled grains, flakes, cereals, and legumes. They are 100% organic. “We want people to have access to healthy, wholesome food,” Nicole explains. Two of Daybreak’s products – spelt and millet – have been nourishing people around the world for over 9,000 years. Spelt Spelt was cultivated by ancient civilizations in Europe and the Middle East for thousands of years. It grows well in poor soil and doesn’t require fertilizer. It’s resistant to frost and the thick husk protects the grain from insects. However, spelt requires more processing than wheat as
Read more

Flavourful Saskatoon, August 21, 2017

Image
Prairie Harvest Café I was sad to learn that Prairie Harvest Café has closed its doors. It’s been one of my favorite Saskatoon restaurants since day one, and I really appreciated the fact that the chefs focused on cooking with local ingredients, many supplied by the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market. All the best of luck in your new adventures. We’ll miss you. Hug a Farmer This has been a tough summer for many farmers. Prairie Sun Orchard lost their entire cherry crop to insects. Drop by their stand at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market, tell them you care, and have an ice cream. My favorite is the chocolate cherry fudge, but Clare Pearson, the principal ice cream maker, says her new favorite is the salted caramel. Peppers If you’re like me, you assume that all small, skinny peppers are super hot and avoid them like the plague. But that’s a big mistake. Kaleidoscope Vegetable Gardens is offering two long, skinny peppers – one can be hot, but the other isn’t. Padron chile pepper
Read more