Atlanta's Coffee Deficit, Continued: A Ray of Hope

I recently got around to trying JavaVino in the “Poncey-Highlands” neighborhood of town: they have coffee; they have wine; what could be bad? The wine list pretty respectable - $5-7 gets you a good glass, but I didn’t try all the options (which change regularly), so there’s potential greatness. They also do wine tastings on 2nd Sundays, which I plan to attend one of these days.

We are here, however, to discuss the coffee shop aspect of JavaVino. My $2.10 jumbo-sized Americano (4 shots!!) was delicious - smooth, woody and not too bitter with a crema, I notice, so sturdy that it survived pouring over ice. I drank it straight - no sugar, no cream - a rare honor I reserve for really good coffee. JavaVino’s website indicates that their organic, sustainably-grown coffee actually comes from the owner’s family’s own plantation in Nicaragua - a neat detail, I think, especially since the results are so good.

The $7 hummus plate comes with roasted red peppers and a few unremarkable olives, as well as cibatta (a nice departure from the traditional pita). The hummus itself is OK, but could use salt (I see none available) and perhaps more sesame oil in the mix.

The location is a bit off the beaten path, but close enough to get some foot traffic, and parking is pretty ample. Seating is limited and the place, while pretty and pleasant, is a bit cluttered. The music (sort of ‘soft’ top-40 stuff) is a good volume, and large windows provide ample natural light, even if the view is just of parking lots. Free wifi service makes it theoretically work-friendly, but let’s be honest: you’re just watching YouTube.

JavaVino has a patio, but it is small and right out by the smoggy street, so it doesn’t really interest me, especially in the absence of much good people-watching/street antics (other than the Atlanta drivers, who form a genre of tragicomedy all their own). Besides awesome coffee and available wines, JavaVino has two characteristics desperately lacking in other Atlanta coffeeshops I’ve found: they sell real newspapers (as in, not just AJC and USAToday), and are open till midnight. It’s not all night, but a fair time to stop caffeinating in public.

JavaVino
579 N Highland Ave,
Atlanta, Ga, 30307
(404) 577-8673