Blog Feed – Grad Student – The Ultimate Coffee Connoisseur

Velocity Bike & Bean – Florence

Yes, I know this is another coffee shop not in Cincinnati – but NKY likes to think it’s part of Cinci, so we’re gonna go with it anyway.

The world is a different place nowadays and so coffee shops have as well. Seating and hours have changed, coffee shops are no longer places to hang-out and spend hours on end. Velocity took this time to upgrade their shop and ever since, I have been following their re-opening. From the moment I saw they offered a Nutella Mocha, I knew I needed to visit.

That coffee pot is decor…..not our coffee, but I wish! Maybe I should start a coffee shop like that, everyone gets a giant pot of coffee – oh, wait, that’s what people do at home.

Coffee – Since it has been so long since I have been able to visit a coffee shop, I did a rare thing and ordered a specialty coffee – the Nutella mocha of course. So while they serve drip coffee, I do not know what it is like – they have an assortment of Carabello, Deeper Roots, Hatchet, and a variety of others so I’m sure it’s all good. The Nutella Mocha though, that was wonderful. I got it iced, and it tasted like drinking a Nutella milkshake. It is everything you dream of and more when thinking about Nutella and coffee. My friend got an iced coffee and she approved as well!

They also have a drink designed after the blue ice cream from Kings Island! I did not try it, but apparently it’s a big hit. Basically their entire menu looked good, so I guess I need to go try more of their options.

Look at this cute little corner! Apparently they have musicians set-up here during real-world times.

Atmosphere – they have added a really cute seating area outside. in addition to allowing seating indoors, that is spaced out. They also run a bike shop out of the same building, so there are tons of cool bikes sitting around. Decor is coffee and bike themed, they’ve done a great job of integrating the two. I’m not sure if it was just because of Covid restrictions, but this was an amazing place to study. It was super quiet, the music was what you’d expect in a coffee shop (chill), and was overall a great place to hang-out and get some serious studying done.

Would recommend! If it weren’t for I-75 traffic, this would be a very regular stop for me, but either way I will definitely be back!

Coffee Emporium – OTR

Parking – I meannnn…. it’s downtown. On the weekend, the garage above the new Kroger has $4/day parking. During the week, not sure.

Coffee – Never have I spent so long contemplating what coffee I wanted. They had 4 drip options as well as an extensive menu of specialty drinks. Of course, by the time I walked from the menu to the counter I forgot what I wanted. Just one of those days. I ended up ordering the “Milky Way” because it was on the list by the register. OBVIOUSLY I very much needed the coffee. Good split second decision? YES! Who doesn’t love milky way flavored things. Disclaimer – be prepared, it is very sweet. I also ended up with a “White Chocolate Truffle” latte. It was the perfect balance of sweet and coffee flavor. When I order a latte instead of plain coffee, white chocolate is normally my go to; Coffee Emporium definitely ranked among the top white chocolate lattes I’ve had.

Ft the waffle I ordered. I read the sign and decided I was going to order a strawberry pecan waffle – apparently that was not my day (see above). Ordering skills = 100/100. Still a quality waffle.

Food – I think I need to visit another 20 times because all of the food/desserts looked so good. I ended up ordering a waffle (big signs next to the register are good marketing on their part – obviously I had to get a waffle). At the OTR location they have a full menu: breakfast, salads, soups and sandwiches. And a huge assortment of pastries and other coffee shop delicacies.

Atmosphere – this place is hopping! It seemed pretty evenly split between people socializing versus studying/working. While there were moments where it got loud, the design of the space almost made it all white-noise in a sense. Maybe not a great place for intense studying, but for hanging out or general work it was a great option!

I will definitely be back! Between their two locations this one was my favorite by far. Very reminiscent of a coffee shop you’d see in a Hallmark movie – so obviously a great choice.

Rohs Street – Downtown

Coffee/Snacks – Great! I ordered their drip coffee and it was really good. Annie got their oatmeal cookie and said it was amazing. Everything they sell is local, organic, and fair-trade!

Here’s two of their smaller rooms. They have another large gathering room.

Atmosphere – Being that we visited on a Friday and it was raining, it was super quiet. There’s a main room as well as two side-rooms with plenty of seating. I’m sure it gets really busy during the day, but there were tons of open tables – mainly just a bunch of grad students studying….’tis the life. The staff are super friendly. When I walked in I felt like I was a regular even though this was the first time I’d visited.

Parking – parallel or pay! Welcome to downtown. This is a hot spot for UC students as it’s just down the street from their campus. Street parking nearby is very limited, but if you’re willing to drive around a bit, you can find a spot. There’s also multiple parking garages within a couple blocks if you’re willing to pay.

This is another coffee shop run by a local church (connected to the building actually). It’s their connection to the local community where they want everyone to feel welcome. This is another Cincinnati gem, great coffee and a great atmosphere.

Lola’s – Hyde Park

Parking – Ha it’s Cincinnati –> as you guessed it, parallel parking. As per typical Hyde park, you either find a side street and parallel park or pay to parallel park on the main road.

Coffee – after a VERY long & busy week I splurged and tried their Hazelnut latte. It was really good. The smell and taste were perfect.

Seating – love the old worn down chairs. Incredibly comfy, but just as being at your grandmas house – it brings on the need for a nap, less so the focus to study. They had a variety of seating options from booths, to long family style tables, to groupings of chairs. Another coffee shop with plenty of board game options laying about.

The decor throughout was movie posters, antiques, etc.

Decor – this place is exactly what you would imagine a grandparents house to look like – sans the tables and espresso bar of course. Or maybe your grandma had that, more power to her. Old movie posters, board games, maps, antique clothes; just out of a grandparents house.

Dogs – multiple dogs stopped by so that’s worth noting. The one was a puppy and he decided we were friends, so that’s cool.

Super interesting place. Very different style/atmosphere than many of the coffee shops in Cincinnati. A very relaxed atmosphere would make this a great place to hang-out with some friends or stop-bye for a cup of coffee to start off your day.

Bean Haus – Covington

Ok, yes, this isn’t actually in Cincinnati. Trust me, I haven’t resolved that NKY is Cinci. That’s not going to happen – two very different places. Covington is very much a KY kind of place, probably why I love to visit.

Above – Left a few of the many snack options! Right – the large tea selection.

Parking – there’s some parking behind the building – diagonal spots. Two-hour spots in front of the building. And some other parallel parking on back streets.

First impression – it smells like German food outside and thus I became incredibly hungry as soon as I got out of my car. This is one of those places that seems very unassuming from the street. A little old house -> converted coffee shop. There are a few tables in the front room and you’re immediately greeted by their friendly staff.

Coffee – What’s better than coffee? LOTS of coffee. When researching this place, we noticed that everyone was posting pictures with massive cups of coffee – BIG plus. I ordered an oat milk caramel latte. It was wonderful. Not too sweet, but also just sweet enough for what you expect in a latte. After ordering, I realized they sell a drink called the sledgehammer (espresso + drip coffee) – that’s what us students of the world need. Next time!

Other drinks – they also have two shelves of tea to select from for those non-coffee drinkers. In addition to the typical coffee shop favorites they have a selection of special seasonal drinks. This week they had a selection of Valentines day drinks that sounded interesting.

Food – I ordered a piece of bacon & sausage quiche and an apple strudel. After ordering I had regrets, I saw they sell crepes. Guess that’s just another reason to come back! The quiche was amazing though, so it’s cool. And the apple strudel was a great coffee shop treat!

Atmosphere – initially, it looks like there’s not much indoor seating available. They have a front room overlooking Main street and a wrap-around porch with seating outside. If you proceed upstairs, there’s a collection of other rooms each with a selection of tables. What’s cool about this set-up is that on days like when we visited, you can have an entire room of tables to yourself. There was just enough noise meandering from downstairs to remind you that people exist, but plenty quiet to focus without having to play study music. We didn’t even realize there were people in the other room upstairs – seems to be a very study-focused area. Upstairs there’s also a closet of board-games to select from if you’re just hanging out.

Highly recommend this place. It’s very much a small-town kind of coffee shop. They have a great selection of food and drinks and plenty of room to hang-out. I will for-sure be back (at least to try a crepe).

Bean & Barley – O’Bryonville

After following them for the past couple weeks on Insta and continually showing the posts to my coffee shop/study buddies we finally made it! I am sure the friends are happy now that I’ll, maybe, stop showing them Every. Single. Insta. Post.

Coffee: I mean this is what we’re all here for right? $3 for a 16 oz drip coffee – pretty good price. I have gotten in the habit of just having the barista pick their favorite drip coffee so I really have no idea what I ordered. Now I probably should’ve asked what kind of coffee it actually was, but hey, the mystery is part of the fun. Their current seasonal drink is a Toasted Marshmallow Latte, which sounds amazing, but alas I didn’t order it. They also have a large selection of tea in addition to offering a Nitro cold brew as well!

They have a full bar, for those that like alcoholic beverages. On the weekends after 3 PM, all beer, wine, & cider is $1 off.

Parking: As in every part of Cincinnati, if you’re willing to pay there’s plenty of parking options. If you’re a graduate student who chooses to spend your money on coffee instead of a place to store your car, you are going to have to walk. O’Bryonville has a pay lot and many parallel spots available…OR if you’re willing to walk ~.5-1 mile there’s plenty of side-streets to utilize your parallel parking skills, or lack-there-of. Good thing I parallel park pretty much daily anyway because it seems to be a way of life at this point. Can I parallel park in the pouring rain while eating oatmeal? Some skills shouldn’t be flaunted.

Atmosphere: They have many different seating options. The main floor has tables lining huge windows (hello beautiful sun-light), a porch with pretty slat-walls (not quite Joanna Gaines style, but a similar concept), a side patio (more slat-walls), & a basement with added seating. The atmosphere reminds me of a coffee shop I went to in Chattanooga, TN; very relaxed and a great place for a lazy Saturday.

Um, there were also multiple VERY GOOD boys. DOGS. Lots of DOGS. Multiple amazing dogs were just chilling under tables, their owners were there too – AT the tables, not under them – no worries, and my heart was sooooo happy. They’d (the dogs) occasionally wander around, give you puppy dog eyes, and go back to chilling in the sun. AND now you see why they deserved their own paragraph, although totally part of the atmosphere – – strong positive.

The main level, witness the beautiful sun-light shining in.

For being a Saturday, there was quite a few people quietly working. While people occasionally came in to hang out or grab a drink at the bar, I’d say the majority were people working/studying. But unlike some coffee shops, everyone seemed relaxed. So happy for that. My kinda place. There’s also tons of plugs for all of the electronic devices!

Food: While I didn’t actually try their food….hello buying breakfast & lunch at a coffee shop yesterday, they had two very delicious looking pies on the counter and I very much wish I didn’t already have desserts made at home.

If you can get past the idea of having to pay for parking or walking a bit of a distance, I highly recommend checking this place out. Now just for warmer weather, so that I can enjoy the patio – yes, I know that’s many months away. I will for sure be back here in the near future.

P.S., they have a punch card – buy 9 coffee’s get 1 free!!!

Sidewinder – Northside

What’s better than a fluffy creature hopping about while you sip a warm cup of coffee? Umm, probably relaxing in a courtyard with some pretty fall colored trees. Good news! Sidewinder has all of these things; a bunny, a small courtyard, and a large selection of coffee shop favorites. This is one of the first coffee shops I visited in Cincinnati. This time last year, it was the only coffee shop, other than the beloved Dunkin’, near the west side – – unless you went north of I-275.

Northside is a unique neighborhood, with quite a few places to explore. They have many different restaurants with a variety of cuisines, many of which offer a variety of vegan options. You can find Nepali, Senegalese, and Indian food among others. As someone who loves international food, it’s so much fun to check-out all of the different restaurants.

Atmosphere: They have a cute courtyard out-back that a bunny rabbit, named Violet, lives in from late spring-early fall. Inside they have a constant flow of people stopping in, but other than those studying/working not a lot of people sit in the main room of tables, so it’s usually pretty quiet. Their front of shop is separated from the tables, so other than people passing through to the courtyard, there’s not much foot-traffic in the back room.

Food/Drinks: They have a large selection of coffees, teas, and specialty choices as well as a full food menu available. They have one of the larger selections of teas that I’ve seen at Cinci coffee shops, so if you’re a tea person this is a great place to check out! The baristas are also really good about helping you decide which flavors you would enjoy.

While I enjoy their medium roast coffee, they also have a Coco Moco which is a mix of coconut and mocha…so that’s a winner! Sidewinder roasts their own coffee, so you’re not going to find their coffee in many other places. That is something special as many coffee shops in Cincinnati utilize the same roasters.

Another major bonus of Sidewinder is they are open until 10 PM every-day. Many of the local coffee shops close early, outside of summer, so it’s nice to have a non-chain place open later during the week.

Parking: Northside has their own parking program and many of their parking lots are pay-for-parking. One of the pay lots is just across the street, so very accessible and it’s only a couple bucks for 3-hours. If you’re willing to walk a few blocks there’s also plenty of free parking available!

If you love bunny rabbits, you should for sure check out Sidewinder — when Violet is there. And if you don’t like bunny rabbits, you should probably go meet Violet anyway ’cause she’s super chill and maybe you’ll change your mind…and get some good coffee in the process!

Mom ‘N ‘Em (Camp Washington)

This is one the coolest things I’ve ever seen at a coffee shop. You can write what you’re grateful for or if you have some free time you can read what others have written.

WHYYYY did it take me so long to come here? This is literally the cutest place I have ever been. One of my roommates and I have been talking about coming here since they opened this past year. After months of sending pictures back and forth from their Instagram, we finally made it to visit!

Look at how cute! The egg chair may or may not have been what convinced me to come here.

You pull up to the building and see two amazing murals honoring their surrounding community. When you walk in, it’s just rooms of the coolest chairs you could ever find. Did we try out every chair? You don’t need to know that……but, maybe. I may or may not have only wanted to come here for the swinging egg chair, it does not disappoint.

Coffee: Wow, that was some good coffee. It was super smooth and not at all bitter. While the small is truly a small cup of coffee it was pretty strong, so it was sufficient…and being that it was like 4 PM I for sure did not need a huge cup of coffee. I was debating trying their coconut cold brew, but decided to stick with the plain coffee since I was buying food as well. They offer almond milk and oat milk for all of you fellow milk avoiders.

Food: I got the cinnamon toast, throwback to my childhood, you can’t go wrong. They use super thick sourdough bread and it was a full meal worth. C got avocado toast and she said it was super flavorful and rich. They topped it with fresh parsley which she said made all the difference. And then we split a chocolate croissant. They use a dark bitter chocolate and super flaky croissant. I love chocolate sooooo, yeah, it was delicious. I’ve actually had 3 different chocolate croissants this week and I’d say this was my favorite… don’t ask, it was a busy week. I had free birthday rewards to redeem so that was apparently my snack choice of the week.

There was a good crowd around 3ish, but most left by 6 PM. They also serve wine so a few people trickled in occasionally for a glass, but it was never too hectic. They had a great collection of throwback music playing and super-cool artwork all around. They collected pictures and books of the areas history. While I know very little about Camp Washington, it was cool to walk around and see all of the historical pictures of the area.

I love this book so when I saw this mural. they had on the wall, I had to get a picture.

This time last year there was no coffee shops on the Westside. I’m super excited that these places offering quality community and coffee are slowly popping up nearby. My classmates, friends, and I have taken full advantage of all of these new places and I surely hope they all stick around.

Reality Tuesday – Park Hills, KY

Yes, I know this is not actually IN Cincinnati, but it’s close enough. Right?

Now that it’s almost September, cue fall themed everything – my favorite season, it’s socially acceptable to embrace my love of Pumpkin Spice flavored coffee. So when I saw they had a pumpkin spice coffee, there was no decision to be made. Now, my first sip, hmm….it’s more reminiscent of burnt marshmallow. Is that bad? Not necessarily, just not what I expected. Still the same fall vibes, just more campfire hipster-less high schooler at Starbucks.

What is my favorite part about this place? Wellllll it smelled like bacon the ENTIRE time and while this made me extraordinarily hungry, I can’t complain. I love bacon so I was not upset in the slightest.

Did I end up getting a plate of bacon? No, I wish. I decided to be slightly healthier/more realistic and ordered a chicken salad sandwich. It was quality.

For the cost conscious, this is a great choice. I ordered a sandwich and a 20 oz coffee for less than $8 which is almost unheard of in Cincinnati. The music selection was mainly early 2000 throwbacks which was kinda cool. On occasion the music seemed a little loud, but people it kind of drowned out the conversations happening at surrounding tables

Well worth the trip! This is another one of those coffee houses that are no thrills, but has everything you need for a good study sesh. It’s your typical cafe with the added bonus of a large variety of coffee drinks. They even had 6+ options of daily brewed drip coffee which is super awesome!

P.s. Google say they’re open until 6 PM….they actually close at 4 PM on Saturdays. Ended up being a motivating factor because I had 2 less hours than I thought I would, so I guess it was a good thing!

Red Tree Art Gallery

What’s the first place you think of when looking for a place to study?……Probably not an art gallery; but hey, I wasn’t going to discount the possibility of a new favorite study location. Now when I told one of the friends I study with that we needed to visit here, I think she was confused, but it’s become one of her favorite places.

Study Atmosphere: Perfect. A coffee shop inside of an art gallery, two of my favorite “hobbies” together. Red Tree has been one of my most productive study spots as of recently. Being that most of my study guides are drawings and diagrams maybe studying in an art gallery is an inspiration thing????

One difference with Red Tree, is their coffee shop is not one of those frilly specialty coffee shops. They sell the basics and that’s all they need to do because they do the basics very well. They brew Carabello coffee and source their baked goods from surrounding businesses.

The first time I visited Red Tree, I got there around lunch time. While it was quite busy and finding a table was a bit of a task, it was very quiet compared to your average coffee shop. It’s all the positives of a coffee shop, without the loud noise that can sometimes occur with so many people around. Background “elevator” music, surrounded by beautiful art, and people studying/working all around make Red Tree a prime location.

Here’s one of their, presumably hand made, coffee cups.

As someone who thrives being outdoors, I appreciate that they have tables outside. They have a nice alley of tables on the side of the building as well as a couple tables out front. Mid-day the tables out front are in the full-sun, but the alley provides some nice shade as an alternative.

Overall? Kind of don’t want to give away one of my prime study locations, but others deserve to know about the hidden gems. In addition, they’re in a really nice area with tons of places to check-out after studying!

Where to next? The review will be coming soon so you’ll just have to wait and see!