Recently, When I first set foot in the Rogue Valley Roasting Co three years ago, I thought it was perfect for a local café. It’s located on East Main and 8th Street, which is walking distance from several neighborhoods, including my own. The staff is friendly, and the coffee is good (I like the Shakespeare and Othello blends), and sometimes organic, depending on what roast is being featured that day. Dustin Bernard, who with his mother Cindy, took over ownership of the coffeehouse two years ago, says he’s happy with the San Francisco company that provides the beans. The food is pretty typical for café fare, except for the recent edition of homemade Focaccio pizza, frittata, brownies homemade by Cindy, and an unobtrusive ice cream bar. The bagels are a bit lonely for cream cheese, but other than that the breakfast choices are satisfying. Although the café’s size is small the space is endowed with enough wood and high ceilings to give it an Old World feeling. The outdoor decks are also a great option on sunny days.
Besides location, another mark of a good local café is local people. There is a real mix at the Roasting Co, from working people, to retirees to the high school and college crowd that packs the place during the noon hour. Now that the café is open on Sundays you can add the late risers who stumble in around eleven to the mix. All in all, the Roasting Co is a great place to read the paper, chat with friends, work on your computer or just enjoy a really good cup of coffee.
Rogue Valley Roasting Co.
917 East Main Street
Ashland, OR 97520
(541) 488-5902
