Location

232 Cleveland Ave. N, St. Paul
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Ratings

Pros

Great coffee, nice eco-friendly vibe.

Cons

Can be hot, food prices are a little high for what you get, not great for claustrophobes.

Review

I’ve spent some time at Trotter’s in the past, but it had been a few years: given its proximity to Choo Choo Bob’s Train Store, Trotter’s is an obvious destination for parents of Thomas-obsessed toddlers. Ever since my son moved on to Star Wars and Nintendo, the impetus to stop at the corner of Cleveland and Marshall has diminished significantly.

But I still have positive memories of making a quick dash around the corner for lattes when we’d bring the kids for an hour or two of acute exposure to model trains and airborne illness. (Anyone with young kids knows what it’s like at places where they gather in large numbers.)

I also have a somewhat negative association with Trotter’s, attributable mostly to its name. I know pigs’ feet are a popular delicacy to some, but having grown up where such things are produced, with memories of the sounds and the smells of the slaughterhouse hanging in the air over the town, it’s a wonder I can enjoy pork at all. Fortunately, there’s no indication that Trotter’s Cafe is in any way named in honor of a certain pork product.

Trotter’s is, as I mentioned, located on Cleveland Ave. in St. Paul, a half block south of Marshall Ave. It’s a great location for anyone in the regrettably named Merriam Park-Snell-Lex-Ham (or, if you prefer, and I do, Union Park) neighborhood of St. Paul, or really just about anyone on the west side of St. Paul or south Minneapolis with a car, bike or bus pass. Unfortunately, if your preferred mode of transportation is a car, you may have trouble finding a place to park it: most of the parking in the area is 15-minute, 1-hour, or permit-only. Nonetheless, we managed to snag a spot a half block down on Cleveland that appears to have no restrictions. This will be confirmed when I leave, and the car is either ticketed or has been towed.

Trotter’s, like most of the indie coffeehouses in the metro, has a distinctly organic-environmental-fair trade vibe. While I lack the personal discipline to fully invest myself in this kind of commitment to making the planet more equitable and sustainable, I do appreciate that inclination in others, and I’m always happy to support a business that takes its responsibility to the Earth seriously.

Service is great at Trotter’s… informal and friendly, with a lot of enthusiasm. You feel welcome and encouraged to stick around. Unfortunately, the close confines of most of the three indoor seating areas, combined with the lack of air conditioning (or at least a reluctance to use it on a humid early June morning), make the space less inviting.

The coffee was delivered first, and it is excellent. Some coffeehouses excel at bringing out the natural sweetness of the milk they use in their lattes and cappuccinos, and Trotter’s is one of them. Unfortunately, I can’t speak as highly of the food. I sort of knew what I was getting myself into when I ordered a “Potato Mountain.” It’s a heaping pile of thick-sliced potatoes mixed with green peppers, onions and tomatoes, covered with a modest amount of melted cheese and two eggs, any style. Quantity-wise, it’s probably worth the $9.25 price tag, but the potatoes were undercooked and the whole thing was under-seasoned. Though, to be fair, I’ve been using sensitive toothpaste for the past week, and my sense of taste is somewhat deadened at the moment. Still, the food left me disappointed, and would have even if it were only $5.00.

Trotter’s has plenty of competition in the area, with another new coffeehouse just around the corner, and dozens more within a mile or two. As such, I can see it being a popular hangout for people who live in the immediate vicinity and can walk here, and the outdoor seating is a nice touch, even though it’s on a narrow sidewalk against a busy street. But, living a few miles away and on the other side of the river, as I do; having kids who’ve outgrown the appeal of Choo Choo Bob’s, as I do; it’s not likely that I’ll be returning to Trotter’s again in the near future.