A Latte New Space at the Coffee Shop
This local coffee shop has always been a sweet place to hang out and sip some coffee or smoothies, depending on what floats your boat. Now, the whole place is almost doubled in size, so you can bring even more of your friends through its doors this summer!
Those of you who have frequented the Coffee Co. over the years are probably familiar with the Village Thrift which operated in the back room. The coffee shop isn’t the only one updating their scene this year – Village Thrift moved to the building across from the Community Square. And that means – it’s time to spread out the coffee venue!
The new space has been transformed into a lounging area with comfy couches and tables. In addition to the fantastic natural lighting coming in through the windows, they even have a real-live leg lamp back there – a necessity for every home and/or coffee shop!
The owners, Justin and Joelle LeBlanc, have been wanting to expand the place for a while, so they’ve held on to pieces of furniture that have been donated to them (shout-out to Anna Rucker for the sweet sofa!) in hopes that they would eventually be creating this room for their customers.
In order to open up the back room, they were faced with replacing a wall. They let Troy Smith – Contractor Extraordinaire and also Joelle’s brother – take care of it. He did a beautiful job, putting the wall up in one day!
The hope is for people to start coming in through both entrances so there is not so much crowding in one doorway during high season. This back entrance will also serve as a handicap option because that’s where the ramp is located. They’ll be putting new signs out back to draw attention to the second entrance.
What’s more, there will be lots of reading material to choose from while you’re enjoying your drink, because Friends of the Library board members Scott Bradley and Lauren Strohl are helping to set up the old thrift store bookshelves in the new room with the used books that people donate to the Ocracoke Library. You can purchase the books, too, honor-system style! The money goes to help buy new books for Ocracoke's little library right across the street.
They’ve also tweaked the front room; with all the new lounging space in the back, they’ve put in an antique dining room table in the front for people who are getting down to business with their laptops, or just watching dog videos. The workspace is nice and spread out.
In addition to all this, it’s looking beautiful outside the coffee shop, too! “We have the best gardener in the whole world working for us,” says Joelle, about Jennifer Rich over at the Ocracoke Garden Center.
As things pick up this summer, there will be some old faces and some new faces working at Ocracoke Coffee Co. Alison Stevens from “Stuff” will be baking the goods. There will be a handful of first-year employees, as well as the seasoned workers. Your favorite baristas, Luke Harrington and Ryan McCuaig, will be there to make your drinks.
This year, Ryan has been appointed to a management position – he’ll be ordering stock, training new employees, and keeping the place organized. “Everything I hate, he’s going to do,” Joelle joked.
"I'm happy to be back," says returning employee Maddie Payne. (Thanks, Maddie, for the intriguing glimpse into coffee shop life!!)
And if you stop by, you might be lucky enough to meet the latest addition to the coffee shop family, Brody Bean, hanging out outside. Brody is an adorable Rottweiler-Lab rescue dog that Justin and Joelle recently adopted from Virginia Beach.
I asked Joelle which Coffee Co. drinks she likes to begin her day with. Her personal favorite morning beverage is an almond latte à la Luke or Ryan. And her favorite thing on the menu to bake? The lavender honey scones (which are a big hit for a reason!).
Last year was the coffee shop’s best season yet, and Joelle suspects this coming season will be even better! The new expansion will make the lines less overwhelming in the summer. Ocracoke Coffee Co. is also a great place to check the daily surf report! The coffee shop will be open every day from 7am to 5 or 6 pm in the height of season. 7am – 4pm are the current spring hours! Caffeine is Good!
Editor's note: Caroline wants to make it clear that her mother came up with the headline.
