Bald Guy Brew Blowing Rock — Restaurant in Blowing Rock

Coffee Shop No. 493 Bald Guy Brew Blowing Rock, NC April 9, 2025

I was instantly drawn to this shop because of their name. Bald Guy Brew! The logo might be one of my favorites of all the coffee shops I have visited. Sadly, my barista had hair 😉and there were no stickers. Not only do I enjoy cortados, but I have a thing for stickers from coffee shops. I should use that hashtag. #coffeeshopstickers I can’t be the only 80’s baby who has a thing for stickers from coffee shops.

The setting of the Bald Guy Brew is picturesque. It sits at the end of a busy street in a little mountain village. Chairs and tables are set up outside. We actually soaked in some sun before I walked in and bought a cortado.

The shop was aesthetically pleasing with different colors of wood, black borders and accents, and plenty of natural light. My gaze was immediately drawn toward one of the most beautiful Kyoto-style slow drip coffee tower I’ve ever seen. The live edge of the tower was stunning and it hung majestically on the wall. I couldn’t help but stand there and admire it for a bit. The atmosphere was relaxing and peaceful. I could have sat there all day in the coffee shop.

The cortado’s description on the menu, “A ‘cortado’ is a serving of espresso that is cut with an equal part, or slightly more, of warm milk,” made me hesitate. I was worried it gave the barista freedom to turn my cortado into a flat white; which happens often. But I noticed the word “cut” in the description so I went ahead and ordered the cortado (I know…having coffee drama or problems is a tough life). The cortado was delicious served at a perfect temperature with a good ratio of milk to espresso.

Enjoying life one...

It is a really fun looking place on the outside so we decided to go in about 5:30pm on Saturday 11/21/20. That was our mistake. The young lady working behind the counter may have been having a bad day because she obviously did not want us in there, maybe they were closing soon. Also, it was probably a busy day and I understand the demands that some people put on people in the service industry. My wife ordered a coffee with vanilla syrup and cream and I ordered an iced Nitro with cream and vanilla syrup. I was looking at the shirts and other things as the drinks were being made so I did not pay much attention to what was going on. When I got the drink it did look weak but I did not think much about it. We were given no thank you, come back, nothing. We took the drinks to the little park to drink them and about 2 sips in, I was done and so was my wife. The Nitro had no syrup in it and was the worst coffee drink I have ever tried to drink. The other coffee tasted as though it was on at least the second round of being brewed. We both threw both of the drinks in the trash can at the park. This was almost $10 wasted. I know this is a small business and I do not normally leave reviews of this sort but this was not a good experience from the time we entered this shop. I do not want you to lose business but you really need to teach your associates the value of customer service and product quality to...

As a local who lives here year-round, I feel extremely fortunate to have a coffee shop like Bald Guy in town. Fair-trade, organic coffee roasted perfectly. Great specialty drinks, and fantastic service. I usually don't even have to say my order out loud - the baristas start making it as soon as I walk in the door. "Por la amistad" is imprinted on the wall in the shop, which means "for friendship". They take that seriously.

I've also never met someone who knows more about coffee than the owner. Don is truly a genius on all-things-coffee. An artist and a mad-scientist. His roastery is top-notch, and he is very dedicated to the Fair-Trade aspect of the coffee business. He's built relationships with the people in his supply chain all over the world, and makes sure that everyone is being fairly compensated for their work. I'm always happy to pay a small amount more for the coffee here knowing the farmer is being treated with respect and paid fairly for their beans - something that's often not the case in the coffee business.

Whether you're a local or a visitor: If you're looking for a great cup of coffee, I can't recommend this...