Columbus is a growing city, where a high standard meets a young, diverse workforce. Columbus now boasts a flourishing coffee scene, featuring local stalwarts evolving with the times and young upstarts crafting remarkable experiences.
LessFox In The Snow has a national profile, and for good reason, serving some of the finest coffee in the country alongside an extraordinary in-house bakery program. Started by two Blue Bottle Coffee alums and serving coffee supplied exclusively by Tandem Coffee Roasters from Portland, Maine, Fox in the Snow now has three locations across Columbus. The spaces are beautiful, the coffee is great, and the pastries, worth the trip alone. Go here.
With its original location on High Street in the charming Short North, One Line is both a roasting company and a cafe brand with deep roots in Columbus. A distinctive circular bar dominates the space, with a three-group La Marzocco Strada EP, Mazzer grinders, and a custom pour-over station to allow customers a full view of the coffee-making process, no matter their choice of brew. Now with multiple locations across the city.
Stauf’s is undoubtedly a trailblazer, having been in business for over 30 years. With seven locations spread across the city, Stauf’s has something for everyone—from the neighborhood hangout vibes of its original shop in Grandview Heights to the pared-back industrial minimalism of its cafe within the Idea Foundry maker’s space in Franklinton. Their newest cafe, inside a renovated church near The Ohio State University’s campus, features the latest in coffee brewing tech.
Another Columbus pioneer, Brioso has been a coffee leader in the city since 2001. A brick wall separates the roasting and education side of the space from the bar area, which hosts a matte black Synesso Hydra and Mahlkönig PEAK grinders for espresso, Hario V60s for pour-overs as well as batch-brewed drip coffee and cold brew on tap. On the other side of the wall sits the roaster alongside space for cupping and education as well as seating for customers who would like to observe coffee roasting.
Roosevelt Coffeehouse is a non-profit organization, and its motto is “Good coffee for good.” This coffee bar is sprawling, high-ceilinged, and spacious, boasting enormous street-facing windows and a series of connected rooms and event spaces. The bar and tables are made from recovered bowling alley lanes and features a Modbar espresso machine and Hario V60 pour-over setup. Roosevelt’s coffee menu is complemented by pastries supplied by local and like-minded businesses.