New in 2022 High Point/Jamestown Coffee Shop Roundup

 Though it was hardly lacking in coffee options beforehand, the High Point area welcomed several new coffeeshops onto the scene in 2022. I tried three of them – Message Coffee, Kindred Coffee, and Core Coffee – during the past month. Here’s how the cups stack up.

 

Message Coffee

Message Coffee is located inside of the Stock + Grain Assembly Food Hall in downtown High Point, which is both a blessing and a curse. Plenty of tasty food is but a few steps away, but during peak hours, foot traffic can be intense. Given the location, a reading/work space this is not.

Message offers hot and cold coffees, teas, and refreshers as well as a few pastries (from Camino Bakery). I went with an iced Salted Honeycomb for my first visit and found it quite sweet but not unpleasant. As with every Stock + Grain business, you end up overpaying for the location. Still, if you happen to be downtown and catch a coffee craving, you could do worse than overpaying to support these folks.

 

Kindred Coffee

 

Kindred Coffee is the newest tenant in the former Miller's Market space in Jamestown, but they are not new to the coffee game. If you remember buying coffee from a VW Bus (Cause Roast) in the former Black Dog Home lot a few years back, these are the same folks. They are on a limited coffee-only menu while they are starting out but will be adding food (and nitro cold brew) in the future.

As with the building's previous occupant, Kindred's space is bright and clean. The proprietors are personable and passionate about what they do, and they use a quality product (HEX Coffee, a specialty roaster out of Charlotte). The caramel latte I tried was smooth and satisfying (low acidity, good flavor, not too sweet).

That said, Kindred managed to be even more expensive than Message. My 12-ounce latte ran $5.75, and a 12-ounce peppermint mocha with oat milk was $6.75. Coffee that was miles ahead of everything available locally could perhaps justify the cost, but that wasn't the case here.

I will likely reappraise once Kindred has gotten a chance to expand its offerings. For their sake (and mine - it would be very convenient to have a coffee stop on the way to work), I hope that they are able to stick.

 

Core Coffee

 

Housed in Carolina Core Wellness on an offshoot of Penny Road, Core Coffee is considerably off the beaten path. Location aside, however, there is a lot to like here. The coffee shop is spacious and bright with comfortable-looking chairs and tasteful artwork. The baristas are kind, and, thankfully, patient. Core's fairly extensive repertoire of teas, coffees (they use Fortuna beans), and smoothies includes everything from nitro to a dozen seasonal drinks, which can make for a tough decision.

I opted for a Moravian Cookie Latte and picked up a lavender soy latte for my wife. The former included welcome spice notes that did not overpower, and my wife reported that the latter passed her "not too sweet" test. Prices here are reasonable (a 24-ounce latte ran $6), and they also offer Happy Hour discounts from 2 to 4 p.m.

While there may be more readily accessible java options elsewhere in town, if you're in the Palladium area and want a break from chain coffee, give Core a try.