Many end up at JoStella Coffee Company because of its location. On the corner of South Virginia Street and St. Lawrence Avenue, it sits perfectly in the middle of Midtown.
A table outside proffers the best people watching the city has to offer, and also provides a nice atmosphere for catching up with friends. Inside, there’s almost always at least one person typing away on a laptop with a cup of specialty coffee in hand.
If the inviting warmth of the space and the gorgeous red brick building haven’t pulled you in yet, the fall drink menu may be enough to push you over the edge. With the same spirit of the commercial chain coffee joints, JoStella has put out a menu of seasonal favorites sure to put you into a festive mood, if the weather hasn’t gotten you there already.
A pumpkin spice cold foam cold brew and a pumpkin spice latte (or PSL) sound familiar, but they are just the beginning of the seasonal menu. Coffee lovers can also indulge in a maple cinnamon latte (where the cinnamon is steamed right into the milk), a butter rum white chocolate mocha, a pumpkin spice chai or a blueberry pancake latte.
We know, it’s almost too much to take.
Not every drink can be offered with all of the alternatives and extras we’ve come to expect of our morning (or afternoon) coffee, but there are a lot of ways to customize drinks to match your dietary needs.
JoStella has an impressive list of milk alternatives, not just one or two the way many corner coffee joints do. Instead, you can order up your coffee with coconut, oat, soy, almond or regular milk. You can also substitute in no-sugar syrups and order many drinks decaf. It’s the type of customization you’ve come to expect from Starbucks but can now enjoy while supporting—and enjoying—local, as well.
Outside of the fall season, there are plenty of year-round specialty beverages at JoStella, written in chalk above the counter on the back wall. There’s everything from a Milky Way mocha to an Almond Joy.
My favorite is a twist on the white chocolate mocha, which uses a sugar-free syrup instead of a powder to meet my dairy-free preference and is finished with coconut milk. And as an added perk, this coffee, like most on the menu, is available in regular or decaf so you can even enjoy it as a nightcap.
Rounding out the menu are breakfast sandwiches, bakery items (on display to tempt you as you order coffee), tea and an impressive list of smoothies (including several fruit varieties and peanut butter).
