Do you have that one thing that you always order at restaurants or cafes? Do you ever forget which places have your favorites and which you should never get again? I have a simple solution for you: start a tracker in your notes app!
This may seem like a very niche issue, which it is, but hear me out. I am obsessed with chai lattes, both hot and iced are my go-to’s when I go to a cafe. The thing is that sometimes it can be bad, which happens more often than I would like because paying an astronomical amount of money for a chai latte just for it to be bad is insane. I would always try chai lattes at local establishments and when I would travel but then I would completely forget which places made it to my self-proclaimed “chai snob” standards.Â
A perfect chai latte must have a perfect ratio of tea to milk to spice to foam. Not too much milk to where the flavor of the tea is hidden but enough to have a nice layer of foam, but not too much foam or else you’re barely getting the drink. I have it down to a science at this point with the amount of chai I have drunk. Recently I have been into trying different types of milks with it such as oat, almond, and skim. When I get to a cafe and order the chai latte I immediately start logging it in my note on my phone titled “Chai Tracker.” I first mark down the name of the cafe then in parenthesis I’ll write if it is hot or iced and what milk I got with it. Once I take a few sips of the latte I’ll then mark one of four different emojis: Heart hands, thumbs up, okay, and thumbs down. The meanings behind the emojis are pretty self explanatory, heart hands are for when it tastes perfect and thumbs down is never again. I’ll then write a little description next to it as a way of reminding future me of what it tasted like. I have found this system to be a full proof method of never forgetting which cafes have my favorite chai lattes and which I will never order from again.
Since being at the University of Vermont I have been able to explore so many new cafes to try their chai lattes which have been so much fun. My list has grown a lot, so let me share a few of my favorite spots (from both Vermont and my home state New York) to get a good chai latte (not in any particular order). This is also just my opinion, everyone has their own chai preference!
🫶Petit Bijou Kiosk, Burlington, VT (Iced & hot) – Yummy
🫶Skinny Pancake, Burlington, VT (Iced & hot) – Yummy
🫶Campus Perk, Burlington, VT (Iced & hot) – AMAZING
🫶Bluestone Lane, New York, NY (Iced) – Spice!!!
🫶Coffee Labs, Tarrytown, NY (Hot) – All time favorite!
đź‘ŤUncommon Coffee, Essex Junction, VT (Hot) – Needs more spice but very enjoyable