Day 2 Mooloolaba After a 6am visit to Otranto's, we motor to 'Moobar' to begin tasting at the northern end of the Esplanade. I know this strip quite well and the first coffee is at Cracked Pepper (Klub/Pioneer Java-Mocha)....chalk and cheese when compared with the Pioneer Roastery,then on to Karma Waters (Rancilio/Grinders), Deco (Wega/DiBella) and then Beach Bakery (Klub/Map) where, interestingly, Map is an Office-Works blend.Sugar and Spice has 2 by 2 group ECM's and roast their own while next door is Olivers (Wega/Primo). A little further down is the iconic Casablanca (WMM combo again!) which does a great $5 coffee/cake special....only the last time I ordered the special the cashier asked me, when I went to pay, whether I enjoyed the cake. I replied that I'm sure I would have if only it had been served! (but I'm still happy to give them my patronage). Around the corner, the cafe in the original Aromas site has gone and I'm not a little surprised. On my last visit there, when I went to complain about the coffee to the owner/barista, a guy was already in front of me and he was being complimentary. As a truckie,apparently he has tasted coffee at truckstops all-around Australia and this coffee is as good as any. It seems that there is no accounting for tastes! In First Avenue, which runs parallel to the Esplanade and one street further from the beach, inside 'Europe on First', I spot the barista staring wistfully into the street but it's a ghost-town....little foot traffic here and what a pity! That red Sibilla always gets my attention and apparently T.A's as well. The day before, he was here and was allowed behind the machine but no invitation is forthcoming to me. So, in summary, there are plenty of places in Mooloolaba where you can get a 'good' coffee, but none for 'great' coffee. Perhaps if 'Europe on First' changed coffee and had a happy hour like Otranto's, they might get the customers. Which reminds me, to increase sales of cappucinno's in slow periods,G.J's have introduced a happy hour with an outside sign proclaiming 'CAPPY HOUR'. They best be careful of someone with a marker pen....one letter would do it! Next stop is Rocco's Italia at Mudjimba and somehow we've approached it through Bli-Bli, passing innumerable signs indicating that Mudjimba ia up ahead but we must have blinked because next minute we are funnelled back onto the Sunshine Motorway and heading south, which poses the question: does Mudjimba really exist or is this a prank which Sunshine Coasters play on hapless tourists?
