charlotte lifestyle july/august
25
Two small, up and coming shops we found in South End
offered some of the most unique flavors we found. South
End Grind on 255 Clanton Rd. run by Owner/Barista
Freddie Norhoff delighted us with something called The
Chardamom Latte. We drank a lot of lattes this last month
and this one was by far the most interesting we came
across. It contains, Cardamom, Black Pepper, Brown Sugar
and Charcoal. The embellishments are perfectly balanced
and the black color from the charcoal gives a unique visual
interest to the already sweet and smoky flavor. Just down
the road on Remount Rd. we found Hex Espresso Bar. They
are a hidden gem located inside the Good Bottle Co. Barista
Tanner put together The Summer Samurai. This was the
perfect drink to cool us off on this hot summer day. The
Samurai is a Matcha, Pineapple, and Coconut Cream latte
that will keep you coming back. The creativity in some of
these smaller shops make them truly stand out.
Over to the east side we found a little cottage in the
center of downtown Matthews called Brakeman’s Coffee.
Brakeman’s aptly named for the brakeman on the railroad
responsible for slowing the train down sits on the rail line
where you can sit outside, sip your latte and watch the train
go by. We enjoyed their frozen matcha with a scoop of ice
cream and the three baristas behind the counter were in no
short supply of recommendations. The atmosphere allows
you the coziness of a comfy chair in front of a fireplace,
courtyard seating out back under the shade of trees, or
tables out front with a view of downtown.
Last but far from least. We headed right into the heart of
uptown where we discovered CoCo and The Director. At
100 W. Trade CoCo’s is a short walk from everything. The
atmosphere here by far takes the cake. The open and airy
space gives you a true sense of relaxation the moment you
walk in the door. The first thing you will notice is what
we refer to as the “Zen Staircase.” This is a tiered, lighted,
seating platform complete with cushions that creates
a new way of organizing your group and enhances the
engagement of conversation. Once a month CoCo’s turn
the coffee shop into a yoga studio and offers free yoga
classes. The staircase of course is the most popular choice
We could do an
entire issue on
Floyd & Blackies as
long as Jennifer is
in all the pics