Joe Coffee Company: Pro Shop

The Waverly is the shot to start with, the house espresso built for body, sweetness and lively fruit. Joe opened its first café in 2003 at Waverly and Gay under founder Jonathan Rubinstein, and now roasts in Long Island City for more than twenty rooms. The Pro Shop is the Chelsea one: a compact café with a retail counter attached.

House coffee, then whatever is rotating

Two coffees anchor the bar. The Waverly is the signature espresso; The Daily is the house drip, a medium roast reading chocolate, caramel and molasses. Beside them the shop runs a single-origin drip that changes daily, a single-origin espresso and fruit-forward pour overs, with guest roasters appearing alongside the house bags.

Cold coffee gets the same treatment: a single-origin iced coffee, flash brewed so the varietal survives the chill, a chocolatey, nutty cold brew that takes milk well, and nitro. The milk list stays classic, from latte and cappuccino to cortado, macchiato, Americano, mocha and café au lait.

A retail counter as much as a café

The room is small, with a few counter stools, a bench outside and enough WiFi to make an hour with a laptop workable. It handles a takeaway shot and a slow breakfast equally, and the shelves are as much of the offer as the bar.

That is what separates the Pro Shop from the other Joe cafés. Alongside the drinks it sells roasted beans and home brewing gear, and it anchors the education side of the company: public classes, professional certification, equipment support and private events. Food stays light, mostly fresh pastries and cookies, which keeps the attention on the cup and the kit.

The list past coffee

Matcha here is unusually specific. The matcha latte uses organic matcha from Matchaful, while the straight matcha tea is Kettl's Hakusan, whisked with hot water. Tea runs through Kettl and Kilogram, with Dona's organic masala chai and Anjali's masala chai made from organic Assam and organically grown spices.

The specialty list is where the bar plays: a Resilience Turmeric Elixir, a brown sugar shakerato, a black cherry espresso soda, and yuzu elderflower spritzes built on either espresso or matcha. The sensible route through all of it is to order The Waverly first, then follow whatever is rotating on the drip, and leave with a bag if the shot lands.