Felicia's

One of my favorite coffee shops, Felicia's Coffee in East Greenwich is certainly a place to try. Felicia's features a drive-thru, several drink options, and a rotating coffee flavor of the day. Felicia's offers bagels, muffins, scones, and a mouth-watering dessert case stocked with cheesecakes, brownies, fruit tarts, and much more. Felicia's is not just for coffee lovers; stop by and share a dessert or try a high-fiber cookie (the best of both worlds!). What I like in particular about Felicia's is its personable atmosphere as well as its convenience. There was a point during the summer when my friends and I struck up friendships with the employees at the drive-thru!




Quick Info:

What:Felicia's
Where: East Greenwich
Price Range: Moderate (Medium Iced = $2.25)
Best Feature: Drive-Thru

Bagelz

Another coffee shop I recommend is Bagelz of Wickford. Although Bagelz has two other locations in Southern Rhode Island, I prefer the Wickford Bagelz. Bagelz offers a rustic atmosphere, myriad coffee flavors, and a large selection of "bagelz."

Bagelz of Wickford, located on West Main Street in the heart of Wickford, is a spacious coffee house with lots of different seating areas. On the first floor, there are several sections including tables, chairs, and comfortable arm chairs. Upstairs, there are more seating areas, a fireplace, and shelves loaded with books. Bagelz will even reserve a meeting room for groups of five or more. Bagelz's environment is conducive to studying, holding business meetings, or just relaxing.

Not only does Bagelz serve fresh coffee, but it also encourages customers to recycle their coffee cups. Anyone interested in "going green" should definitely make it a point to try Bagelz.

One distinguishing feature about Bagelz is their generous refill policy. If customers stay in the store, they are welcome to free refills on coffee and tea. Another generous Bagelz policy is their coffee card; buy ten coffeez and get the eleventh free! (That may seem like a lot, but I've found that the cards actually fill up pretty fast).






Quick Info:

What: Bagelz
Where: Wickford
Price Range: Moderate - High (Flavored coffees cost around $2.75)
Best Feature: Free refill policy


Bagelz is also located in Wakefield and at the URI campus in Kingston.

Jitters

Although you might pass by this little coffee joint in North Kingstown without even noticing, it is certainly worth the stop. Jitters Café is small but has a lot to offer. I tried it for the first time today and would highly recommend it. They have a variety of fairly priced coffees, bagels, muffins, and sandwiches. I tried the hazelnut coffee which tasted similar to Java Madness' hazelnut blend. My friends enjoyed the caramel flavored coffee as well. I've also heard rave reviews about the Thanksgiving sandwich--I guess I'll have to return. We went in the early afternoon and could only stay for a few minutes, but it was pretty busy with a constant flow of customers, many of whom I assume to be "regulars."

Quick Info:

What: Jitters
Where: North Kingstown, RI
Price Range: Moderate ($2.20 for a medium iced coffee)
Best Feature: Deli sandwiches

Java Madness

"Enjoy your brew with a view" is certainly a fitting motto for this coffee house located in Wakefield. I heard about this coffee place from a friend and have since been there several times. Not only does it offer a wide selection of flavored coffees, espresso drinks, and teas, but Java Madness also has a variety of food options, such as breakfast sandwiches, pastries, and panini.

Why Should You Try It?

Java Madess' scenic views overlooking the Stone Cove Marina are what sets it apart from your average coffee house. Whether you decide to sit inside at one of Java Madness' tables or outside on the deck, you are sure to enjoy your beverage. I've had the hazelnut coffee which was not too strong but had the flavor brewed in. They also offer several sweetened or unsweetened flavor shots.

I would also recommend Java Madness for its versatile atmosphere. During the day, you will find a steady stream of customers in a relaxed, casual environment. On the weekends, however, Java Madness invites local artists to display artwork and local musicians to perform.

Finally, Java Madness is worth trying because it offers a 15% discount to teachers, students, and hospital workers. Additionally, during the month of February, they extend the discount to town workers.


Quick Info
What: Java Madness
Where: Wakefield, RI
Price Range: Moderate ($2.45 for a medium iced coffee, around $7 for a sandwich)
Best Feature: View of Stone Cove Marina

Visit Java Madness' website for directions and a schedule of upcoming artists, musicians, and open-mic time slots.

Wake Up and Smell the Cawfee

As we coffee lovers know, a good cup (or more) of coffee is essential for starting off every day. Although my future posts will focus on my adventures to various coffee shops around Rhode Island, a February blizzard altered my plans for today. The heavy snow and gusty winds did not, however, prevent my roommates and me from trekking to Dunkin' Donuts.

The intention of this blog is to promote several local coffee places aside from the ubiquitous Dunkin' Donuts, but what better way to initiate this than by sharing my Dunkin' experience?

That being said, my outing in the blizzard today highlights some fundamental characteristics of many Rhode Islanders' attitudes towards coffee:

First, today's adventure exemplifies the fact that Rhode Islanders, like myself, will travel great lengths to satisfy their coffee needs. And by "great lengths," I am not referring to distance (in fact, there are 125+ Dunkin' Donuts shops in Rhode Island's mere 1,214 square miles). I mean that a vast majority of Rhode Islanders will risk health, safety, and overall well-being in order to get that cup of coffee. School cancellations and treacherous conditions were not enough to deter us from getting our coffee fix. Three of my roommates and I dusted off the car and made fresh tire tracks up the un-plowed road to the nearest Dunkin'.

Secondly, I learned today that Rhode Islanders (most I've encountered, anyway) will go out of their way to get coffee from their preferred shop. Case in point? Our adventure in the snow today was not limited to one, but two coffee shops. On our way to Dunkin', we stopped at Coffee Connection (a local café I'll discuss in a later post) so that my roommate could get a flavor unavailable at Dunkin' Donuts. Apparently, beggars can be choosers.

Finally, today's outing demonstrates the quirky Rhode Island preference for iced rather than hot coffee, despite unfavorable weather conditions. After rolling up at our second coffee destination, my other roommate rolled down the half-frozen car window only to order an iced (!) coffee. Of course, I am guilty of ordering a mid-February iced coffee, but something about the snow usually gets me in the mood for a piping hot cup of coffee.

Although today's adventure was not the coffee excursion I had had in mind, it proved to be informative. Not only did I learn that Dunkin' Donuts is not closed during snow storms, but I have discovered some Rhode Island coffee tendencies to keep in mind for future java-adventures.