Vibrant coffee industry & 3 new coffee shops soon to open



A Bold Bean Latte. Image by Bold Bean

The current coffee scene in Jacksonville is right.

Our historical and deep-rooted connection with coffee production in Jacksonville is rich, and it continues today through new roasting companies and impressive cafes.

We drink incredible coffee.

The only reason to sip on mediocre coffee is addiction, price and, of course, nostalgia.

Late nights at a local diner. A magical supply of dark coffee. A weapon-like thick ceramic cup. An annoyed but pleasant menthol smoking waitress. These things won't be replaced by even the best cup of Ethiopian espresso but we can have both, right?

Jacksonville is a coffee city, and it's been that way for over a century.



Martin Coffee Company is still one of the largest roasters in the southeast; roasting coffee in Jacksonville since 1957.



The downtown Maxwell House plant has scented downtown with roasted coffee for more than a hundred years.

Condaxis Coffee and Tea, founded by a former employee of Maxwell House, launched in 1959 with $500 (about $4k in 2016 dollars); still in business today and still selling direct to the consumer. In the 1920s, the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company (A&P) produced much of their goods in what is now the Beaver Street Fisheries building. Roasting continued until the early 1990s, when the "8 O'clock" brand of coffee consolidated with their Maryland plant.

Green coffee beans were a major import into Jacksonville's port as a result of these huge roasting companies.

Given our history, it makes sense for Jacksonville to emerge as a city noted for masterfully roasted coffee and not just mass produced coffee.Roasters like Bold Bean, Pura Bean, and Grower's Alliance are making great coffee a standard part of our regional experience.

It's not just our roasters, throughout the city, we have some of the best coffee shops and more are coming.

At least three are planned for the coming year. In the following pages, we highlight some of the ones that are opening and two which opened this year.

Recommended Videos