Callie Smith
Cookeville is the home of many favorite local coffee shops for Tech students to commune. Students gather here to study, converse and enjoy their extra supplement of energy. Within a mile of Tech’s campus is Poet’s Coffee, SoulCraft and Vertical Coffee.
Full disclaimer: I fall into a minority across college students and do not enjoy coffee. Nope, not even the smell. My review of the following coffee shops is based on other drinks, food, settings and “the vibe.”
Poet’s coffee is celebrating 30-years of service and calls them- selves “Cookeville’s living room.” The coffee shop is located on the town square in Cookeville and is only a 0.6 mile walk from campus for Tech students.
Poet’s offers 46 different bever- ages on its menu and is sectioned as “coffee + espresso + classic,” “iced + frozen,” or “teas.” When I go to Poets, I get the green tea.
Poets is open to the communi- ty from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day of the week. It invites students to a warm and welcoming place to accomplish the tasks of the day. However, finding a seat may be challenging. If you are one of the lucky few, sit back, relax and enjoy the setting.
If you walk down N. Cedar Av- enue and make a left at W. Broad Street you will find SoulCraft Cof- fee, a five-year-old coffee shop in Cookeville.
This shop takes pride in Cookev- ille’s culture. SoulCraft nests in
a historical building dating back
to 1920. The floors and brick are original to its time. The decor high- lights early days of Cookeville and is designed to make its customers feel relaxed.
The tastes of the shop follow
the same historical context with coffee named “whiskey caramel latte,” “bourbon barrel mocha,” and “cuban.” My favorite drink is their strawberry lemonade, usually paired with a sweet treat from the bakery.
Our final coffee shop is interna- tionally local. Vertical coffee brews international coffee right here in the heart of Cookeville, importing coffee beans from Columbia, Ethio- pia, Guatemala and Brazil.
Vertical Coffee is settling into its new home on W. Spring Street. Even with this abundant coffee selection from all across the world, I still settle for the green tea.
