Posted by Renée Suen in beverages, coffee, photo essay on August 13, 2008 at 7:53 am

Coffee macarons from Célestin Bakery (623 Mount Pleasant Road).

"Wake up and smell the coffee" may be a familiar phrase for many who find it necessary to have their morning dose of caffeine, but what other options are there for those who don't find pleasure downing this dark elixir? Fear not, dear friends, because that characteristic aroma of those roasted beans can be captured as something tasty just as easily as tea. Witness such proof below.

Fluffy, airy and moist coffee buns may be found shielded in tall paper liners at Queen's Patisserie (442 Dundas Street West). These slightly sweetened breads could be mistaken for any other Chinese bun, except for the roasted coffee bean topping and the marbled coffee-flavoured streaks through the crumb inside. Bonus fact: they are sold two for the price of one!

My favourite bun/bread from BnC Cake House (631 Bloor Street West) is the Korean mocha bun. Different from the coffee bun above, the bread has a tighter crumb and is topped with a crisp cookie crust that's dotted with coffee grounds. It is comforting and delicious, and although three times the price of those from Chinese bakeries, it's still cheaper than a slice of coffeecake (which incidentally, has NO coffee in it) from the local coffee shop.

Greg Couillard's Spice Room & Chutney Bar (55 Avenue Road North, Hazelton Lanes, Lower Atrium) may send a tower of meringues filled with coffee cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce to the table as an after dinner treat.

The spiced chocolate fondue + mango + coffee hazelnut sponge + frozen chocolate powder has been touted to be Chef Aprile's best dessert at Colborne Lane (45 Colborne Street). Presented as a chocolate "fondue" (aka soup), chunks of mango and coffee hazelnut sponge cake play hide-and-seek, while frozen chocolate powder juxtaposes the warm syrupy mass in both temperature and texture.

Foxley Bistro's (207 Ossington Avenue) popular grilled side ribs are topped with crisp fried shallots and covered with an unctuous caramelized shallot glaze, which has, surprise surprise, coffee in it.

The beer bistro (18 King Street East) offers tender, fall-off-the-bone smoked lamb ribs that are slathered with a sticky coffee porter and molasses sauce. What could be the perfect match to these tasty ribs? Oh perhaps a bottle of Mill Street Brewery's (55 Mill Street, Building 63) own coffee porter.

The frozen coffee mousse cake from Ten Ren's Tea Time (Unit 101, 111 Times Avenue, Thornhill) is an interesting dessert that is not only drizzled with a viscous black tea sugar syrup but also shelters a few raisins.

Pick up a bag of coffee candy for the perfect pre-sweetened on the go pick-me-up from T&T Supermarket. They are pop-worthy any time of the day.

Renée Suen is a graduate student at the University of Toronto, specializing in cardiovascular sciences. She has an insatiable appetite and can often be found with her camera, searching for something tasty to eat. Many of these culinary discoveries can be found on her Flickr site.