Art Java on Kennedy: Quality drop

[philippefs]

Has anyone else noticed a serious drop in quality lately at the Art Java on Kennedy? It seems like they've changed the machine (it's now an automatic), and the baristas I found most talented all seem to be gone (or only work there very occasionally).

Does anyone know what happened? Has there been a change in ownership, and the old owner left with the machine and staff? If so, where have they gone?

[AlexCV]

Fully automatic espresso machine is the death knell of any coffee shop. It screams that the owner only cares about the bottom-line. I've given up on that location (the whole chain actually) a long time ago. Focus (and ownership?) has switched away from coffee and there's better options not too far (Pikolo on Parc above sherbrooke).

[philippefs]

It's really a shame... It's on my way to school every morning, so I found it really convenient. Somehow, one or two of the baristas still manage to pull an OK shot with the machine (they're usually there on Friday if anyone cares), but it's really not as good as it used to be. I guess McGillians now have to make a detour to get a good coffee in the morning.

[AlexCV]

To think that when it opened, Anthony (from Myriade) was the Barista there with shining La Marzocco machine and Mazzer grinders. Then I think they started cost control pretty much from Month 2 with the Swift.

[philippefs]

It's also gotten incredibly expensive. I recently started getting off at Guy-Concordia to buy a coffee at Myriade, then getting back on the metro to get to McGill. It's cheaper and the coffee is way better...