On any given day in my neighborhood, there are roughly 4-7 coffee shops open within a 3 block radius. This makes it hard to branch out to other spots, especially if they are in the opposite direction of where I work. Despite that, I still make the trip to OCF a decent amount, which I think speaks well of its status as a great local establisment in the grad hospital area.
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| mmm... foamy milk... |
I don't know if I've mentioned it yet, but I don't actually drink coffee, so maybe you shouldn't trust my opinion on what constitutes a good coffee shop. But one thing I like about OCF is that it gives off a vibe of a place that cares about its local community, as I noticed a lot of regulars coming in. I guess that's true for any coffee shop, but if you have a lot of regulars, you must be doing something right. The staff is friendly too - the last time I went there, I ordered a bagel, because bagels are awesome. And OCF, like a few other coffee shops in the area, get their bagels from Four Worlds Bakery which is in West Philly. Hooray local outsourcing! Anyways, when I ordered my bagel, there was a hair in it. Not on it, because if I find a hair or two in my food, I don't usually care all that much, but this hair was baked into the bagel in such a way that I could dangle the bagel like it was on a piece of string. Except the string was hair. Kinda gross, but again, it's just hair so not a huge deal. I don't usually complain to waitstaff about food either, but I thought this was worth mentioning. The staff was really apologetic and refunded me for my bagel. Hopefully this story doesn't deter people from buying bread from Four Worlds, because their bread is really delicious, I just wanted to point out that the staff at OCF was very nice about my food mishap.
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| a hairless bagel |
We decided to do a breakfast jaunt during the weekday, so there weren't too many people sitting down doing work - mostly people coming for their morning drug on their way to work. But as I mentioned, it seemed like there were a good number of regulars coming in, and I do appreciate places that let you bring your dog inside while you order. Even though I don't have a dog, I can see why it would be preferable to bring your dog inside. I mean, if you can bring babies inside in giant strollers that block the ordering line, why can't your tiny dog come in as well? But I digress. I ordered a chai latte and a sesame bagel, pretty standard fare for yours truly. I really wanted to order the nutella hot chocolate, and I'm not really sure why I decided not to, but Sandya ordered a nutella mocha, so you can read all about that in her review. My chai was good, lots of foamy milk and not too spicy (I like my chai on the sweeter side). My bagel was sadly a little stale, but otherwise it was hair-free and the cream cheese was of solid quality. Actually, if I had to pick any coffee shop in the area to grab a bagel from, it would be OCF because I like theirs the best (to be fair, Gavin's also has bagels from Four Worlds, but alas, it is not on South Street).
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oh hey I finally snapped
a photo of Sandya |
I like the decor of OCF too. The whole place has a sort of earthy vibe (I think it's the color scheme), but modern at the same time. I really enjoy the map of center city that is also present at the OCF realtor office right around the corner at 21st and South. Sadly I did not snap a photo of said map, but I guess that just means you need to go check it out yourself, and enjoy some friendly service and a warm beverage while you're at it.
OCF Coffee House
1745 South Street
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 454-2196
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