Luzzara - the best little coffee shop in the west

Luzzara Coffee Bar
10011 82 Avenue
Edmonton, AB
T6E 1Z2
www.luzzara.ca

My trips home to Edmonton now have to include a trip to Luzzara on Whyte Ave. My sister’s office is around the corner so she started going there a year or so ago.  Her daily trips here made her fast friends of the owner, Sarah Jackson. Of course my sister brought me along with her one day, so now Luzzara is a favourite for me as well. What I love is that Luzzara is housed in the front part of a scooter shop with a environmentally friendly hair dressers above. Sarah started her business when she reached a crossroads - instead of going back to school as she originally intended, she started her own business to encorporate her love of coffee and chatting with people.

When you first walk into Luzzara you are always greeted with a smile and the daily specials are written in chalk on the cupboards behind the counter. As the food goes, they get wiped off the board so you don’t have to even ask what’s left (though the ghostly chalky imprints make you envious of the people who came before you). Not only can you get an amazing cup of coffee but you can get a selection of homemade sandwiches and paninis as well as sweet treats from local bakeries. As Sarah has to eat gluten free, there is always something for those who are the same. And for the vegans out there, there is not only soya milk but almond milk for a bit of a change.



Today, I started off with a soya Americano misto with one Splenda - my sister’s drink of choice. As we sat around and chatted (and my sister knitted), I got to try Luzzara specialty - an almond milk mocha. The almond milk makes it taste marshmellowy and reminded me of my first ever coffee I had in Vancouver. It was a mocha. The gateway coffee to get you hooked on a steady diet of coffee related beverages. I’ve even been known to have it black these days.

So if you are in E-town and are craving some coffee, company and a little snackage, go say hi to Sarah. You can also follow her on Twitter at @Luzzara.