National Coffee Day lands on Tuesday, September 29, and the chains will spend it handing out free cups with an app download. Fine. Take the freebie if it’s on your way. Then spend the rest of the week somewhere that roasts its own beans, knows the regulars by their order, and has a story behind the counter.
Dallas and Fort Worth have plenty of those now, which was not always true. A few regulars have already had their own day on these pages, including Noble Coyote in Expo Park and Ascension. Here are six more shops worth a detour this week, split between both sides of the Metroplex.
Cultivar Coffee started the way so many good things do, in a garage. Jonathan Meadows and Nathan Shelton, two baristas and roasters who thought Dallas deserved better coffee, founded it in 2009. The shop has been pouring in East Dallas since 2011 and now lives inside Goodfriend Package at 1155 Peavy Road, which means a good breakfast sandwich is never more than a few steps away. The bean shelf gets restocked every Saturday morning with coffee roasted just days before. Right now the one to ask about is a washed SL-09 from Peru that earned 95 points from Coffee Review this month and made the finals of its Kenneth Davids Cup. Cultivar sourced it through its own sister importing company, which tells you how seriously these guys take the job.
Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters has been roasting in its namesake neighborhood long enough to feel like part of the furniture. Its cafe, Davis Street Espresso at 819 W. Davis St., was built as a thank-you to the neighbors who kept the roastery going. Expect big communal tables, a patio made for lingering, and no Wi-Fi, which is on purpose. You are there to drink coffee and talk to people.
Houndstooth Coffee came up from Austin, where Sean Henry opened the first one in 2010, and it has become one of the city’s most dependable coffee bars. Dallas now has three: Henderson Avenue, Walnut Hill and Sylvan Thirty. The Sylvan Thirty shop at 1878 Sylvan Ave. is the one to see. Henry built it around a full circular bar, an idea he borrowed from Texas barbecue joints, where half the fun is watching somebody slice your brisket to order. Pull up a stool and watch the baristas work.
Magnolias Sous Le Pont takes its name from the French for “under the bridge,” and that is exactly where you’ll find it, under the bridge at 2727 N. Harwood St.. Look for the teal storefront. Inside, it’s a Parisian-style cafe with local art on the walls, shelves of cards and small gifts and a calendar of events. It has been pouring in the Harwood District since 2015. Order the house signature, the Magnolias latte. The shop is open every day from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Avoca Coffee Roasters opened on March 17, 2011, in a former scooter shop at 1311 W. Magnolia Ave. in Fort Worth, back when Magnolia Avenue was still a gamble. It was one of the first shops in town to source and roast its own specialty beans, and plenty of people credit it with starting Fort Worth’s craft coffee habit. Avoca turned 15 this spring under owner Craig Morgan and now runs four locations, including Foch Street near West 7th and a busy one in the Stockyards. The Magnolia flagship, with the roaster working on site, is still the one to visit.
Casa Azul Coffee is the little blue house at West Central Avenue and North Houston Street on Fort Worth’s Northside, a short walk from the Stockyards. Joseph and Anette Landeros opened it in late 2021 in the building that once housed Sammy’s Restaurant. It was the first coffee shop in that part of the Northside, and they run it as a family business with their son, Joaquin. The idea from day one was a neighborhood shop built on traditional Latin American flavors, so skip your usual order and ask what the Latin-inspired drinks are this week. Hours are 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends, at 300 W. Central Ave.
If one day of coffee celebrating isn’t enough, there’s a second one coming. This year the United Nations officially named October 1 International Coffee Day, so you have a solid excuse to stretch this into a week-long tour. Buy a bag of beans on your way out, too. A pound of good coffee to take home is one of the kindest things you can do for a local roaster.
French Press at home or office.
