The Complete Guide to Indianapolis Coffeehouses

Attention! This is an archival version of an out of date page. Caveat Emptor.

Skip the Intro! Jump straight to the coffee house listings or index.

I. COFFEE IN INDIANAPOLIS

Locals like to brag that Indy has changed a lot over the years. No longer just an overgrown, sleepy town, they say, it now has lots to do and see for both locals and visitors alike. The rise of the local coffeehouse scene has often been given as evidence of this transformation. To some extent this is true. Indy is definitely a much hipper place than it was 15 years ago, and with such new attractions as the Circle Centre Mall (which has six coffee shops) and the blossoming restaurant row along Illinois St., flashes of true urban living are starting emerge.

Having said that, the same thing is true of nearly every other similar sized city. Everybody has coffeehouses now. Everybody has "alternative" bands coming through town, microbrew beers, etc. In a sense, Indy hasn't changed. The world has changed. Sophistication has started to bleed out of the urban capitals and college towns to emerge everywhere in America now that moneyed capitalists have figured out how to mass produce it.

Even so, Indy is still a good place to grab a cup of joe. While few of its coffeehouses are truly distinctive, a handful would make welcome additions to any neighborhood in San Francisco or Chicago. There's definitely more than enough java joints to keep anyone busy sampling them all for quite some time.

That's the task I've dedicated myself too. This list is the result of my travels. It lists every coffeehouse in the city that I am aware of, whether I have been there or not (though I have been to most of them). It's hard to define what a coffeehouse is sometimes, so I haven't even tried. The criteria was this: If I think it's a coffeehouse, it's a coffeehouse. I've tried to err on the side of inclusion though.

Surely I overlooked some places and almost certainly made mistakes in my listing as well. If anyone has additions or corrections, please send them to me at arenn@urbanophile.com. Feedback is also welcome and encouraged.

II. THE LISTING SYSTEM

Each coffeehouse is listed along with its address and neighborhood. I usually combine multiple locations for the same establishment under the same heading. In addition to a description of the coffeehouse (which will hopefully give you some type of idea what you are getting into), I list whether or not the place has coffee beans for sale, what types of coffee drinks they offer, whether food and pastries are available and if there is any outdoor seating. I also give the month and year of the time I last visited.

Additionally, I assign a rating to each place. Like Mobil, I operate on a five star scale. But mine is slightly different. So that you have some clue what my ratings mean, here is a brief description of each one:

***** -- As with Mobil, this indicates one of the very best coffee shops in America.

**** -- Superlative. Would be a welcome addition to any city. First class all the way.

*** -- Above average. Has some distinctive quality that makes it stand out.

** -- Average. Nothing actively evil about the place, but nothing distinctive either. The vast bulk of coffee shops fall comfortably into the two star category.

* -- There's something wrong here. Doesn't necessarily mean the place is horrible or that you should never go, but there is a at least one bad thing about it.

Zero -- Worthless. Avoid at all cost. Get your coffee from Village Pantry instead.

Note that I try to avoid making judgments on the quality of the coffee itself. This is a such a subjective area that I decided to avoid holy wars by largely leaving it alone. This guide is not meant as the definitive coffee quality guide, but rather a resource to help you explore.

After the detailed listings, there are indexes of coffeehouses by location and rating. As you may have expected, Indy's coffeehouses are heavily concentrated on the northside of the city. If you aren't lucky enough to either be on the northside or downtown, then you are basically out of luck.

IV. THE COFFEEHOUSES

The Abbey Coffeehouse
Address: 771 Massachusetts Ave.
Location: Massachusetts and College
Neighborhood: Downtown/Chatham Arch
Rating: ****
Beans: Yes
Food: Extensive
Pastries: Extensive
Outdoor Seating: None
Last Visited: December 1997

The Abbey is the reigning champ of Indianapolis coffee houses. The atmosphere is near perfect: earringed staff, stuffed wingback chairs, lots of free reading materials, paintings of clouds on the ceilings, a very eclectic music mix, etc. Features a very eclectic mix of customers too including power lunchers in suits, gays, yuppies, artists, high school alterna-trash, you name it. The surrounding area is still a bit desolate. Very low density housing and nearby light industry probably will ensure that Mass Ave. never attains the true hipness and activity that it deserves, but drive down and see this place anyway. Large food menu with mostly healthful items and an extensive selection of pastries and desserts which, while satisfying, never quite taste as good as they look.

Other Location
Address: 5909 E. 86th St.
Location: Near Castleton Square Mall
Neighborhood: Northside/Castleton
Last Visited: Never

Address: 74 W. New York St.
Location: New York/Illinois
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Last Visited: Never

Barnes and Noble Cafe
Address: Unknown
Location: 82nd and Dean Road/Clearwater Crossing Shopping Center
Neighborhood: Northside/Keystone Crossing
Rating: **
Beans: No
Food: None
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: None
Last Visited: February 1997

Exactly what you would expect from B&N. The cafe is in the front of this mega-bookstore and features large windows for customers to gaze out of. Unfortunately, they can only look out at the parking lot of the strip mall B&N is located in. Yawn.

Borders Books and Music
Address: Unknown
Location: River Crossing Shopping Center (next to the Fashion Mall)
Neighborhood: Northside/Keystone Crossing
Rating: **
Beans: Yes
Food: Limited
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: None
Last Visited: March 1997

Yet another mega chain bookstore cafe. Nothing really needs to be said about it. It does feature an extensive seating area in the center of the store.

Cafe Express
Address: 49 W. Maryland
Location: In the 1st floor of the Parisian store in Circle Centre Mall
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: *
Beans: No
Food: Yes
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: None
Last Visited: August 1996

With the numerous other Circle Centre coffeehouses, it is difficult to think of a reason other than extreme laziness to visit this place. Located right in the middle of the shopping floor on the ground level of the Parisian department store, there is nothing which partitions the coffee shop apart from the aisles or general shopping area. This leads to various annoyances such as having to dodge shoppers while standing in line. Also, the design is such that the seating area and the counter don't really seem connected. In fact, it is quite possible someone could buy something without realizing there even is seating. This shop's lack of any type of defined space makes me feel uncomfortable while sipping my cup. Seeing people shop while I'm drinking coffee is not really something I'm interested in (and probably vice versa for the shoppers). Some experiences were meant to go together, but sipping espresso and holding up a piece of clothing to see if it fits aren't two of them.

CATH, Inc.
Address: 126 N. Delaware St.
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: **
Beans: Yes
Food: No
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Limited
Last Visited: July 1996

I can't think of much to say about this storefront coffeehouse, which should tell you most of what you need to know about it. Located across Delaware from the City Market, this shop features Ok coffee in an undistinctive atmosphere. Last time I was here they were selling a drink called a "frappucino" (a la Starbucks), which ought to show how unoriginal this place is. On the plus side, there's nothing actively evil about CATH (which stands for Coffee and Tea House or is short for owner Cathy's name, depending on who you talk to),and Delaware St. is a good place for people watching (during business hours only). Note that the "Tea" part is for real. They carry a large selection.

Other Location
Address: Unknown
Location: City Market
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Last Visited: Never

Other Location
Address: 5401 E. 54th St.
Location: 54th and College
Neighborhood: Northside/SoBro
Rating: **
Last Visited: February 1998
Description: CATH recently moved into a small building across the street and turned this location into a real coffee house. The place was very busy when I stopped here on a recent Saturday. They now have a very prominet sign which is sure to attract more customers since their previous location was a bit hard to spot. They plan to add a deck for smokers come summertime. If this place lasts (and I'm pretty confident it will) I will upgrade it in the listing to the flagship location since it is better than the downtown shop.

Coffee Lover's Cappuccino Bar
Address: 135 N. Pennsylvania St.
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: Unrated
Beans: N/A
Food: N/A
Pastries: N/A
Outdoor Seating: N/A
Last Visited: Never

I don't know anything about this place.

Cornerstone Coffee and Espresso Bar
Address: 651 E 54th St.
Location: 54th and College
Neighborhood: Northside/SoBro
Rating: **
Beans: Yes
Food: No
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Limited
Last Visited: February 1997

The setting is all correct, with an ultra-hip location right across from the Jazz Kitchen and a quirky decor. But something is missing. The place is just never crowded enough to be truly hip and the few people who are there seem to be either very regular customers or close friends of the employees. I always feel like there's an in crowd here and I'm not part of it. Kinda like Cheers only nobody knows my name, nobody's glad I came. Appears to be under the same ownership as Java U.

Finale Dessert Cafe
Address: 3953 E. 82nd St.
Location: One of the nameless, faceless strip malls on 82nd St.
Neighborhood: Northside
Beans: N/A
Food: N/A
Pastries: N/A
Outdoor Seating: N/A
Rating: Unrated
Last Visited: Never

Supposedly an upscale dessert and cappuccino place.

Other Location
Address: 8904 E. 96th St.
Location: Somewhere in the 96th Street/I-69 mess
Neighborhood: Fishers
Last Visited: Never

The Fine Grind
Address: 39 W. Jackson Pl.
Location: Union Station
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: Unrated
Beans: N/A
Food: N/A
Pastries: N/A
Outdoor Seating: N/A
Last Visited: Never

I don't know anything about this place. However, since Union Station basically shut down, it is probably out of business.

Other Location
Address: 111 Monument Circle
Location: Bank One Center
Neighborhood: Downtown
Last Visited: Never

40 West Coffee Cafe
Address: 40 W. Jackson Pl.
Location: Omni Severin Hotel
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: **
Beans: Yes
Food: Yes
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Limited
Last Visited: November 1997

A coffee shop in the Omni Severin Hotel. A typical Starbucks clone kinda place. It's a grab a coffee (or lunch) to go type of coffeehouse. Not the type of establishment in which you're likely to encounter an intense philosophical conversation. Makes a nice alternative to Hubbard and Cravens when you are in the mood for a different place (though 40 West does use H&C beans).

Hubbard and Cravens Coffee Co.
Address: 4930 N. Pennsylvania St.
Location: 49th and Pennsylvania Neighborhood: Meridian-Kessler
Rating: **
Beans: Yes
Food: Yes
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Limited
Last Visited: August 1998

These guys decided to capitalize on the fact that Starbucks isn't in Indy yet to open a clone and be first to market with the concept. New, shiny, metallic. Lots of chrome. Upscale and yuppie. This is their new location. After a lease dispute with Melvin Simon and Associates, H&C closed their Circle Centre locations abruptly and moved to this new outpost on the north side. Apparently business is still going strong. H&C features high quality beans which they roast themsevles.

Java U
Address: 905 Indiana Ave.
Location: Strip mall near 10th and Indiana
Neighborhood: Downtown/Canal West
Rating: **
Beans: Yes
Food: Limited
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Limited
Last Visited: August 1996

Some moron in city government thought it would be a swell idea to have a "developer" put a strip mall downtown. That abomination at 10th and Indiana is where Java U is located (complete with a view of Taco Bell out the front window). I'll admit I was ready to give it one star just for location alone, but the shop itself is better than that. The place has an unfinished basement feel to it with a concrete floor and college dorm furniture scattered about. A few different coffees are available from a self service coffee bar. Local artwork adorns the walls. I was not impressed with the food. Customer base appears to be mostly commuters and others grabbing a quick coffee to go. There were no other sit down patrons the last time I was here (on a Saturday afternoon). Appears to be under the same ownership as Cornerstone Coffee.

Jitter Beans
Address: 1912 Broad Ripple Ave.
Location: About half way between College and Keystone on Broad Ripple Ave.
Neighborhood: Broad Ripple
Rating: ***
Beans: Yes
Food: Yes
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: No
Last Visited: August 1997

Located in a hard to spot strip mall store front, this coffee house is surprisingly large. It is also very well decorated with a wide variety of vintage furniture ranging from what appear to be antique tables and chairs to college apartment style couches. Various board games are scattered about for people to play. An upright piano stands against one wall. Apparently there are musical performances there from time to time too. The only real downside here was the contraption they used to make coffee. Instead of making drinks by hand, they have a device that looks suspiciously like the coffee vending machine at work. Press a button and presto -- a caffe latte. I must admit it tasted alright, but knowing it came out of some Rube Goldberg looking automated machine takes something away. It almost cost them their third star.

Lockerbie Coffee House
Address: 630 E. Michigan St.
Location: Just west of Michigan and College
Neighborhood: Downtown/Chatham Arch
Rating: **
Beans: Yes
Food: No
Pastries: Limited
Outdoor Seating: No
Last Visited: May 1997

This place is the newest entry into the already crowed NE downtown coffee house scene. It is located in an old industrial building that is being rehabbed across from the Lockerbie Pub. It is small and not as good as the nearby Abbey, but does have several unique points. There is a guitar by the counter that anyone can just pick up and play. They have a large selection of used paperbacks that are free to read there and cheap to buy. And there are some good titles (I saw books by, for example, Faulkner and Nabokov). There are also occasional music performances and poetry readings. It remains to be seen if they will survive in a low population, high competition area.

Mama Java's
Address: 101 W. Ohio St.
Location: Ohio and Illinois
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: N/A
Beans: N/A
Food: Yes
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: N/A
Last Visited: Never

I have never been here, but the unoriginal name doesn't give me much hope this place will be above average.

Modern Times Bookstore and Cyber Cafe
Address: 5363 N. College Ave.
Location: 54th and College
Neighborhood: Northside/SoBro
Rating: **
Beans: No
Food: Yes
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: No
Last Visited: May 1997

Modern Times is a small but cool new age bookstore which is well worth visiting completely apart from the java. They have a lunch counter setup where you can order food or coffee. Two terminals provide Internet access for the very reasonable rate (subject to change, so don't quote me) of $3.95 per hour. Probably an ok place to try the Internet, but not that great as a pure coffee shop. But that doesn't seem to be their ambition.

Monon Coffee Company
Address: 920 E. Westfield Bvld.
Location: In the heart of Broad Ripple
Neighborhood: Northside/Broad Ripple
Rating: **
Beans: No
Food: No
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Last Visited: April 1997

This small coffee house is located near the Broad Ripple terminus of the new Monon Trail (hence the name). The place is not very distinctive, but it is the closest coffee house to the Broad Ripple strip and so is bound to get some traffic. A seating area in the rear overlooking the canal is its most prominent feature. There are no flavors available to add to the coffee because the owner doesn't believe in them.

The MT Cup
Address: 1460 W. 86th St.
Location: NW corner of 86th St. and Ditch Rd./North Willow Commons strip mall
Neighborhood: Northside
Rating: **
Beans: Yes
Food: Limited
Pastries: Limited
Outdoor Seating: Limited
Last Visited: August 1996

This is the type of good, solid place that forms the base of any city's suburban coffeehouse scene. It's not distinctive, but it doesn't seem totally generic either. The general polish of the place and such touches as the wire/wicker chairs betray the far northside locale. A mostly white bread yuppie (is there any other kind of yuppie?) mix of customers. You are much more likely to see middle aged couples here than just about anyplace else. The food and pastry selection could be improved.

Other Location
Address: 331 Massachusetts Ave.
Location: On Mass Ave just north of New York St.
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: **
Last Visited: February 1997
Description: Located in a long, narrow, "shotgun" style storefront, this place does a surprisingly good business given the competition in the area. The decor is still upscale, but less polished than the northside location. A good alternative to the Abbey when you're ready for something different.

Also supposedly a location in Muncie.

Nordstrom Espresso Bar
Address: 49 W. Maryland St.
Location: Actually on west side of Meridian St. just north of Georgia/Circle Centre Mall
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: ***
Beans: Limited
Food: Limited
Pastries: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Limited
Last Visited: June 1996

Nordstrom sure knows how to do things right. This shop features a beautifully restored facade from a 19th century commercial building as its exterior. Inside is nice too, with an imitation pressed tin ceiling, wood paneling and stained glass. Crowd is mostly yuppie mall shoppers taking a break. Very limited (but very good) food menu consisting of foccacia sandwiches and some pastries.

Other Location
Address: 49 W. Maryland St.
Location: 2nd Floor of the Circle Centre Mall
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: **
Last Visited: December 1995
Description: A smaller coffee stand in the second floor shopping area. Has seating and food and so makes a good place to take a break from spending yourself into oblivion.

Passport Coffee and Tea Company
Address: 45 Boone Village Center
Location: Strip mall at NE corner of Ford Rd. and SR 334
Neighborhood: Zionsville
Telephone: (317) 873-3208
Rating: *
Beans: Yes (roasted in house)
Food: No
Pastries: No
Outdoor Seating: No
Last Visited: April 1997

This store in Zionsville roasts their own beans. You can actually see the raw beans and roasting equipment in the main room. Whether this translates into higher quality is of course debatable. As a coffee house however, this place is not very good. There are a couple of tables, but almost all customers are grabbing takeout orders. From speaking with the manager (owner?), I get the impression they really only sell coffee drinks out of a sense of obligation. It shows. But it is the only coffee shop in Zionsville.

Rubymoon Coffee
Address: 49 W. Maryland
Location: On the 2nd Floor of the Circle Centre Mall
Neighborhood: Downtown/Mile Square
Rating: Zero
Beans: No
Food: No
Pastries: Yes (from Cinnabon)
Outdoor Seating: No
Last Visited: August 1996

It's not really fair to rate Rubymoon zero stars since I probably shouldn't have listed it as a coffeehouse in the first place. It's really just an extended seating area for the Cinnabon shop next door. However, they do serve coffee and espresso and I've often seen people sitting and sipping, so I decided to count them in. Unfortunately for them. The coffee is thin and weak and reminded me of a bad fast food experience. Last time I was here, the person behind the counter tried to charge an old lady 25 cents for a glass of water - after she had already bought something else. Sheesh. Try one of the other innumerable Circle Centre coffee shops instead.

V. INDEXES

This section provides indexes of Indy's coffee houses by location and rating.

By Location

Downtown
The Abbey Coffeehouse
Cafe Exparess
CATH, Inc. (2 locations)
Coffee Lover's Cappuccino Bar
The Find Grind (2 locations)
40 West Coffee Cafe
Java U
Lockerbie Coffee House
Mama Javas
The MT Cup
Nordstrom Espresso Bar (2 locations)
Rubymoon Coffee

Greater Broad Ripple
CATH, Inc.
Cornerstone Coffee
Hubbard and Cravens Coffee Co.
Jitter Beans
Modern Times Bookstore and Cyber Cafe
Monon Coffee Company

Far Northside
The Abbey Coffeehouse
Barnes and Noble Cafe
Borders Books and Music
Finale Dessert Cafe (2 locations)
The MT Cup
Passport Coffee and Tea Company

By Rating

For those rated five and four stars, no explanation is required. Their superlative qualities will be obvious to just about anybody. Likewise, those rated average (two stars) merit no special explanation. However, for those rated above average (three stars) , below average (one or zero stars), I have included a brief note about what quality caused me to rate them that way.

*****
None

****
The Abbey Coffeehouse

***
Jitter Beans (Vintage furniture and overall decor)
Nordstrom Espresso Bar (Exterior and interior design)

**
Barnes and Noble Cafe
Borders Books and Music
CATH, Inc.
Cornerstone Coffee
40 West Coffee Cafe
Hubbard and Cravens Coffee Company
Java U
Lockerbie Coffee House
Modern Times Bookstore and Cyber Cafe
Monon Coffee Company
The MT Cup

*
Cafe Express (No sense of separation from the shopping area)
Passport Coffee and Tea Company (Limited seating and no customers)

Zero
Rubymoon Coffee (Extremely poor coffee and service)

Unrated
Coffee Lovers Cappuccino Bar
Finale Dessert Cafe
The Fine Grind
Mama Javas

Recent Openings
Hubbard and Cravens - Meridian-Kessler
Mama Java's

Recent Closings
Hubbard and Cravens - Circle Centre Mall

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