Holy crap, man -- pass the sweetener!

Straight up, before anything else is mentioned about Cafe Macondo, it must be known that this is a super dark, wickedly bitter cup of coffee. This is a good thing.

Cafe Macondo, located in the Mission District at 3159 16th St. (between Valencia and Guerrero), was just bumped to the top of the Trimethyldioxypurist's list . . . a virtual tie for first with Gallery Cafe.

But it's different; drinking a cup from Gallery is like visiting, well, an art gallery full of pieces that have been refined, reviewed and categorized. Drinking joe from Macondo is akin to watching an artist paint -- raw, less refined, more powerful, and just full of energy and possibility. Hyperbole? Perhaps. But not entirely so.

Ach. Is it Monday already? Where's the coffee? If you're in the Mission, you're in luck.