DRINK BEAT: COFFEE SHOPS

At this point in the world, coffee shops and cafes are basically a staple of student life, but not all coffee shops are created equal.

As a graduating senior with a caffeine addiction and a penchant for procrastinating in said cafes, I do deem myself an expert to speak on which to spend your time at and which to avoid.

For this review, I will be rating a majority of the local artisan coffee shops in the Little Rock metro area on their taste, price and perhaps most importantly, aesthetic. Each will be rated from 1 to 5, with 1 being awful and too expensive, for a total out of 15.

Disclaimer, taste is extremely subjective. Also this is just my opinion, everyone will see things differently, so if I do not love your favorite coffee shop, that does not mean it is not good for you, I just do not like it myself.

For my test, I will be rating each shop’s taste and price by a control drink: an iced mocha with oat milk. I will test all drinks against my own homemade iced mocha, which costs me approximately $3 to make and is a 3 on the taste scale.

Mylo’s

First up, we have Mylo Coffee Co. in Hillcrest. Now Mylo’s used to be my absolute favorite coffee shop to go to, but as many of us now know, the owners were not treating their workers how workers should be treated. Because of this, Mylo’s has significantly fallen down the scale.

As for price, an iced mocha with oat milk falls at $6.75 plus tax, which is really not too bad for these artisan coffee shops. It gets a for price.

Mylo’s aesthetic is a complicated rating. While I love the style of the inside with the exposed brick and huge windows overlooking beautiful Hillcrest, they have to lose points for two reasons. First, their treatment of workers is not very aesthetic at all. Next, prior to #Mylogate, there were never any open tables in the tiny cafe. This is less of a problem now, but size does matter here. For these reasons, Mylo’s gets a 2.5/5 for aesthetics, the biggest dock being for worker treatment.

Next, we have taste. Keeping in mind this is severely subjective, Mylo’s will get a 3 for taste. When it is good, it is so good, but when it is bad, it is awful. I have had some incredible mochas here, but I have also had the oat milk be powdery and clumpy and too much chocolate. They get a 3 for being hit or miss.

Overall, Mylo’s gets a 9.5/15 total. Prior to the awful Instagram comments I read about this place and the expose about their worker’s rights, they were much higher, but I cannot give them more than a 10 for morality.

Fidel & Co.

Next we have Fidel & Co. in the up-and-coming East Village neighborhood. Fidel is likely to rate high for me. Fidel’s crowd is largely working professionals, and I feel like it is relatively untouched by the college crowd, something we have to change.

An iced mocha with oat milk at Fidel is $7 even, but if you bring your own cup, you get a discount. This is only a little higher than Mylo’s and some others in this list, so it gets a 3.75 for price.

As for the aesthetics of Fidel, I have to give it a 4/5. They are roasters, so it always smells delicious inside, and their signature orange color is not only comforting, but inspires me to work. They also have huge windows that open in good weather, and their tables are nice. They lose one point for size; it is a smaller shop, but I have only had table issues a couple of times.

Finally, Fidel is one of the highest rankings of taste on this list. Their iced mocha is delicious and there is a reason so many stores and restaurants use Fidel coffee; it is fantastic. They get a 5/5 for taste.

This gives Fidel & Co. a 12.75/15 in total, making them a hard one to beat going forward. It is a little farther away, but they are a sleeper pick. I highly recommend Fidel for any student.

Mugs

Mugs is a special case, because not unlike its sister shop, Mylo’s, they also had some issues with treating their workers correctly.

I know there have been a lot of improvements made in this regard, so they get a little pass. Mugs also has two locations, one in the Heights and one in Argenta.

I cannot really speak on the one in Argenta, as I have not been in a couple of years, but I did just recently start going to Mugs in the Heights again as I have friends that work there (oops my bias is showing).

As for price, an iced mocha with oat milk is $6.91, so they get a 4/5 for being under $7 dollars. It’s pretty averagely priced.

As for taste, a couple of years ago, Mugs would have gotten a 1/5. I hated their coffee big time. But recently, and maybe it is because my friends are making the drinks, the coffee has been almost amazing. I am going to shockingly to me, give them a 4/5 for taste, especially their Mayan Mocha which has cayenne.

Aesthetically, Mugs is not my personal favorite, as there really is nowhere to hide on the inside, but I do love the plants in the window. 3/5.

In total, Mugs gets an 11/15 for their ranking, which is way higher than what it could have been. I think if the owners keep on this track of treating their employees better, then it could get even better. Let this be a lesson to all: when your workers are treated fairly, they do better work.

Blackberry Market

Blackberry Market in Argenta is the new kid on the block of these artisan coffee shops. In a new, huge venue in North Little Rock’s Argenta neighborhood, this coffee shop is really changing the scene. In terms of price, it is right on par with the rest of these shops. It is $7 for an iced mocha with oat milk, but they also have a large size of 24 ounces that is only $7.50, which bumps their price score up a little bit. Because of this, despite their 16 ounce being more expensive than Mylo’s, they still get a 4/5 for their 24 ounce price.

Blackberry has to get a 5/5 for aesthetics. If you have been there, you know it is huge so you can always find seating; they have an upstairs which is so nice and cool. They also decorated well and I love their shelves of artisan products and food that they sell. The bathroom is a little scary to find, but take it as an adventure.

As for taste, Blackberry gets a 3/5. I actually do not think their mocha is the best thing ever, but it is decently good and consistent. I do enjoy some of their other drinks, but that’s not what this rating is for.

In total, that gives Blackberry a

12/15, putting it near the top of the list. For me, Blackberry has a really nice vibe inside and I have only heard good things about it.

Nexus

Nexus Coffee and Creative is next on my list, and this place is a Little Rock staple. Started by a father-daughter duo, they grew so fast they expanded their space downtown into a vital part of the downtown Little Rock scene.

I do not have an exact price for an iced mocha with oat milk, but I know Nexus is near the most expensive, especially if you add food. I take into account that their rent and pay is probably higher than some of these other places. Because of this, Nexus gets a 2.5/5 for price.

As for taste, Nexus is a great average. 3/5. I really enjoy it if I am downtown or going inside to study, but I am not going out of my way to get their coffee.

Where Nexus really shines is their aesthetic. They get an easy 5/5. It’s decorated incredibly well and has huge windows that overlook downtown Little Rock, which is a great location. You can study there, have meetings, meet friends and work all in one place. There is plentiful seating and it is generally just a good vibe there.

All in all, Nexus gets a 10.5/15, which seems lower than I would think, but they really only shine in the aesthetic category, which as I said, is maybe the most important.

River City

Time for perhaps my most unpopular opinion of the article, I do not love River City the way I know so many of y’all do.

I think their price is super fair, one of the most fairly priced places, it is $5.50 for a large, so they get the best price score on this list with a 4.5/5. That’s about the cheapest price for a large coffee you can find outside of the home.

Taste is where River City falls very short for me. Despite their famous iced coffee cubes to avoid watering down your coffee, I find that happens anyways. I don’t love their mocha and I definitely don’t love the coffee ice cubes, but that’s the only thing I have ever tried so I am biased. Regardless 2.5/5.

Finally, River City is tiny. I don’t even want to go inside because everyone will just stare at you and see you. Outside is a little nicer and I enjoy the 2-seater tables, but other than that, the inside is not great.3/5

In total, River City gets a 10/15. I will say this is the place I have been to the least amount, so I am no expert here. River City lovers do not come for me. I do love that they do coffee ice cubes, though: what a niche.

The Paranoid Android

The Paranoid Android is a sleeper pick that few people know about. Located inside the Technology Park in downtown Little Rock right off Main Street, this place has good coffee.

They are fairly priced, having a larger size only be around $6.50, so they get a 4/5 for price.

Their taste is not the best of all of these, but is actually pretty decent when they make it correctly. Because it is hit or miss, it gets a 3.75/5.

Finally, the aesthetic is actually pretty cool for my STEM readers. It’s all robot and tech-themed which is fun. They have chalkboards with cool art all around, and window sill seating which is fun. You can also go upstairs to the Tech Park seating, which is nice as well. It’s a 3.75/5 again for aesthetics.

In total, an 11.5/15, making this close to a lot of these more famous shops on the list. As I said, a sleeper pick.

Conclusion

This ranking is by no means allinclusive. I did not even mention food because it would have been too much to talk about (though Fidel has the best avocado toast ever).

Also, I want to give a special shoutout to Onyx Coffee in Rogers for giving me one of the worst mochas I have ever had despite being nationally award-winning and my boyfriend loving his drink.

As I have repeatedly stated in this article, this is just my opinion as a coffee addict. I get the same drink every single place I go, so my palette cannot be that trusted, but if you are an iced mocha person like me, this list should do you some good.

BY CHLOE MCGEHEE