Betches have sworn by iced coffee forever, but recently, the trend has spread to literally everyone. Like, the magic of iced coffee used to be this amazing underrated secret between us and a few hipsters, but now, every human being is Instagramming their cold brew like they’re an influencer, and so a million coffee shops have stepped up and completely mastered the drink. If you’re in NYC this summer and you’re trying to navigate through the coffee shop options on every corner, look no further. Luckily for you, we’re here all year-round and we’ve tried every cold brew and iced Americano in the area. Here are the best ones:
1. Toby’s Estate Coffee
Toby’s Estate is the holy grail of coffee in New York. I mean, every single person at their Williamsburg location has a man bun and a beard, so you know they serve good shit. Their small batch coffee is made in Brooklyn, but they also have a few locations around the city, so find one that’s close to you and order their cold brew. I mean, we can’t promise you’ll never walk into Starbucks again, but you’ll definitely look down on everyone in line.
2. Happy Bones
Happy Bones is a Nolita coffee shop that just gets us. Their drinks are almost as pretty as their tortoise colored spoons that match your new Warby Parker sunglasses, and their iced coffee is unbelievable. Plus, it’s conveniently located near some of our fav brunch spots, like Butcher’s Daughter, EggShop, and Jack’s Wife Freda, so you can get your avocado toast and iced coffee fix in one trip. We can’t make this shit up.
3. La Colombe
The La Colombe line looks long and intimidating, but it moves fast and this coffee is worth it. Most locations only take cash, which is obv an annoyance, but if you come prepared, you won’t be let down. La Colombe works directly with coffee farmers around the world to use exotic, rare coffee beans that taste so much better than American coffee. Whether you’re a coffee connoisseur or are just looking for something to help you open your eyes before 9am, you’ll die for this coffee.
4. Hi-Collar
Hi-Collar is an authentic Japanese cafe that specializes in a rare Siphon coffee during the day and turns into a dope sake bar at night. They let you pick your coffee bean, and then choose between a regular Japanese iced coffee, a cold brew “Mizudashi” coffee, or an AeroPress iced coffee, which are all amazing, even if we don’t really know what they are. You can also add a scoop of gelato in your iced coffee for another $2, which we totally won’t judge you for. I mean, it’s ice cream in your coffee.
5. Mud
Mud, also known as Mud Spot, serves coffee that many locals (hi) have referred to as “crack.” This East Village coffee shop has been around for a while, so you’ll definitely be judged when you start Snapchatting a picture of your latte. With that being said, their iced coffee is refreshing and naturally sweet, so you don’t need to add a bunch of shit to make it drinkable. They also have a backyard restaurant that serves amazing brunch, so it’s basically a one-stop hangover cure.
6. Dean & Deluca
Dean & Deluca is the OG bougie New York hotspot. Like, Upper East Side moms have been buying their organic produce here for years and won’t even look at Whole Foods, so you know it’s the real deal. But whether their imported $18 almonds are worth it or not, their iced coffee definitely is. We love that Dean & Deluca’s iced coffee is strong enough to get you through the day but not any overkill level that will make you shaky for an hour. Oh, and buy their peanut butter cookie if you must. It’s obviously staring at you.
7. Zibetto Espresso Bar
Don’t walk into Zibetto Espresso Bar expecting to order a cold brew with almond milk and four Splendas. This Italian coffee shop is authentic as fuck, so you’re getting a cold espresso shot called the Shakerato, and you’ll love it. I mean, any betch who went abroad to Florence can already appreciate this European version of a cold brew, so get on board. It’s basically a shot of espresso mixed with simple syrup and shaken with ice, and it’ll become your new go-to fuel. It might even be worth the trek to midtown.
8. O Cafe
If you’ve ever tried Panther Coffee in Miami, you’ll notice the coffee at O Cafe tastes weirdly familiar. That’s because it’s made from the same beans, and it’s a fucking hidden gem. The coffee beans come from exotic places like Brazil, South America, and Africa, and trust us when we say their cold brew is liquid gold. Plus, the actual cafe is adorable if you have time to sit for a sec and stare at the organic carrot muffin on the table next to you.
Iced coffee is one of the best things invented by whoever accidentally left their morning cup of coffee out, had it get cold, tasted it, and was not immediately grossed out. When you combine a finely made cup of coffee with cream, ice, and a sunshiny day, your life is just instantly better.
Of course, a betch does not live on coffee alone. When you add alcohol to the mix, you’re in for a good fucking time. Like, the possibilities are endless. Do you want an iced Irish coffee? A splash of Bailey’s? Shit, do you wanna add a boatload of Kahlua and call it a day?
Whatever your alcoholic coffee adventure, here are our two fav recipes to guide you:
Fancy Iced Coffee: Adapted from Cooks with Cocktails
Ingredients
- 4 oz. Kahlua
- 1 cup whole milk (or Almond or Coconut milk)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 oz. Bailey’s
- 1 vanilla bean — yes, really
Grab two glass Pyrex dishes. In one, add the coffee and Kahlua, stirring until totally incorporated. In the other, add the milk, cream, Bailey’s, and the inside of the vanilla bean, mixing with a whisk until everything is incorporated. (If you can’t like, travel to Madagascar in order to acquire a whole vanilla bean, just use like, 1 tsp of vanilla extract.) Put both containers in the freezer for 45 minutes. After that, take em out and scrape them with a fork to move them around. Put back in the freezer for another 45 minutes—keep repeating the scraping until both mixtures are slushy.
Grab a glass and add some of the coffee slush—top with the creamy slush. Andddd serve. No ice required.
Simple Iced Coffee: For the lazy
Ingredients
- 1 ½ oz. whipped cream flavored vodka — looking at you, Pinnacle
- 2 tbsps. heavy cream
- Cold brew coffee — again, you can buy this shit now, so don’t bother making it unless you’re a hipster barista
Fill your glass with ice. Pour in the vodka, cream, and fill to the top with coffee. Bam, alcohol coffee.
Bloating is LITERALLY the worst. It’s like, you could be eating healthy and totally not shitty, but your jeans claim otherwise. Learning to avoid the shit that makes your stomach hang over your pants is a lesson that should be clutched and held close like a vintage Chanel purse.
Here are the top ten foods that make you NOT bloated, so eat this shit to avoid feeling (and probs looking) like that chick from My Big Fat Fabulous Life.
1. Cucumbers
This shit has been a mainstay in spas for year, and it turns out, for good reason. Cucumbers make you the opposite of bloaty and farty because of an antioxidant that helps reduce swelling in ALL of its forms. So put these shits on your eyes, in your belly, and anywhere else you feel could use a nip and tuck.
2. Bananas
Our fav dick-shaped fruit has ANOTHER use —this time, to help us fit into our jeggings. Since they’re so rich in potassium, bananas prevent water retention by telling all the extra salt in your body to get its shit together. An even bigger plus—they’ll help you poo, making you feel EVEN SKINNIER. Hooray, bananas.
3. Asparagus
Battling water retention is apparently on asparagus’ to-do list, and we’re thankful for it. Eat it raw, roasted, steamed—what the fuck ever, and you’ll feel light and airy despite having had a delicious meal.
4. Ginger
Battling hangovers? Check. Fixing nausea? Check. Making sure your stomach doesn’t repulse those around you? Check. Because it’s a natural anti-inflammatory, ginger relaxes the whole digestive tract, which makes you feel less like you have to suck it in. Add this shit to any smoothie or tea to help beat the bloat.
5. Watermelon
Oh yay! Our fav (sorta) calorie-free fruit makes the list. Because watermelon is so full of well, water, it makes you feel fuller without puffing you up. Add the fact that it has little to no sodium (a notorious bloater) and you better be adding this to your diet this week.
6. Greek Yogurt
A betch fav, Greek yogurt makes the list for showcasing its super good/yummy bacteria. Additionally, since it’s high in protein, it’ll keep the carbs at bay and keep your tummy flat. Just be sure to say “lol no” to those yogurts with the add-ins or added sugars. That’ll do the opposite of giving you a flat stomach—just saying.
7. Iced Coffee
THERE IS A GOD. If you need a coffee, keep it iced to add water (duh, an anti-bloater) and skip the sugar. We know coffee will give you a nice little caffeine jolt and the water will like, hydrate you.
8. Avocado
Once again, there’s literally no excuse for you to be bloated, having read this list. Avocados and iced coffee? Yah, we can hang. Avocados are super high in potassium like our friends, bananas, which keeps us from retaining water. Once you get rid of all the water, you drop three pounds just like that! We assume.
9. Zucchini
Since it’s literally a denser, slightly less delicious cucumber, the presence of zucchini on our list shouldn’t surprise you. The plus side is that, unlike cucumbers, you can grill, roast, or make chips out of these dick-like veggies. Additionally, they’re super filling without the added calories like our good friend, sugar. Thanks, zucchini.
10. Egg whites
Start the day off the WHITE way (no racism intended). Unlike a regular omelette, or doughnut, or whatever, egg whites have basically no sugar, no carbs, and tons of protein. That’ll result in a full but flat tummy AND relieve you of some of that extra water.
