811 W. 17th Street, Kansas City, MO
Let’s talk about goats and mochas. What, isn’t that a typical topic of conversation for everyone? Ok, bear with me here. It perplexed me a bit at first that goats seemed to be a theme for coffee shops — the Laughing Goat, Kaldi’s, Goat Hill, etc. As a java nerd, I should have known better. In case you haven’t brushed up on your coffee history, Kaldi was a ninth-century Ethiopian goatherd who noticed his goats bursting with energy after eating some little red berries — and voilà, the discovery of coffee! Or so the legend goes. I don’t know if this was actually the inspiration for Goat Hill Coffee, but I’m going to officially declare the goat the official javaholic mascot in any case (and there’s your history lesson for the day).
Anyway, my mom and I were wandering around KC’s Westside neighborhood — an eclectic area of quirky shops, tiny indie restaurants, and shabby Victorian houses — and stumbled upon an irresistibly seafoam green coffee shop. Well, more like a coffee hole-in-the-wall. Of course, I can never resist a new coffee shop, let alone anything seafoam green, so we had to check it out.
Keeping with the neighborhood’s vibe, Goat Hill is tiny, charming, and quirky. Case in point: pressed tin ceiling, seafoam green details, vintage snow cone maker. Worn wooden shelves lined with vintage tchotsckes (and old-school lollipops for sale) add a rustic look. And when I say tiny, I really mean tiny. The shop consists of a window cove of retro metal chairs at a wraparound bar, plus a few seats overlooking the counter/kitchen area. It probably fits nine people max, plus the baristas. Luckily, that only adds to the charm.
On to the important stuff! Chocolate + coffee = bliss (amirite?) You would think that with a zealous love for chocolate and coffee (ahem), a mocha would be a sure bet for me. Perhaps surprisingly, though, I’m not really a mocha person. Or at least, I didn’t think I was. But this time I wanted something other than your standard latte, so I decided to give the mocha another chance. Spoiler alert: great choice. Not only was my mocha topped with a lovely rosetta latte art (hey, I’m susceptible to a good presentation), it was also delicious — rich, sweet, creamy, and perfectly chocolatey. Goat Hill has mostly basic offerings — you won’t find a frou-frou turtle-butterfinger-marshmallow fluff latte here — but their coffee is top-notch. They also serve Little Freshies snow cones, locally made icy treats in funky flavors like Blackberry Lavender, Spicy Ginger Fizz, and Blood Orange Rosemary. And if you want something sweet to accompany your java, they have a small but mouth-watering selection of scrumptious homemade donuts and pop-tarts. My only complaint is that they have only 8- and 12-oz. latte sizes. Yes, a massive latte is a java afficionado faux pas, but I wanted more mocha — that must be a good sign, right? I suppose I’ll just have to go back…
This post was originally published on my coffee blog, Beanopia, on March 6, 2017.
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