The City of Calgary is holding an Open House to inform us about proposed changes on 2^nd Street SW, the street behind us here at the Purple Perk.

These will include a cycle track on both sides of the street.  The proposal is for 2^nd Street to remain 2-way vehicle traffic and for parking on the west side of the street.  Some new pedestrian crosswalks and curb extensions at intersections are proposed.  

The Open House will be held at the Cliff Bungalow – Mission Community Centre on Wednesday, October 30th.

Here’s the details:

Date:  October 30
Time: 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm
Place:  Cliff Bungalow – Mission Community Centre
            2201 Cliff Street SW
            One block west of 5^th Street at 22^nd Avenue SW
            The former Cliff Bungalow School

We’re in favour of anything that keeps our customers safer when they’re coming to the Perk for coffee and food.

Here at the Perk we just KNOW you’ve been celebrating International Coffee Day ever since you heard about it. We know we have! Welllll… that’s not strictly true. We missed the first one in 2015. Or was it 2009? And maybe a couple since then. But here at the Perk EVERY day is coffee day, so we feel warm and fuzzy about the whole thing. This year the International Coffee Organization, or the ICO for short (don’t you just love all those acronyms?), is celebrating Women In Coffee. Now, we don’t recommend covering women in coffee, especially if it’s hot, but I guess as long as it’s consensual and tasty and nobody gets hurt then it’s all good. But in all seriousness, women are central to the production and distribution of coffee, and their contribution to the coffee chain deserves to be celebrated. Bring your favourite woman to the Perk and celebrate her with one of our coffees! And maybe a dessert…

It’s barrelling down on us like, well, a bongwater-filled barrel.

Reefer. Muggles. Bud. Chronic. Weed. Grass. No matter what you call it, marijuana will be legal in Canada on October 17th and it’s coming your way. You no longer have to wait until mid-afternoon to spark up.

Canada as a whole is struggling with the implications, and Calgary is no different. Or we here at the Perk. To toke or hoot? Vape? Edibles? Indoors? Public spaces? School? Work? Coffee shops? Bars? There are no definitive answers, yet.

We are the only country other than Uruguay to legalize cannabis, and we are treading uncharted waters. Or leading the developed world, your preference.

How does this affect the neighbourhood? Well, there are at least 6 cannabis store applications on 4th street alone, and over two dozen in the Mission – 17th Ave – Beltline area. That’s approaching coffee shop territory. Inconceivable!

We here at the Perk are keeping a wary eye out on developments. No decisions have been made, and in the meantime, we’re just going to sip coffee , snack on munchies, and watch. Come join us!

1990 saw Calgary’s first Pride Parade. Participants were nowhere near as plentiful as today, and in fact things were so different back then some of the marchers wore masks to hide their identities. Masks are still worn, but now for much different reasons! With over 60,000 spectators, it’s now Calgary’s second largest parade and has over 125 participant groups, including the Cliff Bungalow-Mission Community Association from our ‘hood. This year the Pride Parade starts at 11 am, with road closures downtown. They won’t directly affect us here in Mission, but we’re close. Grab yourself something from our nice selection of to-go drinks and head over for a great family event. (On a personal note we are out of our rainbow sherbet, but we’ve got plenty of other options!) After a week of events, there’s a bit of a free festival to wrap things up right after the parade on Princes Island. Enjoy two live music stages, family activities, the Village Brewery Beer Gardens, and browse the marketplace for that little something special. Here’s a map of the closures they have planned. Cheers!

We know that a nice foamy latté, or a large moccachino, or even a hot chocolate sound like an entire food group on its own, but sadly it’s not true (we have our Famous Cup of Coffee for that). That’s why there’s beer! Germany famously considers beer to be a food group, and who are we to argue with the country that makes the Porsche? Or consider the apocryphal story of the old Irish man who lived on Guinness, and was eventually diagnosed with scurvy from lack of Vitamin C? (All he needed was an orange a day). We don’t know how true that is, but it’s a fine story. We don’t condone living on just beer. Or even just coffee: but we are willing to share the spotlight and let you know that today is International Beer Day. To quote their site “International Beer Day is a global celebration of beer, taking place in pubs, breweries, and backyards all over the world. It’s a day for beer lovers everywhere to raise a toast to our brewers and bartenders and rejoice in the greatness of beer!” Cheers!

In August alone Calgary has an entire schwack of food-friendly Festivals. Alberta has a long history (well, sort of) of international cuisine, what with every small town having a Chinese Western establishment, and with Calgary’s first East Indian restaurant opening in the mid-70s. Fast forward 50 years and we have more cultural foodie festivals than there is time to attend. The weekend of August 4th has the Inglewood Sunfest with a great selection of food vendors, and a couple of days later the Olympic Plaza hosts the 41st Heritage Day Festival, with plenty of ethnic experiences to enjoy. The weekend of the 11th sees Taste of Calgary hosted by Eau Claire Market. The same day sees the Calgary Japanese “Omatsuri” Festival, and Summer Feast kicks off celebrating 10 days of foodie prix fixe at 23 chef-driven restaurants. Almost half way through August and already a half-dozen foodie festivals. Why should we care? Because all of them will have ethnically-diverse coffee. I personally like the occasional Vietnamese or Senegalese coffee for variety, but when I wants me a good, reliable hit of caffeine I turn to the Perk.

I remember my mother telling me drinking coffee too young would stunt my growth. Well, 5’10” seems OK to me; if that’s stunted I’m alright with it.

Nowadays everybody has a different opinion about coffee, and mine is: I’m glad it’s in my life. I feel that morning is no good without coffee, and I am here to tell you I’m an erratic driver if I haven’t had a coffee first.

But there’s more! We coffee drinkers are likely to outlive coffee teetotallers, by about 18%. I like what Harvard professor Dr. Alberto Ascherio said, “I think that the solid conclusion is that if you’re a coffee drinker, keep drinking your coffee and be happy.”

And, whew!, coffee is no longer considered a carcinogen. I am totally behind Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, who said “As a heavy coffee drinker, I have always enjoyed my coffee guilt-free, but now there is scientific evidence to justify that.”

Finally, drinking three (3!) cups of coffee a day may reduce your chances of skin cancer. I love me a good suntan, and (shameless plug) sitting on the patio in front of the Purple Perk with a couple-three coffee is a great way to get one. See you there!

It’s that time of year again. As hardened Calgarians know, we’re about to be inundated with tourists wearing cheap cowboy hats and flip-flops. We’re good with that. We are. Really. Honest. Believe me. As long as we don’t have to wear the flip-flops and we get the occasional free breakfast. Yes. Free. As in the opposite of TANSTAAFL (look it up, yo). Only breakfast, not lunch. There are so many places in Calgary where you can get your pancake breakfast on it’s frankly ridiculous. And even more that have not-breakfast-but-still-Stampede barbecues. Morning people pretty much trip over these things on the way to work. And then they have a pancake with bacon and a coffee. Well, here at the Purple Perk coffee emporium we’re all about efficiency. Well, efficiency and coffee. Efficiency, coffee and snacks. Efficiency, coffee, snacks and lunch. And at this time of year we’re also about pancakes. And efficiency. The pancakes just fly off the shelves here during Stampede. Or more accurately, off the griddle. But we’re all about efficiency here, so we present for your breakfast pleasure and efficiency… our Stampede Special: the Bacon Latte. You’re welcome.

The ever-lovin’ blue-eyed Lilac Festival. Growing apace and going from strength to strength since 1998, up to 120,000 pedestrians will crowd the Cliff Bungalow – Mission stretch of 4th Street SW on Sunday, June 3rd. We have just one thing to say. Don’t come. Stay away. Enjoy the day somewhere else. But if you must visit, start at the Elbow Drive end and pop into the Perk for a coffee. In fact, cool down and do some people watching while enjoying one of our special $6 Mocha Milkshakes. Only available during the Lilac Festival, they feature fresh, local Foothills Ice Cream and shots of our locally roasted espresso. The weather report calls for 20°C+ weather, hot with clear skies. Wear a hat. Or go to a beach . But if you’ve just got to come to the Lilac Fest, we humbly not humbly recommend hanging out at the 23rd Ave Direct Energy Stage, checking out bands like Bardic Form, Alleviate, and Good Nature, and drinking our Milkshakes. Cheers!