PlanJam!From your screen to the scene

A good café is hard to find, and now that Starbucks is invading every nook and cranny of the five boroughs, it’s even harder. The little coffee shops that struggled but managed to get by back in the day are now facing escalating rents that the big chains have no problem paying. So it’s a rare treat when you discover a place in your neighborhood that runs circles around Starbucks and can stay open for more than six months. Café Sutra is such a place.

I’ll admit I’m more of a barfly than a beatnik, and that my idea of a wild Saturday night usually doesn’t include unlimited refills of Jamaican Blue Mountain. And although I fancy myself a girl who can hold her liquor, my best friend Liz puts me to shame. So when I took her to Café Sutra after having just discovered it, I was prepared to have another ho-hum latte and get back to the bar. But that’s when I discovered the best part about Café Sutra…they serve booze! Now that’s my kind of coffee shop! A wide variety of beers, including local favorites like Brooklyn Lager, joins an assortment of wines and mostly frozen cocktails to form a decent drink menu, all the better for when you’ve had your fill of caffeine but still want to savor the atmosphere.

And atmosphere there is. The name Café Sutra, in case your mind is in the gutter, relates to the café’s focus on India and the Hindu religion. This cultural inspiration permeates everything from the names of the specialty mocha and tea drinks to the warm and exotic décor. Though under new ownership, the café has kept its Hindi theme, and for that I’m grateful. The new owners have also introduced live music on Friday and Saturday nights, and their happy hour drink specials keep the place buzzing the rest of the week. During the warmer months, the patio is the place to be, for the night air and, for you smokers out there, a chance to evade the long arm of the indoor smoking ban for a few precious hours.

All of the coffee and tea drinks at Café Sutra are delicious, but I usually order the Earl Grey Skies, a tea drink which is made with real bergamot oil. Liz is more of a strong coffee girl, and she highly approved of the house blend here, which is dark and nutty and generally not for the weak of heart (or ulcer). If you like chocolate, be sure to try one of Café Sutra’s specialty lattes, like the decadent Almond Zen, which contains Ghiradelli chocolate, almond, and coconut. Or if the winter blues have got you down, have a summer flashback with a frozen hot chocolate or frozen lemonade, both of which are like candy in a glass. Speaking of candy, the café offers a rotating selection of desserts that tempt you from their pastry case like chocolaty sirens. They’re perfect for sharing, which we all know girls like to do, because somehow they feel like that negates the calories. I don’t bother to squabble over calories – it’s dessert, it’s supposed to give you chest pains. Luckily, Café Sutra seems to agree; none of their desserts could be described as light.

So the next time you’re in Park Slope south, stop in and meditate over a cup of liquid karma. Or, failing that, a frozen sangria.