A musician friend of mine, a former Vienna Boys' Choir choirboy, was in town visiting a few weeks ago and graciously pitched in to help me with my professional eating and drinking duties.

Meinl coffee, a Viennese roast prepared in Austria since 1862, is available at Caffe Classico.

His voice has long since changed from his choirboy days, but his taste for rich, dark Viennese coffee has not.
So I took him to Caffe Classico, 2144 Frankfort Ave., for a steaming cup of Meinl coffee.

Julius Meinl started roasting coffee beans in his family's Vienna, Austria, shop in 1862. And that dark, aromatic roast, without a trace of bitterness, became the standard for the Viennese roast style.

My ex-choirboy pal sang the praises of his cup, which tasted exactly as he remembered from his time in the Austrian capital.

Cups of Meinl coffee are $1.50 (12 ounces), $1.75 (16 ounces) and $1.95 (20 ounces).
Enjoy one while sampling from Caffe Classico's new menu, which premiered last week.
Salads ($7.50) include Greek, Caesar and nicoise. All sandwiches are $7 and include a turkey club and the West Coast, a vegetarian sandwich made with cucumber, avocado and chipotle mayonnaise.

Caffe Classico is open Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The phone number is (502) 894-9689.