The Kind Cup — Restaurant in Corolla

Coffee Shop No. 412 The Kind Cup Corolla, NC September 5, 2024

Is it an art shop? Is it a coffee roasting plant? Is it a cafe? The Kind Cup is all of these and so much more!

After my son and I climbed the Currituck Beach Lighthouse and strolled through the Historic Corolla Park I was ready for an energy boost and the joy of another cortado. We walked under the canopy of trees, stopped to watch all the children playing at the chapel/school house and then crossed the street to the heart of the village to The Kind Cup.

From across the street the first thing I noticed was the round black sign with white lettering, “Corolla’s Coffee Roaster”. If a shop roasters their own beans you can almost always guarantee a good cup of coffee; so I definitely had a jovial skip as I walked up to the shop. As I climbed the three steps to the porch a colorful sign caught my attention, “Art and Coffee are good for the soul”. I had a good feeling I was about to walk into a gem.

The Kind Cup is a brightly lit, well organized, and an inviting space for people to browse through local artists’ work; everything from ceramics, to painting, jewelry, stationary and so much more. The bonus was the rich aroma of coffee lingering through the shop. I was in heaven. I spent 45 minutes walking through the shop admiring the artwork and marveling over the talented hands and spirit of the artists. I purchased a few items for family and friends and each of them commented on the positively on their gifts.

The three you ladies at the coffee counter shared the magic of souther charm with all the customers. They were polite, engaging, easy to chat to and wore a sweet smile. We talked about coffee and the shop. Then one of the young ladies made a delicious cortado that I took out to their porch, sipped on and watched people walking in and out of the shop.

The Kind Cup is definitely a spot you do not want to miss if you are ever visiting the Historic Corolla Village in the northern part of the Outer Banks.

Enjoying life one...

I am here during the shoulder season visiting family who live here full time. The first thing I got was the Corolla fog. It wasn't my cup of tea because I didn't taste the lavender or earl grey just carmel? But my husband got a fall fritz and I fell in love with it!

I got the fall fritz like 5-6 times already during my stay, pretty much everyday. The first few days the staff were super nice. I ordered the drink without ice because my toddler usually sips on things with me and ice can lead to drink all over or toddler hands in my cup.

The last 24 hours of service has been weird and has scared me off of coming back this season. I ordered my drink like normal yesterday (actually ordered 2) and I noticed it wasn't filled as high as the last few days so I asked about it. She said they do things by portions and that is how it was. I said ok no problem and went on my way.

I ordered the same drink today and the same baristas were there. As I was paying she said it won't be as full because of the lack of ice, which felt weird. Now I get the drink and it is like really noticeably different even from yesterday, like fingers below. And I ask about it again and she is like well that is where the ice would have been and I guess other people before have made it differently. This was a different story then she told me yesterday. She did eventually put a little more in to yesterdays level.

What sort of bad day do you have to be having to be vindictive towards a customer who just asked a question yesterday and didn't even argue it? Please check on this barista.

Other than that would recommend here because the drink was obviously good enough to back several times, even if i am scared...

I will never understand why someone charges such a price for a Tea but then has you make it yourself in a lobby you cannot even access. We waited in line for probably about 30+ minutes only to find out you had to make your own tea, which I was not going to pay for a cup of water to then make my own tea when I literally could not even move in the main area. My husband got a cold brew with Sugar-free vanilla and I ended up getting a Chobani blueberry yogurt as a snack with nothing to drink. After waiting very very long to get to the front (with a toddler) I was not given a spoon or offered one and I had walked out before my husband due to it being so extremely packed in that tiny building. When I went back in, I had to squeeze my way through the extremely long line to get someone’s attention to get a spoon only to find out. They are behind the counter and you have to get one from somebody works there. There was even a customer that made the comment that it was difficult for me to get one.

My husband and I started our 2 1/2 mile walk back to our house. He took a sip of his coffee and it was so incredibly sweet. He had to wait for the ice to melt to water it down to be able to drink it.

We were so excited to support a local business, but unfortunately, this is not a local business we will probably be supporting in the future. There were even people behind us in the line stating that it simply was not worth the wait and the chaotic atmosphere for a...