8 coffee shops, roasters, horchaterias creating a buzz in Fort Pierce, Port St. Lucie

Laurie K. Blandford, Treasure Coast Newspapers
·6 min read

Wake up, St. Lucie County!

Get the day started with hot coffee, cold brews and iced lattes at these eight coffeehouses and coffee shops: six in Port St. Lucie and two in Fort Pierce.

In case you missed it, here are TCPalm’s previous stories about coffee shops in:

And check out our series about food trucks found on the Treasure Coast and the stories behind them.

Canelitas Horchateria & Coffeehouse is located in the Sandpiper Plaza in Port St. Lucie.
Canelitas Horchateria & Coffeehouse is located in the Sandpiper Plaza in Port St. Lucie.

Canelitas Horchateria & Coffeehouse

Sisters Eileen Feick and Juliana Montano opened this Sandpiper Plaza shop in August 2021, inspired by watching diners at their parents’ Mexican restaurant wait 10-15 minutes for an horchata, a traditional drink made with rice, cinnamon and vanilla. They also created a non-dairy “oatchata” version. Their organic coffee beans come from Chiapas, Mexico, and they offer Cuban, Colombian and decaf Mexican. The lavender horchata frappe and the horchata iced latte are fan favorites. Their extensive food menu features their twist on traditional Mexican dishes, such as crispy, mini beef chimichangas and concha French toast made with Mexican sweet bread, topped with bananas, strawberries and Nutella or Le Lechera condensed milk.

Coffee Grind

J.R. and Tara Koch opened this coffee-and-skateboarding shop in The Landing at Tradition in October 2019, featuring North Carolina-based Counter Culture Coffee. The couple's organic, kosher house bean, named Apollo, is an Ethiopian blend — 65% from Dambi Udo and 35% Nano Ganji — that tastes floral, citrusy and bright. Beans are ground fresh in the shop right before brewing. Latte flights include pumpkin, lavender, macadamia, maple syrup, peanut butter, salted caramel, English toffee and chocolate chip cookie dough.

Special Java Cafe

Joann Rodriguez was inspired by daughter Ali, who has Down syndrome, to open this cafe at Genesis Community Church, with exceptional student education teacher Cathy Costa, in November 2019. “Once (Ali) turned 22, there was nothing for her to do, so we opened this, where our kids learn how to serve,” Rodriguez said. The cafe, which uses Louisiana-based Standard Coffee Service, is staffed by 17 volunteers with disabilities such as autism, ranging in age from 22 to 59, and serves as a community space for cooking, music, karate and arts and crafts classes.

Cool Beans Brew customers Rachel Tennant (left), of Fort Pierce, and her mom, Linda Stone, of Hollywood, work out of the coffee shop Thursday, Nov. 11, 2021, on Delaware Avenue in Fort Pierce.
Cool Beans Brew customers Rachel Tennant (left), of Fort Pierce, and her mom, Linda Stone, of Hollywood, work out of the coffee shop Thursday, Nov. 11, 2021, on Delaware Avenue in Fort Pierce.

Cool Beans Brew

Patrick Campion and Dawn Feola opened this Peacock Arts District shop in December 2019. The 1925 home, converted into offices in the 1980s, has original Dade County pine floors. The Fort Pierce Art Club meets there weekly, and it’s decorated by over 55 artists. “We didn’t want to do a strip mall, storefront, glass window coffee shop,” Campion said. “We wanted something with a special type of flavor.” The couple uses Bill’s Gourmet Coffee from Nelson Family Farms in Fort Pierce. The 100% Colombian beans are roasted by Dan Nelson. They also serve pastries, parfaits, salads and wraps.

SteamWorks Coffeebar and Eatery is located in the Palm Plaza in Port St. Lucie.
SteamWorks Coffeebar and Eatery is located in the Palm Plaza in Port St. Lucie.

SteamWorks Coffeebar and Eatery

Michael Baumgardner and his dad, J.T., opened this Palm Plaza shop in April 2021, using fair-trade, co-op, organic, single-origin coffee from small-batch roasters in Florida. “We don’t stick to a specific coffee,” Baumgardner said. “I try different roasts from different roasters to keep it to what’s fresh and in season.” Baristas grind the beans right before making the drinks. The espresso house blend is Sumatran, Costa Rican and Colombian. Its decaf is Colombian. Breakfast and lunch features “The Tardis,” four French toast slices topped with fresh-cut berries, warm maple syrup and bacon, and “The Iron Clad Builder,” a 1/3-pound short-rib burger on a warm brioche bun.

1971 Roasters & Coffee Bar

Cici Orozco runs this Tradition Village Center shop, which Scott Keit opened in March 2019 as Tradition Coffee Co. Orozco, who went from employee to roaster to manager to owner, still manages it after selling to a partner early November 2021. Coffee blends from different countries are roasted on site. The espresso blends Colombian and Brazilian beans. “We typically roast it not very dark. It’s going to be comparable to a blonde espresso,” she said. “A lot of people can actually taste the flavors of the coffee, and they really like that you don’t need a lot of sugar to add to it, and it doesn’t taste burnt or bitter.”

Old Florida Coffee Co.

Dan Pennell — with wife Claudina, daughter Victoria and son Nicholas — opened this downtown Fort Pierce micro coffee roastery in the historic P.P. Cobb General Store in February 2021. Customers can watch him roast coffee in a commercial Italian roaster. His secret recipe blends beans from two dozen single-source farms or cooperatives worldwide, including Ethiopia, South America and Central America. Parisian-style street crepes have local-history names like the “Old Trading Post,” made with pecans, maple syrup and homemade caramel sauce.

Artist Joe Young, of Port St. Lucie, orders a candy cane cold brew at Cool Beans Brew on Thursday, Nov. 11, 2021, on Delaware Avenue in Fort Pierce. Young is one of 56 St. Lucie County-based artists who exhibits their work at the coffee shop and art gallery.
Artist Joe Young, of Port St. Lucie, orders a candy cane cold brew at Cool Beans Brew on Thursday, Nov. 11, 2021, on Delaware Avenue in Fort Pierce. Young is one of 56 St. Lucie County-based artists who exhibits their work at the coffee shop and art gallery.

CoolBeanz

Laurie Pearl opened this bakery-coffee-ice cream shop in Innovation Plaza in October 2020. A native of Long Island, New York, where ice cream shops are open only in summer, Pearl wanted to serve the sweet treat year-round. She later added pastries, challah bread and Mosaic 100% Colombian coffee.

Laurie K. Blandford is TCPalm's entertainment reporter and columnist dedicated to finding the best things to do on the Treasure Coast. Follow her on Twitter @TCPalmLaurie and Facebook @TCPalmLaurie. Email her at [email protected]. Sign up for her What To Do in 772 weekly newsletter at profile.tcpalm.com/newsletters/manage.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Coffee shops, roasters, horchaterias, bakeries in Fort Pierce, PSL

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