The 50 Best College Coffee Shops in America
By Complex Magazine | May 10, 2011 | 1:40 pm | Permalink
34. Common Grounds
School: University of Kentucky
Address: 343 East High St # 4, Lexington, Ky.
commongroundsoflexington.com
Live Music
Outdoor Seating
Common Grounds is just like any other coffee shop, but with two differences. With 4 rooms with which to put your stuff, the place is huge. The main room is filled with people playing games, talking loudly, or listening to the occasional live music. But through the other rooms of the building different dynamics grow, alliances are made, boundaries are drawn, petitions are being signed to ban the Decemberists from the playlist, and all of it is fueled by the never ending cup of coffee they offer (you’re reading that right).
Yoff May 10th, 2011 at 08:38 PM
Number one coffee shop is in Texas. List invalidated. kthxbye.
qwertygrl May 11th, 2011 at 11:20 PM
i think you'd change your mind if you actually visited spider house. it really is all the review makes it out to be.
JackEComplex May 12th, 2011 at 11:18 AM
Each of these spots is worthy, but we're standing by Spider House at No. 1. Curious what Yoff's reasoning would be in dismissing a coffee shop in Texas. Texans don't need coffee because...the steaks and concealed gun laws are enough to keep you up at night?
mikekingjr May 13th, 2011 at 02:52 PM
Plus as a UT grad, let me assure you: Austin isn't reeeeeeally part of Texas. An Oasis of awesomeness in a state of lameness.
CHL-Latte May 13th, 2011 at 03:36 PM
Both CHL and chai latte in-hand. You don't know Austin if you don't think anything and everything goes here--lots of gay cowboy republican vegans. Great place to live and go to school. Yee-effen-haw.
jollyjj May 12th, 2011 at 01:41 PM
If you're a liberal Easterner (like I am), you should see no reason why a coffee shop in Texas should automatically be bad. Judging a whole state based on the opinions of some is far from open-minded.
csconine May 10th, 2011 at 11:20 PM
Could this list be more of a pain in the ass to click through?
Will May 11th, 2011 at 12:04 PM
no.
eM May 12th, 2011 at 06:21 PM
Agreed. Only looked at #1 since it was too annoying to click through each and every single one.
ohcoya May 15th, 2011 at 02:13 PM
Exactly what I was thinking. Annoying as eff.
Ed May 17th, 2011 at 05:15 PM
You're not freaking kidding. After going through 5 I was frantically looking for just a list somewhere!
Lorrie May 11th, 2011 at 12:33 PM
Dear list folks: Trabant's address is 1309 NE 45th St, Seattle, WA. Not 309.
JackEComplex May 12th, 2011 at 03:51 PM
Thanks Lorrie!
haha May 11th, 2011 at 01:28 PM
the level off asshurt going on here is hilarious
dogface May 11th, 2011 at 04:20 PM
yo this coffee shop rocks some crazy socks off!
Dennis May 12th, 2011 at 09:18 AM
The site owners need to find a better way to navigate through the list like this. It was painful going through this and the web control provided is awful. I'd much rather see a listing of the places than navigating through this control. From a web part developer, this looks cool but is very poorly designed, slow, and clunky to use. I stopped a third of the way through.
Mona May 12th, 2011 at 11:05 AM
Arguably the BEST coffee shop in the US. Delicious locally roasted artisan coffee + expeditious service always served with a smile.
JackEComplex May 12th, 2011 at 03:52 PM
Hey Mona, which one are you talking about?
Mona May 12th, 2011 at 08:41 PM
I am singing the praises of small world coffee in Princeton, NJ!
Jerome May 16th, 2011 at 12:56 PM
Small World definitely should have been rating higher. It's awesome.
Andrew May 12th, 2011 at 11:45 AM
i'm a little disappointed that the University of Texas didn't make the list. WTF?
JackEComplex May 12th, 2011 at 03:51 PM
Andrew! You got No. 1: http://www.complex.com/city-guide/2011/05/the-50-best-college-coffee-shops-in-america/spider-house#gallery Now, go find Yoff and tell him why UT has such a strong coffee culture!
Brian Curr May 12th, 2011 at 12:16 PM
Trident Booksellers & Cafe is in Boston on Berklee College of Music (berklee.edu) urban campus. MIT is in another city across the Charles River - Cambridge, MA. A MIT student would have to walk a mile-and-half to grab a cup of coffee at Trident Booksellers. A Berklee College of Music student walks a few feet. Can you correct?? Or, did MIT pay you to put Trident on their campus! :-) Thanks!
JackEComplex May 12th, 2011 at 03:54 PM
Good point Brian. We'll add Berklee to the entry. Thanks.
permazorch May 12th, 2011 at 12:20 PM
Bourgeoise Pig is great fun. That's all.