3 out of 5 stars

Coffee and Crepes is a little coffee joint (plus crepes!) in the sprawling Crossroads shopping center. On the day of our visit I decided to try a popular item, the Raspberry Chicken crepe, which contains chicken, spinach, ricotta, diced tomato, and melted cheddar. It’s topped with a drizzle of raspberry preserves and a sprinkling of walnuts. It comes with a nice spring mix salad on the side with a vinegarette dressing.

I appreciated the whole wheat option but I was left with the feeling that I would have loved my crepe a lot more had I gone straight to dessert – the banana nutella crepe sounded amazing.

Perhaps my mistake was asking the employees which crepe was the best and then ordering the one they told me was the most popular rather than the one they said was the best. Of course they were split – I heard votes for the fajita crepe and the turkey bacon tomato. I mean basically this is a glorified quesadilla, this is what you forget about until you’ve just paid $7 for it. Hubby, my designated coffee taster, ordered a cappuccino and declared it average. I applaud the use of fair-trade local roaster Larry’s Beans, but the coffee taster does not lie.

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5 out of 5 stars

An oasis in a sea of horrible airport food. Yes, that’s my opening line. After traveling a bit for business lately I actually decided to research in advance where I would eat. Luckily French Meadow was not too far out of my way. So when was the last time you went to a self service counter at an airport eatery and were greeted with a nice pleasantry like “How are you doing today?” Something so small does make a difference after being crammed in uncomfy seats for two hours and getting ready to do so again. Service here was great.

I ordered a lovely roast beef and havarti sandwhich which was warmed up for me in the little oven and I also couldn’t resist getting some amazing tomato bisque and a to-die-for cheesecake brownie. The brownie I saved for later as a pick me up after I got to the final destination (which helped me forget the yucky room service dinner). This wasn’t super cheap, I recall something like $15 for the lot including drink. But it was sooo worth it. If I wasn’t hungry I’d still make a point out of going there to get a baked good from their large case.

French Meadow Bakery and Cafe
The Mall, near entrance to Terminal E
Minneapolis Airport
Minneapolis, MN 55111
(612) 355-4641

5 out of 5 stars

It’s always awesome to find a place like this when we visit a new town, we wish we had an independent shop near us instead of starblech. Smedly’s has a unique menu – on one visit our group tried the yerba mate and a raspberry soda, and I also sampled a Berger cookie, Baltimore’s version of the black and white. On another visit we had some simple Greek yogurt with muesli. 5 stars for integrity of a comfy environment, including back patio, chalkboard walls and free wifi, as well as the amazing selection of fun foods.

Smedly’s
600 S Wolfe St
Baltimore, MD 21231
(410) 563-7545

4 out of 5 stars

We loved the space that Krankies Coffee occupies, the old brick building, the steam punk ambiance. They also get street cred get by roasting their own coffee in the shop and selling by country varietal instead of weird blends of flavors. It just felt like a place that would be fun to spend time in, and the art display in the neighboring room was fun as well. We both ordered cappuccinos to take on the road with us, which were tasty! But we felt we’ve had smoother cappuccinos.. however these were still better than starblech and had quality foam. Definitely check them out!

Krankies Coffee
211 East 3rd Street
Winston-Salem, NC 27113
(336) 722-3016

5 out of 5 stars

The uniqueness of this idea astounds me! A coffee shop inside of a parked double decker bus! The ground floor has been reworked to include a few bar stools and the top still has seating and some additional decor items. We stopped here for a tasty cappuccino and a bite of pumpkin spice bread. Both were fresh and delicious. We enjoyed the front seat of the top level of the double decker while eating our comestibles and watching people wander the street below. The bus also carries homemade soups and a few other bites to eat.

Double Decker Coffee Company
41 Biltmore Ave
Asheville, NC 28801
(828) 299-0991

5 out of 5 stars

My husband and I are super picky about our coffee. We roast our own at home. And this is the best place we’ve found in the Triangle. In fact I can’t really remember having better coffee drinks than what we’ve had here. The atmosphere is decent, and free wifi is nice. But what’s really important is the quality of the coffee. I know the owner is precise because I have seen him weighing his beans. That’s how you get a precise amount of flavor and consistency in every cup. Also selling the coffee by what country varietal the beans are, not by which artificial flavor the factory has added to the beans gets them extra points.

We LOVE it!

Helios Coffee Company
413 Glenwood Avenue
Raleigh, NC 27603
(919) 838-5177

Cup a Joe

2/5 stars 

Burnt, over roasted coffee. Cool atmosphere but that's about it. Maybe try the bubble tea?

Global Village Organic Coffee

4/5 stars 

Had some lovely pastries and cappuccinos at Global Village, which serves organic coffee. No annoying funky cup sizing naming scheme gives them extra points from me.  They have wifi also.  Very friendly cafe owner.

(919) 828-4567

5/5 stars 

This coffee shop has a really neat woodsy location, and I enjoyed the most amazing milkshake/espresso/mocha creation ever! I highly recommend the Driade shake. My hubby had a cappuccino and loved that also. This place has live music at times, and also serves beer and wine.  Try this place out for awesome woodsy views, funky location, wifi, and of course and most importantly the coffee!  I am extremely picky about my coffee!

4 out of 5 stars

Neat little coffee shop

This small shop packs a lot in!  They not only serve coffee, but baked goods,  sandwiches and a whole lunch selection.  We stopped in randomly for a quick soy mocha latte and were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the coffee (and latte art in our cups) and the funky decor.  The place was packed with a completely mixed crowd of all ages, every seat was taken inside.  Some people were using the wifi, but some were just reading or working on board games together.