Chennai: Where to find espresso coffee powder!?

mirjamd

I love my home made espresso. Now I've been in Chennai for two months, but haven't been able to find a place where to buy espresso coffee powder from. The only thing I found was filter coffee.... I might be fussy, but that IS something different than espresso.. I have tried Coffee Day, but they didn't have it...
So does anybody have any suggestions where to get this?

Nick-H

Coffee dealers: Mylapore area, near Kapaliswara temple.

But Expresso I doubt. A gleaming expresso machine is not the sort of thing I'd expect to find in a Mylapore Brahmin kitchen --- assuming I was allowed in the kitchen in the first place, of course!

kalyani68

Maybe try Chheda foods. They are located at 62C Ormes Park Road, Kilpauk, Chennai. Phone 26421244.
I don't remember if they had espresso powder specifically but they did have a wide array of imported foods including coffee.

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sgcarney

Hmm, try Amanana across from the Park Sheraton. If it's not there then it won't be anywhere in the city. I don't even think the coffee shops here serve real espresso.

mirjamd

Thanks for all the advice! Will try the suggestions. Was already planning to pay a visit to Amma Nana, for any Western goodies I might want occasionally, after cooking Indian food almost daily for my boyfriend who deep in his heart would be happiest to eat sambar and curd rice every day

madan80

well, try this... mix one portion of instant coffee iwth one portion of regular coffee powder- the coffee day one and put it into the coffee machine.

There was a small expresso machine available in Landmark for about INR4K made by murphy richards. A friend of mine used to put the Coffee Day dark coffee into it. to get a good concoction. Its got a steam handle as well to heat it up.

TeeVee

I saw Illy espresso powder in 'Gourmets' in Cenotaph Road 2nd Street. It's next to Lanson Toyota and Tommy Hilfiger.

I bought that Morphy Richards espresso machine and I'm quite happy with that. However, I mainly drink 'latte' by heating the milk and adding the coffee into it.

Regarding these 'regular coffees', have you noticed that most of them are actually blend of coffee and hickory? Only 100% coffee I have found so far in six months is Leo coffee.

The_Londoner

Please forgive me, but i thought Espresso was only made from ground coffee beans, and not powder.

Scandojazzbuff

Actually, espresso is the pressurized extraction of coffee that is prepared by grinding it very finely. Special grinders called burr grinders are used to get the coffee fine enough for espresso. Espresso blends use different combinations of beans from different sources. What makes it usable for an espresso machine is the grind.

madan80

If you go to any of the Coffee Day or Leo coffee outlets you can select the bean (P Berry, Plantation A etc. etc.) and get them to grind it for you.

Mind you -this coffee day is not the same as Cafe Coffee Day. these are the coffee outlets.

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Popeye3128

I too saw espresso powder in 'Gourmets' few days before in Cenotaph Road. Its in the same building as Lanson Toyota. Check that out......

tron

I have been lurking for a while and this is the post that made me join.

I'd recommend that you get medium roast whole bean coffee and grind it yourself. These are easy to get - plenty of coffee roasters all over town, some are in the T Nagar area. You may not be able to find good coffee grinders easily, but a spice grinder would fit the task. You need a very fine grind for espresso.

indiaprof

There are a few stores that specialize in just coffee near Ranganathan Street. As you come out of R Street, turn right and walk as you would toward Saravana Bhavan. The shops are on the right hand side of the street, and down the first cross street you come to. Don't know if they've got espresso, but some very finely ground Mysore coffee, etc. Lots of different brands to choose from.

stocklotgarment

just try walking into a subarban railway station and most of the railway stations have a espresso machine with an attendant .

talk to him , put few bucks into his hands ..he will be willing to sell you a packet of roasted beans .

tron

A good espresso doesn't just depend on the beans. You can get even better, freshly roasted beans in some random coffee roaster in T. Nagar. Just get some freshly roasted beans - medium roast works best for espresso. Try to see if you can get Arabica beans (or Arabica + Robusta blend) because most "Madras coffee" roasters use Peaberry beans either alone or in a blend. Then, grind them as finely as you can - either at the roaster or at home.

Then, you need a good espresso machine as well - one that generates between 10 and 15 atmospheres of pressure. There are two types of espresso machines - the pump ones and crappy steam ones. The steam ones have a metal boiler with an airtight lid, and the entire pressure (which is very little) depends on the boiler pressure. These machines are no good - do not buy them. The pump machines do not have an airtight boiler, they just have a water container without any airtight lid. They have a pump inside which pressurizes the steam. This is the kind of machine you need. They are easy to distinguish by the type of water tank - if it has a metal boiler with an airtight lid, do not buy it.

Finally, good tamping (the process of putting coffee grounds into the brew basket and packing it tightly by pushing the grounds with a metal tamper) is necessary for good espresso. This ensures that the water/steam flows through the grounds at the proper rate. You need to tamp to about 18kg (~40lb) of pressure. That is, if you put the basket on your bathroom scale, put the grounds in it and push with a tamper, the scale should read about 18kg.

If you have further questions about espresso, feel free to ask. Cheers!