The Fainting Goat Coffee- Franklin — Restaurant in Franklin

The Space: The Franklin location of The Fainting Goat has an open feel. Comfy, minimalist lounge chairs line one wall of large plate glass windows which provide a view of the historic Carter House and its park-like grounds across the street. There are a few two-top tables, one four-top table, bar seating for about eight, and three unique, cubby-like, one sided booths. Each of these has room for two people and seems like it would provide a nice quiet-ish, private-ish space where you could work. The vibe inside is welcoming, but it seems to be lacking a bit of Hygge. I wouldn’t say it’s warm and convivial. It’s nice, but a bit cold and impersonal inside. It is bordering on having a major chain coffee shop feel to it. My personal preference for a coffee shop is subdued lighting and a warm color scheme. The color scheme in this place features a lot of bright white walls and stark, contrasting blacks. The background music was a bit on the loud side. And during my visit, they played nothing but top 40 bubble-gum pop music. I don’t mind this music; however, I prefer a bit of variety. There’s so much music out there in the world, and everyone has different tastes in music, so why not mix it up a bit. Honestly, the choice of music in this place could possibly keep me from dining in here. I will try it again on another day and see if it’s the same. If it is, I will be ordering take-out only. It might be a good idea to wear noise cancelling headphones in here if you’re not a fan of the sappy, bass heavy pop love ballads or the bouncy, sugary sweet pop tunes. That being said, you might love their choice in background music, and if that’s the case, then you will feel right at home with the sugary pop tunes blasting away while you’re trying to have a conversation, read or write. **UPDATE: I gave them a second visit, and the volume of the music was noticeably lower. And there was a great mix of tunes playing as well!

This is a counter service only coffee shop. When you walk in (from the parking lot), you will enter the ordering queue to the left. All coffees are served in paper cups unless you bring in your own cup, or if you request a ceramic mug. Their ceramic mugs are only 12oz, and I don’t think this includes any free refills.

The Coffee: I ordered a dark roast drip coffee and it was pretty good. A nice roasty (but not over-roasted) cup o’ joe.

The Food: The Franklin location, their newest location, has (for now) a somewhat limited food menu with more items to be added soon. They have breakfast burritos, and breakfast empanadas, as well as some pastries and muffins. I ordered the Bacon Breakfast Burrito. I was surprised by the size of it. There was enough burrito for me to share with one other person. While it was overall a good burrito, it was a little on the dry side, and it was pretty salty. I didn’t see sour cream on the menu as an add-on, but that would have helped to tame the dryness. It did come with salsa, but I chose not to add heat to my breakfast. You certainly get a lot of food for your money; however, I don’t usually eat this much for breakfast and would have loved to have been able to order a plain croissant or some toast with preserves. Perhaps these will become available as time goes on. My burrito was served wrapped in foil and placed in a paper bag. Everything seems to be geared for the to-go customer. No plates, no metal utensils. Just a lot of future land fill fodder.

They also have a very nice outdoor space and a cool rooftop lounge as well; however, it was too chilly during my visit to spend any time out there.

Overall I would give this place a recommendation. The food is good, the coffee is great, and the atmosphere, while lacking a bit of Hygge, is still nice and clean. And one last note, the staff were all very friendly and polite, which is always...

This is more for management to correct what is wrong and not a reflection on their coffee or staff. It literally takes no shorter than 15 minutes every time you go get a coffee here. You really need to fix your front register process. Every time i go in there is a line. IF its two people in front of you it takes 10-12 minutes to get your order. This is every time. They have two registers but there is always just one person. (I asked the girl today at the register why isn't there two people and she said we never have two people. (She is right never seen two). Then when you make an order, they are actually taking the customers order, walking from the register and making coffee. It doesn't make sense at all. There were families with kids in front of us and these poor folk were standing there for 15 minutes waiting for coffee. This is a coffee shop still guys not a restaurant. To make it more efficient in the line have two people on register as soon as there is more than 3 people in line and also have someone as back up for the drips and food not the person at the register. You know how frustrating it is to wait then pull up to the register and the cashier is making coffee, food etc for the person before you. Your already charging so much for your food, coffee ,etc and then you have people waiting like your at a restaurant. Again, coffee great and people friendly but why have your customers suffer in line with this inefficiency. (FYI- I do see families and others walk out because of this.. I have time but obviously others are...

My wife introduced me to this super charming, amazing cafe, equipped with the kindest staff, making the best coffee drinks. I love a good latte.. specifically a breve latte. So much so that I have a commercial grade machine and grinder at home. I’ve been blessed enough to experience lattes and breve lattes from the United States to Tokyo and back. As funny as it may sound to some, The Fainting Goat makes the best breve latte I’ve ever had, period. My wife and I love to bring our laptops to The Fainting Goat so we can enjoy their many offerings. She’s more adventurous than I am. She usually tries the various menu items and is always super pleased. I always get an iced black tea (which is spectacular) and my breve latte. The staff is as kind as they are knowledgeable and they are very knowledgeable. It’s important to support local businesses and this is one that’s out here getting it right in a way that beats some of the most competitive markets anywhere in the world. If you haven’t given these folks a try, please do. You’ll be...