Review: Jaho Coffee & Tea

A slow-life beverage chem lab opens in the South End
By ARIEL SHEARER  |  June 15, 2011

Jaho Coffee & Tea - On the Cheap

Anil Mezini started his first café at age 21, and about a month ago opened his third in Boston's South End, the only Jaho Coffee & Tea outside his "new-age" hometown of Salem. Jaho is dedicated to slow living and slow brewing, but the haughty morning attitude of Boston commuters rushing for a cup may challenge this shop's efforts to make caffeine consumption relaxing.

Mezini looks more like a scientist than a barista as he prepares coffee with exotic tools and techniques he discovered travelling in Europe and Asia. Tell him you want your coffee brewed pour-over, press, siphon, or Chemex-style, and witness the art of beverage chemistry. Observe the application of high-tech scales and transfer of liquid through elaborate tubing. If you don't have time to entertain the sight of a casual trickle, Jaho serves a fast hot brew ($1.49/small; $1.79/medium; $1.89/large) and iced coffee ($1.90/$2.40/$2.90) made with crushed ice that seems to melt slower than cubes. As for cream and sugar, you're on your own at the self-stir counter.

Hot or iced espresso starts at $2.20 for regular, with no flavor more than $5 (maple soy latte is $3.95/$4.50/$4.95). Jaho's take on the Coolatta manifests as "frosticcinos" ($3.80/$4.30/$4.80), made with coffee or "crème," in flavors like mocha or mint chocolate chip, green-tea matcha mist, and red velvet. They serve loose leaf teas like Mighty Leaf Tea ($2.50) and Zodiac Tea ($3.75), and sell some of those crazy brewing tools, too.

Jaho's spread of Italian sandwiches ($8.50) and salads ($7 for summer fresh, $8.50 for caprese) is impressive for any coffee-centric café. Foccacia bread is baked in-house following a recipe from Mezini's father, and is used on all sandwiches (sub for whole wheat). "La'Chicken Salad" is a staple, and a heavy hand for mayo may rob the sweet and crispy red grapes, walnuts, Havarti, and lettuce of their well-planned communal flavor — but I did eat the second half of my sandwich upside-down, to get the salty crumble topping the foccacia hitting a bulls-eye on my taste buds.

Up front, display cases are filled with rows of glowing pastries that stare you in the face as you fight to keep eye contact with whoever's taking your order. The chocolate-peanut-butter stack ($4.95) is a confused pie, made with layers of nougat, chocolate, peanut butter, and caramel. You're assaulted by a different flavor with each new bite.

Written in playful text above Jaho's extensive drink menu is a coffee promise: "Black as hell, strong as death, sweet as love." It's a slogan fit for convincing edgy Boston coffee enthusiasts to stop in and flip off established café chains that promise speed and not much else. Any small business you can patronize for high-test coffee and behind-the-counter spectacle while saying "Fuck the man" is truly sweet as love.

Jaho Coffee & Tea, located at 1651 Washington Street in Boston, is open daily, 6:30 am–7:30 pm. Call 617.236.1680.

Related: On the Cheap: iYO Cafe, Review: Strega Waterfront, Review: Geoffrey's Café, More more >
  Topics: On The Cheap , Boston, Coffee, Tea,  More more >
| More


Most Popular
ARTICLES BY ARIEL SHEARER
Share this entry with Delicious
  •   THE NCIA TARGETS CANNABUSINESS REFORM  |  March 06, 2013
    By using the vocabulary of Washington power brokers, NCIA appeals to lawmakers in terms they can understand.
  •   GAY NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM  |  February 26, 2013
    Last week, with help from local LGBT activists the Welcoming Committee, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum bridged the gap between "historical landmark" and "sexy party."
  •   LISTENING TO MEDICAL MARIJUANA  |  February 20, 2013
    The Department of Public Health is moving forward with the development of Massachusetts's medical-marijuana regulations, despite efforts by state legislators to rewrite the law.
  •   NOT-SO-SECRET GARDENS: DIY MMJ  |  February 05, 2013
    Cannabis cultivation is an art as much as it is a craft — and urban living in our New England climate presents a gamut of indoor-gardening challenges for novices and pro growers alike.
  •   HOME-GROWN CANNABIS CAREERS  |  January 24, 2013
    The Cannabis Career Institute held its first-ever East Coast seminar in Boston on Saturday, offering local cannabusiness hopefuls a daylong crash course in Cali-style marijuana commerce.

 See all articles by: ARIEL SHEARER