There was a coffee shop in Champaign, a college town near us, that has been open for a few decades and it closed last week. I loved Café Kopi and have gone there for years. When we first had our oldest in 2002, my husband started suggesting I run errands Saturday mornings. I needed some time to be just by myself and Kopi was often where I’d go. As my boys got older, I’d take them there. A happy Saturday was a date with the three of us to the bookstore, then to Kopi. When they grew too old to want to spend Saturday mornings with their mom, Kopi was where I went to work on the course work for my second masters or the early draft of Coming Home. While my favorite coffee to be found in the C-U area changed to Avionics, Kopi will always hold a special place in my heart. You can see some pics from my times there over the years below, I made an open-face toasted cheese sandwich in their honor the other day. I’m sure you could figure it out, but here’s my rough recipe.
Café Kopi Toasted Cheese
- 2 slices sourdough
- sliced tomato
- several thin slices aged cheddar (Kopi used Black Diamond, I used Kerrygold)
1. Toast the sourdough
2. Drizzle sourdough with a little olive oil
3. Place sliced tomatoes on top
4. Top with cheddar
5. Broil (I did this in our Breville, but you could in the oven. Watch so it doesn’t burn.)
6. Sprinkle with salt.
Enjoy! And support your local coffee shops.