6 picks for your caffeine fix

coffee is the new black.  new hotspots offering free wi-fi, baked treats and all the java you need are cropping up all over the city in the last few months.  for a lot of the people, these locales become their office-away-from-their-office.  for others, it is a chance to escape the daily grind to recharge.  here is your guide to a few pitstops to consider next time:

germantown’s new red bicycle coffee & crepes

red bicycle coffee & crepes-housed in the heart of germantown, rb serves up 40 different delicious crepes all day for breakfast, lunch & dinner.  they offer up gluten-free and vegetarian options as well. 1200 fifth avenue north | 615.516.1986

family-owned roast, inc sits in the fastly gentrifying eighth avenue south corridor across from zanies comedy club.  these guys even produce their own bottled cold brew coffee, in black or sweet.  available now also at whole foods and local farmers markets.  2108 eighth avenue south | 615.730.8074

frothy monkey coffeehouse, a longtime staple in the 12 south community, has branched out in recent years with locations now in the art district on 5th avenue north as well as downtown franklin.  with a strong desire to brand themselves as more than just a coffeehouse, fm is now open for dinner and serves up “conscientiously crafted meals” derived from the chef’s passion for southern comfort food and made with locally fresh, sustainable ingredients.  2509 12th avenue south | 615.292.1808 

 fidos-once named by usa today as one of the top 10 places for coffee & conversation, this wi-fi hotspot in hillsboro village is ideal for the hungry laptop-carrying students and urban career-minded networkers alike.  1812 21st avenue south | 615.777.3436

barista parlor

barista parlor–opened in 2012 on the eastside, this ultra-trendy hipster epicenter combines beautiful art and minimalist design with incredible coffee. they take great pride in serving up perfect cup of joe.  you can find them now in the gulch behind the icon high rise as well as germantown.  519 gallatin avenue, 615.712.9766 

the well coffeehouse-coffee with a cause.  a non-profit organization with a passion for making a difference in the local community and in the world .  they serve you a cup of coffee.  you pay them.  they serve others in need.  it’s a rather wonderful concept.  coming to shops at seven springs in brentwood in april . 4002 granny white pike, 615.730.5016

face of 12south continues to change this fall

hundreds turned out last week for the street week free ice cream preview of 12south’s new jeni’s.  jeni’s ice cream is the first in a huge string of new changes on the strip.  as 12south flats construction is winding down, new tenants will begin filling up the apartments.  the building is currently already over 50% leased offering a lot of new life walking the streets.  and with more people moving into the community, comes new things to do and some necessary expansions & renovations for others.

up next is jeni’s neighbor, cadeau, a southern chic home store who is relocating from columbia, tennessee.  they plan to be open within the week.  owner and founder frannie preston daughrity, granddaughter of former BMI president frances preston, made the decision to transplant the store into the heart of 12 south after she and her family recently moved to nashville themselves.  “looking at different areas of town, it became clear that the 12south neighborhood was the right one for cadeau nashville.  there are new homes and renovations on every block, and there is so much energy there,” daughrity says.

frothy monkey facelift

frothy monkey went through a whirlwind facelift earlier this week which was unveiled on wednesday all new and improved.  they begin serving wine and beer, only adding to their existing dining experience.  the monkey is not just a coffeehouse anymore…now if they could only keep everything bagels in stock until i get there.

las paletas

sevier park’s new community center

las paletas recently vacated their less than 800 sqft space next to burger up and progressed into a much larger space across the street from sevier park.  sevier park is also seeing its share of changes.  the 20-acre park is getting a sleek new two-story community center which will feature a fitness room, gymnasium, track, dance room and a multi-purpose room.   it will be fully staffed during operating hours and will offer programs like zumba, yoga and different types of dance classes.  the first phase of the park’s master plan also includes a new parking lot and trails.  it has a $4 million budget and should be operational by late fall.

epice, formerly the clean plate club at 2902

coming in november, the folks behind kalamatas are launching a new lebanese bistro endeavor across the street from burger up called epice.  the 1,500 square foot spot should compliment the street well offering something new.  josephines, miranda whitcomb pontes’ new venture next to taproom, is also on the books for late october/early november right now.   this will be her third 12south launch  after previously opening frothy monkey coffeehouse and burger up.  she’s been pretty tight lipped about the concept thus far only saying “it isn’t fussy”.

a smokehouse concept from the creators of urban grub?

lastly, two spots that are bubbling under:  the creators of urban grub are working on a concept for this long vacant space next to frothy monkey (above) which should be announced at the end of the year and be open first of the year.  also, something is brewing next to mafiozas which is requesting an outdoor patio area from metro codes.   it’s called embers restaurant on the paperwork submitted to the city.

personally, i want a bakery…can we get beckers back?

meet nashville: 5 minutes, 5 important questions w/ heather southerland

frothy monkey owners at a recent fundraising event for the coffehouse's upcoming urban garden

when business partners ryan pruitt & heather southerland went in together and purchased the frothy monkey gourmet coffeehouse last year, they were just what the 12south staple needed to continue on stronger than ever.  i caught up with heather recently for 5 minutes, 5 important questions:

the monkey now serves dinner until 9pm, what’s your favorite entree?

my favorite entree on our new “breakfast for dinner” menu has to be the trout a la heather…obviously!  locally farm-raised trout from bob white springs.  it’s corn-encrusted, pan-fried, and served with a sautee of kale and quinoa.  it is a delicious and nutritious dish!

coffee is the second most traded commodity behind oil in the world.  backyard chickens have recently been approved in the 12south neighborhood.  knowing that, would you consider setting up a trading/bartering system on a local level?

haha, yes we would definitely consider a bartering system.

if you could have coffee with anyone in nashville, who would it be?

sometimes, because of the nature and volume of our business, i feel like i have coffee with EVERYONE in nashville but, if i had to choose one person, one on one, i think i would love to have coffee with caleb followill.  we have tons of mutual friends and i LOVE kings of leon’s music!

if you were to come up on a frothy monkey in the wild, how should you respond?

i’d be flattered…and sure to patronize their business!

what’s next for frothy monkey?

we are working towards our second location, hopefully to happen in 2012…stay tuned.