Jimmy the Barber
THE barber in town got married! Jimmy the Barbershop in Fords, NJ is a men’s barber shop in town with incredible talent and heart. We rocked it out at the wedding with DJ Sweat killing it next to the cart. There may have been a chance that the barista did a dance move or two. Congratulations Jimmy and Rachel on a lifetime of love and laundry!
Zack & Rachel
On a brisk and lovely September evening, we watched Zack and Rachel start their forever surrounded by close friends and family. We have seen backyard weddings happening during the pandemic, but Stoltzfus wedding truly blew us away. It was intimate, beautiful and thoughtfully detailed. Guests enjoyed food by Cardinal Provisions and mug favors from the bride & groom to bring to the coffee bar. Zack’s grandmother even sewed masks for everybody. They say home is where the heart is, and this home definitely was the epitome of HEART.
Trabelsi Wedding
We were too busy enjoying (and crying) at the Trabelsi wedding that there were no time for pics! This was a truly special wedding to be at because it was Silvia’s wedding, owner of Throne of Grace Floral Design. She’s a local floral designer who I got to meet through my home coffee window during the pandemic. Her and her husband love espresso and so did their guests! You would never know how late it was by how many shots were slinging from this coffee cart.
May you be blessed with a lifetime of love and laundry!
Labor Day Cigar & BBQ at Mane Street Cigars
We’re back again at Mane Street Cigars in Woodbridge, NJ for a Labor Day BBQ! Great folks, amazing food and delicious coffee + cigar pairings. There was even a magician who needless to say blew my mind. It’s always a great time with the Mane Street crew.
Rutgers Professors Throw a Drive-By Parade for Students
August 30, 2020
We met Sharon at an affogato drive-by baby shower back in July. That’s where Sharon fell in love with affogatos! She is the Manager of the Dean’s Office at Rutgers Graduate School of Applied Psychology and the faculty was excitedly planning a drive-by parade for their students to welcome them back into the school year. Well, 2nd Rule got to pop up at Rutgers and serve cold brew and affogatos all over again! You can bet we loved it. Honking, music and watching professors cheer on the students during some wild, wild times.
Thank you Sharon and Rutgers faculty for having us!
Cold Brew Social
A crazy brilliant idea emerged since New Mercy Palisades Church has not been able to meet up with their congregation. They had a cold brew social in one of the members’ driveways. Splitting up time slots for people to swing by during certain time-blocks, everybody got to mingle in a very social, physically distanced way.
Thank you for letting us serve you coffee and witness some lovely reunions!
Marissa's 30th Surprise Birthday Party
August 15, 2020
Pastor Nick from Living Word Church wanted to surprise his wife, Marissa, for her 30th birthday. We were told that she hates surprises, but when her friends and family gathered into this perfect backyard oasis, you can bet she had a huge smile on her face. We snuck the coffee cart into the yard while she was out shopping. When Marissa finally made it home, she was met with a choice between two dresses that her sisters prepared for her. She quickly changed and walked out to hear a roar of “SURPRISE!” And the rest was bliss!
Thanks for having us Nick and Marissa!
Outdoor Church in August
I’ve never poured latte art while people are emerging to a new life from a baptismal tank but these guys at Living Word Church in Union, NJ have made that possible! We’ve been serving up every Sunday in August. I have loved getting to make everybody a cup and somehow we do manage to get everyone a cup or three! Nobody is more resolute for coffee than church folks on a Sunday.
Cars & Coffee
July 26, 2020
Frappe Joe in Edison, NJ has been hosting a Cars & Coffee event in their parking lot that showcases some of Jersey’s hottest vehicles. They invited us on this hot summer Sunday to come alongside their coffee crew. 2nd Rule brought the espresso drinks and Frappe Joe brought the coldbrew. We teamed up to caffeinate the car fanatics.
Thanks Shetal for allowing us to brew in cool places.
Big Ash Bash at Mane Street Cigars
July 25, 2020
Mane Street Cigars is a boutique cigar shop located in Woodbridge, NJ (our hometown!) They threw a huge “WE SURVIVED COVID!” party — the Big Ash Bash. There are many great pairings in this world and one of the best are coffee and cigars. We lit up some extraordinary cigars outside and enjoyed coffee crafted right on the spot.
Thanks for your hospitality Alex, Frankie and Ray!
Affogato Drive-by Baby Shower
Caitlin is expecting a baby girl and we celebrated with an affogato drive-by baby shower! Our ice cream is freshly churned by our friends at The Bent Spoon in Princeton, NJ. They love using pure, local and organic ingredients. Top that off with rich espresso and you have a scoop of heaven!
Thanks for having us Caitlin & Baby Yesinko!
Princeton Lavender Lattes and Lemonade
There’s something unbeatable about using locally grown ingredients and getting creative with drinks. This past weekend, 2nd Rule popped up at Princeton Lavender in Princeton, NJ. It’s a small lavender farm owned by Beth & Brad — a truly life-loving, hard-working couple. Their red barn stand is filled with the fragrances of lavender; dried bundles, lavender honey and lavender pillows! Walk into the fields and see bees and butterflies hopping from flower to flower. Then just down a path you'll be met with 6 sweet kid goats. Grab a fresh-cut bouquet or bring home a planter for the yard. It’s a Jersey day trip to live for.
We popped up with a simple specialty menu in which we got to feature two varieties of their lavender.
The Phenomenal Iced Lavender Latte is smooth like petals with mindblowing complexity and fresh aromatics. Phenomenal is a French evergreen lavender, loved for its fragrant oils that we brought over into our soft simple syrup.
We chose these heirloom Ethiopian beans that come from a mill in the Gedeo region called ‘Jet’. Small-batch roasted locally by none other than Penstock Coffee Roasters, it’s a washed coffee bursting with fragrances of jasmine and bergamot throughout. We taste peach, chocolate, and raw sugar. Its vibrant acidity and long-lingering flavor of Earl Grey lends itself deliciously to milk and lavender.
All the drinks were served topless as they’re meant to be enjoyed with all of the lovely aromas that make a beverage an experience. We also gave away our iced lavender latte recipe with a purchase of some gorgeous Penstock beans!
The second item on our menu was the Big Time Blue Lavender Lemonade. It showcased —you guessed it— Big Time Blue. These were the lavender bushes that were seen lined down the farm. Their flowers are a brilliant rich purple. We chose this variety because its flower is fragrant and nectar-rich.
Delicately floral with fresh-squeezed organic Meyer lemons, this lemonade is super refreshing and has all the old school summer feels with a local modern twist.
I’ll never forget buying 50 pounds of lemons being asked, “What are you making with this, lemonade?!” I guess it couldn’t have been more obvious…
It was a wild, wild weekend! Saturday we sold out completely just 2 hours in. On Sunday, we came prepared with double portions and sold out of lavender lemonade again in 2 hours. Thankfully the iced lavender lattes kept us going! Both days the weatherman told us to expect scary thunderstorms and we didn’t get a drop. 2nd Rule served over 250 guests at the farm and couldn’t have asked for a better way to kick off the summer, masks and all.
Thank you for having us, Princeton Lavender! And thank you all who came by!
A Summer Baby Shower Brunch
Amanda and Mat are expecting a baby boy this August and we got to celebrate with them! This Watchung home was nestled beautifully by a stream under green trees and a big, bright sun. Guests enjoyed a delicious brunch spread, great music, lots of iced espresso drinks and Van Leeuwen affogatos. We loved seeing the dad-to-be valet park all the guests’ cars while momma was surrounded by sweet friends and family.
Congratulations Amanda and Mat! Thanks for having us!
It's a Drive-by Baby Shower!
I met Daniella and Zack when I was the morning shift barista at Penstock Coffee Roasters. They were often the first few people to come in and get a quiet start to their morning, before the cafe got busy.
Fun facts: Zack, designer of Zackery Peck Creative, is the one who made the original typography for 2nd Rule Coffee Co. and dubbed the slogan Love Thy Cup of Coffee! His wife Daniella, owner of Leave A Piece of Him Photography, has a heart for the elderly and captures their stories through soulful portraits.
And together, they’re having a baby girl — Olive! She’s due 7/20/2020 and 2nd Rule got to be a part of this little one’s stunning drive-by baby shower! It was too incredible and many folks ended up parking and enjoying a reunion under great weather. The coldbrew and pink lemonade bar was a beautiful treat alongside other amazing favors for guests.
Thank you for having us, Daniella and Zack!
What's Specialty Coffee?
It's coffee that has been given careful dedication throughout its entire life cycle.
Generations of coffee farmers commit their life's work to growing and handpicking coffee cherries that are the highest quality on the planet.
Then a certified green coffee* buyer will sample the beans to grade their quality. Only the highest scored get purchased.
When a roaster receives it, he/she considers the particular bean's origin, density, and other characteristics to roast it specifically in such a way that it highlights all of its uniqueness. Roasters don't add flavor— they bring the intrinsically delicious flavors out!
A barista will recognize the same things that the roaster did, but now he/she must also note how it was roasted (light, medium, dark). What is the best temperature to brew this type of bean? How fine/coarse should it be ground? What kind of brewing device would this bean extract nicely on? A great barista will select a brew method deliberately to capture all of a specific bean’s uniqueness into the cup for the drinker to enjoy.
Specialty coffee is an art & science — and drinking it is the best part!
*green coffee is the term used for unroasted coffee
Superhero Fuel for Healthcare Heroes
I asked my best friend, Monica, who is an ER nurse, “Are coffee and treats really helpful? Or are we just giving you guys things when you don’t even have time to eat or drink?” She said, “We are always thankful that someone is thinking of us. Normally we have meals covered by restaurants, but to get coffee is such a nice surprise to have in the break room.”
Throughout the pandemic, 2nd Rule is grateful to have the Caffeinate A Community fund which allows us, especially in times like these, to serve coffee to our heroes that have been struggling without PPE. They’re exposed to C-19, then going home to their families, often unable to interact just in order to protect them too. Only then to return to work and do it all over again without sight of when it will end.
Our coffee has made it to:
ER Dept at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
Recovery Room at Saint Peters Health University
Rehab Dept at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
Otolaryngology Clinic at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
Thank you to our nurses, doctors, and healthcare workers everywhere who have nursed this country (and the world!) back to health. We couldn’t have made it back without you.
6-ft Coffee Window
On April 5th, I came home from an early morning essentials trip to Wegmans.
“Need coffee.” As brains do.
When the coffee cart is not doing events, it’s stationed in the garage where it’s kept neatly folded down and sweetly patient. It had been some time since the cart got to stretch its wings and roll its wheels. Immediately I started moving the furniture around in our receiving room. (We don’t actually call it a receiving room because that’s funny, right? But I guess technically, that’s what it is.)
My mother asked, “What are you doing now?!” She always knows I’m up to something. Most of the time not very excited about it.
“I’m bringing in the coffee cart.”
“What?!” She stood there watching my madness manifest. Then she laughed. Then she grabbed the other end of the couch.
Within five minutes, I mean really it had to be the most rapid five minutes ever— her and I were on our hands and knees mopping the floor by hand, wiping the window sills, and rearranging all the house plants. I rolled the coffee cart in and next thing you know everything was getting oiled up to operate.
The thing came together and we laughed again, admired, and laughed some more. I put together the felt letterboard, which is normally the menu at pop up events, and assembled some snarky little comments that a little sister might. “OPEN DAILY at barista’s will. BYO-CUP.” I opened the window and hollered “Get your coffee!” to nobody. That evening, my parents sat on the couch in front of the coffee cart sipping decaf cappuccinos and joked “Let’s go out to the street and yell, ‘Coffee! Coffee!’”
Well, the very next morning, I propped the sandwich board outside the front step, suspended the window, and essentially said to the world via Instagram, “I mean, for real… coffee!” I snapped on a mask and got the box of Kirkland latex gloves out.
Fast forward to today, 2nd Rule has just completed its third full week of serving 6-foot coffee. The window is open from 9 am - 4 pm daily. You just pull into the driveway, order a coffee at the window, and I make you one to take away. I’ve easily met some of the coolest folks in Jersey who would find a coffee window on Instagram through geo-tag locations and then make the drive to boldly ring a doorbell and receive a fresh cup.
If you’re just now coming across the coffee window, it’ll still brewing and still free of charge. A big part of 2nd Rule’s heart is to serve exceptional coffee, and then make it exciting and accessible. I’ve always said specialty coffee is not for special people; it’s for everyone. This window is a time and place where those who have never tasted or even heard of specialty coffee can discover it. Maybe the window can be the spot for someone that has lost a job, who used to frequent their favorite specialty cafe as a regular but now has to watch their spending. Maybe here, a familiar drink can be the one simple pleasure to still enjoy without another thought. Who knows, and another guy who drinks from the 2nd Rule cart can say by the end of quarantine that they actually detect notes of chocolate and sugar-browning in the espresso.
Whatever it is, the coffee cart is here for it. Come by. I’d love to serve you “on the house”. You can find the route here and check out the Instagram Highlight “6-ft coffee” for photos of the dang thing in action.
USPS of Woodbridge Ave. Edison Gets a Surprise Coffee Delivery
This is a particularly difficult time for the world as COVID-19 washes through with hardship. Funded by 2nd Rule’s Caffeinate a Community initiative, followers on Instagram submitted the names of various small businesses in Middlesex County, NJ that they believed deserved a surprise coffee delivery.
Year round with several intense holiday seasons, our postal mail men and women work tirelessly and thanklessly to keep the world moving. Especially now, small businesses are relying on the sales of product goods, and therefore delivery services, more than ever. 2nd Rule surprised the Edison USPS on Woodbridge Ave. this morning to provide some cheer! We got there early in the morning, hoping to catch the employees before they headed out to their routes. Luckily when we arrived, the parking lot was full with nearly thirty hardworking men and women loading up their vehicles. We dropped off 6 liters of hot coffee. I couldn’t conceive why 2nd Rule was the one being applauded as one lettercarrier shouted from among the clapping, “Thank you! Nobody ever thinks of us!” This is the spirit that 2nd Rule thrives off of— neighborly love. It truly is.
We received this picture from one of the staff. Thank you USPS, and all postal workers!
Update 04/02/2020: On April 1st, I read this article in which USPS reported the death of several workers as a result of the coronavirus. This is a time that feels so cruel and it is hard to conjure any right words for comfort in a loss that feels wrong. I am incredibly sorry and can only offer my prayers, which seems to be the most powerful thing I can do, for the families to receive comfort and for the legacy of those who were lost to leave tenfold more lasting beauty in this world than the pain we feel in this moment. As a small business owner, it is also difficult to continue forward in an empowering way without fear of taking a misstep that could setback our community. I imagine the same for any CEO except with a greater burden of responsibility. I hope that businesses leaders around the world can rely on each other for wisdom and sound advice, no matter how difficult it is to receive or execute on them. God bless.
Sincerely Yours,
Carol
A Beginner's Latte Art Workshop
Calling all coffee lovers in the state of New Jersey! Ever wonder how baristas pour those designs on your latte using just milk over espresso? In this creative 2nd Rule workshop, my co-instructor Brandon and I rang in 2020 teaching the ins and outs of latte art to the members of this class. The education piece is always more interesting than people realize it will be, as food is really a science! After several rounds of demonstration and hands-on repetition, the students created their own caffeinated masterpieces. A lot of spillage and laughter occur in the pouring of a latte heart! The bracket-style throwdown at the end always brings out the competitiveness in us. Workshops are easily a favorite for 2nd Rule and an unforgettable event for a group of friends!
Thank you Gerry, Marcelo, and Nancy for a truly fun class!
