Spilling the Beans on the Best Coffee in Banner Elk

For those on a mission to find the best coffee in and around Banner Elk (including Sugar Mountain & Beech Mountain), your cup will runneth over at these mug-nificent cafés.

Scroll down to learn more about Banner Elk’s coffee scene and pick the perfect blend of locations expresso-ly for your tastes.

Located in Banner Elk Café with its own side entrance, The Lodge Expresso Bar & Eatery is the longest standing coffee shop in Banner Elk.

Owned by a ski family, The Lodge is well-known for hot chocolate served in large mugs with copious amounts of whipped cream. Skiers love to wake up and smell the coffee at The Lodge before hitting the slopes.

However, the menu is more than just cocoa. Choose from coffees, lattes, cappuccinos, expressos, frappes and smoothies. Fresh baked treats fill the bakery case morning, noon and night.

The Lodge also serves a menu of deli sandwiches and tasty pizzas (dine-in or to-go).

For coffee lovers with a sweet tooth, BE Scooped offers the ideal blend. The shop serves fresh roasted coffees, cappuccinos, lattes and more, along with a menu of tasty ice cream treats.

Ice cream aficionados choose from regular and waffle cones, milkshakes, malts, affagatos and other sweet treats. BE Scooped even carries peanut butter-bananna-yogurt ice cream for dogs.

If you’ve never bean to BE Scooped, better latte than never. It could be the start of a brew-tiful relationship.

Founded by two brothers in 2012, Fred & Larry’s Coffee has bean a popular spot ever since.

This brew-tifully decorated shop uses locally roasted, non-GMO, high-quality coffee beans. Many varieties of coffees, espressos, lattes, frappes and smoothies are available. Herbal teas, too.

Be sure to check out the large selection of bagels, pastries and muffins.

The shop brews up a schedule of live music in the warmer months.

Located at the base of Grandfather Mountain in the Tynecastle area of Banner Elk, Mountain Grounds Coffee & Tea Co. will mocha your tastes buds stand up and take notice.

Mountain Grounds serves freshly brewed coffees and specialty teas to satisfy every palate. The menu has many food items, such as breakfast burritos, bagels, pimento cheese croissants, turkey clubs and gluten-free options. Locally sourced pastries, too.

Online ordering is available, and the café hosts community percent days, when 10% of sales go to local non-profits.

It had bean a while since a coffee spot opened in Banner Elk until Waterbean Coffee brewed up a location at 159 Main Street West in the former bookstore for Lees-McRae College.

Waterbean was founded in the Charlotte region in 2013 and has locations throughout North Carolina.

Although you can’t order a “grande” at Waterbean, you can still enjoy a grand. The Banner Elk location is one of several featuring a baby grand piano.

All coffee is hand-roast in small batches, while the menu includes tea, baked treats, sandwiches, ice cream and other items.

Waterbean Coffee operates independently of the college and is open year round.