Lorimer Deli

I'm pretty sure that's supposed to be "hot bagels and coffee," and "soda," too, but I'm glad the casual punctuation enticed me inside.

The coffee, seltzer, and cane sugar in a Manhattan Special espresso coffee soda (10 fl. oz.; $1.29) delivers a deep, dark buzz — with a creamy head, once you twist off the cap and set the carbonation free — that was just the jolt I needed on a hot summer day. It's perfectly at home on this side of the East River, too: Manhattan Special is named for nearby Manhattan Ave., where it's been bottled for more than 100 years.

Lorimer Deli
715 Lorimer St. (at Richardson St.), Williamsburg, Brooklyn
718-599-7508

Comments

[Polecat]

I like the roaring 20's couple embracing on the label. Can I assume that this image references the era of origin? Can I also assume that this beverage is not for the caffeine-sensitive amongst us?
P.

[Dave Cook]

Gay '90s dress would have been the appropriate period costume out of the gate, but I couldn't tell you when the bottles were first decorated. For that matter, I don't know when that Roaring '20s couple first appeared, in that decade or later.

Caffeine? Yes. Manhattan Special does sell diet, decaf, and diet decaf versions, though I've never tried them.

[Citizen Skein]

Surely you saw this article in the NYT on Manhattan Special they ran on the front page of the Metro Section, right? If not, here it is. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/07/nyregion/07coffee.html

[Dave Cook]

I did see it, and likely it was the article that fixed my gaze on the words "coffee soda."

Thanks for the comment and the link!