Coffee (& Rescue) Road Trip

Coffee Cat and Mr. Espresso recently took a bow-wow for a ride on the way to his new home. Yes, Coffee Cat has recruited my coffee shop buddy to help rescue animals. Our passenger was Joey, an Aussie Shepherd mix who loved us immediately! After we handed him off in Durham to a rescue angel to drive him the next leg, we were (almost) done with good deeds for the day.

A road trip with Coffee Cat and Mr. Espresso would not be a trip without a stop at a locally-owned coffee shop! Just a few miles away, we found Joe Van Gogh, a haven for university students, professors, and neighbors.  I cooled off with a delicious iced coffee and Mr. Espresso enjoyed his four shots straight up. We wouldn’t be Coffee Cat and Mr. Espresso without a cookie, which I highly recommend for the sweet tooth!

Ah, what a luxury to have a carefree Saturday afternoon in the coffee shop, made even sweeter by the sight of students hunkered over laptops and books. Once again, I gave thanks that I am done with that! When I pull out my laptop at the coffee shop, it is to write about coffee shops, cats, and animal rescue. Life is sweet in the espresso lane!

Joe Van Gogh roasts its own beans in Hillsborough to supply its coffee shops in Durham and Chapel Hill. So, if you want to relive your school days (or be reminded how grateful you are to have them behind you), stop by for a cuppa caffeine. And for students at the ‘blue’ Triangle schools, you are lucky ducks! Enjoy your locally-owned Triangle coffee shops!

Coffee Road Trip: Raleigh

I recently had an all day meeting in Raleigh. While the meeting was productive and entertaining (crazy, I know, right?), it ended in the mid-afternoon, which, as most dog lovers know, is prime napping time for mutts. I wasn't about to venture onto I-40 without some caffeine enablement, and, fortuantely, the caffeine gurus were on my side. As many of my fans know, I am not a coffee drinker, but I LOVE the many varieties of non-coffee drinks offered at locally owned coffee shops.

As I was leaving the downtown area via Hillsborough Street, and admiring the campus of North Carolina State University, I happened upon Cup A Joe, located at 3100 Hillsborough Street. And, to my sweet surprise, it has it's own parking lot, and a spot was reserved just for me (at least I like to think so!). It was 4 pm, and the place was alive with the sounds of people, music, coffee grinders, and milk steamers. I ordered my usual, a chai tea latté, and was surprised to hear the question, "Would you like our chai flavored whipped cream on that?" I had never heard such a question, but I've never made a decision that quickly. "YES!" And was I pleased with the result!! I spent some time savoring the double chai effect of the drink and the whipped topping while enjoying some reading material and the sounds around me.

I was recharged and ready for my I-40 trek back to the Triad.

Thanks, Cup A Joe, for being right where I needed you, when I needed you most!

Overheard in a coffee shop

Don't stop shopping, have some coffee and get back to it!

Small Business Saturday

CoffeeCat is awake "dark" and early on Black Friday, snuggling in my warm bed and thankful I am not out in the madness! I can hear the traffic building on the highway, but I won't be joining the crazed crowds at the malls and big box stores. Nope, CoffeeCat is snuggling deeper under the covers and thinking of . . . what else, but locally owned coffee shops!

Saturday is Small Business Saturday, promoted by American Express. CoffeeCat and MochaMutt like to latch onto this day as another opportunity to Shop Local, even (especially) if you're shopping with green money. The gifts I bought at locally owned coffee shops last year were a hit. Gift cards, mugs, freshly roasted coffee beans, and many more gifts are available, even for those who don't drink coffee.

CoffeeCat is still thankful for locally owned coffee shops, as I blogged about last year, and making plans to support them again this holiday season.

Thank you, fans, for sharing another great year with Triad Coffee Shops!

Giving Thanks

Mocha Mutt and Coffee Cat sing, bark and meow the praises of local coffee shops all the time, but at Thanksgiving, we can't help but think of all the wonderful things we have to be thankful for. For the majority of Americans, life is relatively luxurious compared to the rest of the world. Sure, we have our rough moments, our bad days, and our personal (and national) budget shortfalls. We deal with an illness or death of friends, family, or other loved ones. However, compared to how people in other parts of the world struggle daily just to survive, we have it so easy. So this Thanksgiving, consider the things you are thankful for - - and thank the people and/or the deity who make it possible for you. I've started a list - - what can you add to it?

Coffee - - an expensive luxury to many, but an obtainable, affordable part of our daily routine

Time - - Leisure time to spend with a friend at a coffee shop, or even the time to drive-thru for a custom-created drink; time to enjoy a musical or poetic performance at a local coffee shop or theater venue

Food - - while some go hungry, we have such an abundance we can eat for pleasure and special occasions, not just for basic nutrition

Service professionals - - while we can make our own food and drinks at home, it is such a luxury to have professionals who make it a pleasure to eat and drink without the drudgery of assembling ingredients, making the items, washing dishes, and cleaning up the kitchen afterwards. To food service pros everywhere - - THANK YOU!

Freedom - - of the many kinds of freedom we enjoy in this nation (including blogging) - - one of my favorites is the freedom to travel. And when I travel, of course, I find Coffee, Food, and Service Professionals to make the trip delicious. I have over 200 years' worth of free-thinkers, rebels, soldiers and outspoken patriots to thank for this freedom, so THANK YOU!!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!! What are you thankful for?

Coffee Road Trip: From the Mountains to the Sea

CoffeeCat has been enjoying North Carolina's natural beauty this fall with a fellow coffee-shop lover! Luckily, this friend loves the outdoors as much as coffee shops (if that is possible!). After a sunny fall day spent on the Blue Ridge Parkway, we drove into Boone and used our handy GPS to find a delightful coffee shop, Higher Grounds. Not only was the espresso delicious, we bought
some interesting blends of coffee to take home, and the baked treats were worth the stop, too.

Now, we are enjoying a sunny, warm(ish) weekend at Holden Beach. The trip would not be complete without a stop at Cappuccino by the Sea, a tiny coffee & gift shop on the Causeway. Hours are limited in the off-season, but we were lucky to find it open on a cold, rainy afternoon when we desperately needed a hot shot of caffeine! We were surprised to find fresh-baked treats such as pink coconut shortbread, pumpkin shortbread, and coconut-pineapple-something else yummy-covered with cream cheese Madelaine's. There's one family-style dining table in this tiny shop, so we enjoyed sitting for a spell and chatting about local goings-on with some local folks. Had it been warm and dry, we would have sat on the patio and sniffed the fresh sea air.

CoffeeCat fell in love with the coffee shop thanks to the Triad. I'm spoiled to good coffee, locally owned shops, knowledgeable owners who care about their customers, and local residents who support their neighborhood shops. So, when I travel, the first thing I have to find is a coffee shop!

Isn't life great in the coffee lane??

Dog, are my paws tired!

After a year and a half of blogging, CoffeeCat and MochaMutt have reached the inevitable conclusion that you can blog about Triad Coffee Shops, you can visit Triad Coffee Shops, you can enjoy the awesome events at Triad Coffee Shops, but you can't do all three all the time. Since the blog began, shops have opened and shops have closed, but we consistently have about 40 locally owned coffee shops in our "Coffee Shop Guide." And that's after limiting the blog to four counties - Forsyth, Guilford, Davidson, and Randolph. We have learned about (and visited) other great shops in counties such as Stokes, Surry, Wilkes, and Davie, but we just can't keep up with them all, so we pared down the list. We also do not include "chain" coffee shops and the many restaurants in the area that have an excellent selection of coffee drinks on their menus. With the exception of Krankie's Airstream, we also don't include the many drive-through coffee "kiosks" in the Triad. Other coffee shops in the Triad are "on deck" to be placed in our guide, waiting for a site visit.

Fans, when we started the blog, we had a few shops we frequented, and knew there were others, but we never imagined the extent of the Coffee Shop universe in the Triad. It has been amazing, exciting, and, of course, delicious to discover them all. And we are still going!! Because we like to travel, and know that our readers do, too, we've added a "Road Trip" section to our Guide page. If you find a wonderful locally owned coffee shop on your travels, please share it with our readers!! Post a comment on the blog or email MochaMutt to share your delicious find!

One thing we have decided to do is leave it up to the shops on our Guide page to let their fans know about special upcoming events. We tried to keep up with them, but there just are not enough paws to keep the keyboard typing. What we do endeavor to keep doing is to let you know about new shops in the Triad, extra special/unusual offerings, new tastes, and other interesting things. We just can't keep up with every band, art exhibit, reading, poetry slam, etc. at Triad Coffee Shops. Which we think is a fantastic problem to have. Can you imagine a Triad with only one coffee shop, or one rock band, or one artist's display, or one shop owner who can belt out the blues? It would be a truly sad place to live. Fortunately for us all, the Triad is alive and hopping with art, music, literature, poetry, performance art, charity fundraisers, book clubs, conversation groups, and the many many other activities that come to life at Triad Coffee Shops.

So fans, keep checking the blog for the latest and greatest in Coffee Shop life in the Triad. And link to your favorite shop(s) from our "Guide" page to find a special event that's right for you. Then, let us know how it was. As with all writers, we love to hear from our readers. Connect with the huge coffee shop fan base and let us know what you think!