Our BFFs at SFist beat us to this one, but we still want to talk about it. The new Cafe Gratitude in Berkeley's Gourmet Ghetto opened a few weeks ago. This is the third location, does that make it a chain? Hm, a vegan, raw, uber-hippie chain? Curbed SF was there for smoothies (seriously, go get yourself an "I Am Cool," amazing) and raw goodness and noticed a chalkboard advertising their new "cold-pressed" coffee, called "I Am Courageous."
We pretty much agree with SFist that the coffee beans "infused in cold water for 48 hours" concoction just tastes like coffee flavored tea. Like the "cheese" made out of cashews, it's good, but it's not cheese. Depending on your mood, Cafe Gratitude is fun and ridiculous or so completely pretentious and annoying that you can't even bring yourself to order food using their titles of affirmation ("I Am Luciously Awake," "I Am Bountiful," etc). Before bringing us our check, our server asked what we'd like to be acknowledged for. One of our dining companions was feeling the vibe and answered "for being a healer," the other was not exactly into it and responded, "for my great ass."
· We Are Courageous (For Trying This Coffee) [SFist]
· Cafe Gratitude Menu [Cafe Gratitude]