Lightbrite Coffee Roasters — Restaurant in Grimes

Holy wow, how is there a coffee place THIS CREATIVE and AMAZING in a strip mall in Grimes, Iowa? The drinks are inspired (seriously; I'm not overstating). The owners are friendly and obviously passionate about what they have created. On my first visit, of course I had to try the coffee flight. Boom- why don't more places offer this? On my second visit, I had a cortado with oat milk- and who knew, cortados can be good with oat milk? Then I had two drinks off of their spring menu. HOLY SCHMOLEY, I am STILL thinking about those drinks. First, the Brown Butter Oat- an Oat milk latte with house-made Browned Vegan Butter & Brown Sugar syrup, topped with a pinch of Pink Salt. That sprinkle of salt gave it a crunch and a twist that was surprising and delicious. And vegan! Then, the (mostly) caffeine-free and very colorful Blue Skies - Organic Butterfly Pea Flower (aka “Blue Matcha”), almond milk & house-made Jasmine syrup.

I Cannot. Stop. Thinking. About. This. Drink. Out of this world flavor. And did I mention the color?

The only downside of Lightbrite is the smallish seating area. Quite frankly this would not be a downside if it was a tucked away secret, but I think the word is out about how great this place is. If you go there to work for a couple hours, as I did, you will be lucky to find a spot to set up your computer. And if you are lucky enough to get one, you will quickly feel guilty for taking up part of the seating area when so many folks are coming in and looking for a spot to sit. Maybe someday another spot in that strip mall will open up and they can expand. Until then, go early or consider offering half your table to strangers looking for a seat. Have a great drink and make a new friend! Win-win.

Thanks Lightbrite folks for some...

TOP TIER COFFEE, STAFF, AND HANGS.

I’m from Minneapolis where there is an incredibly vibrant Third Wave culture and came to Des Moines for work. Lightbrite came across my radar and I wanted to check it out.

Coffee was excellent. I got a shot of spro and some batch brew. Both were incredibly giving coffees with some nice complexity to satisfy both those who have been in the specialty world for a bit and those who are new to the world of more-complex coffee profiles.

I got to chat with the owners Matt and Megan for a bit and learn the ethos of the shop. Both are incredibly kind people who care about servicing their community and cherishing their customers. Good folks that you should talk to when you have the chance.

Cafe vibe is great, you should go it’s...

The barista was super friendly, way helpful and cool to talk to. It's a modern little spot, a couple people were enjoying wifi. It doesn't have a super coffeehouse vibe to me - but that didn't bother me, I was simply stopping to grab a coffee on my drive home. I actually had two. Both were fairly smooth espresso's, not overly sweet, but also not over the top amazing. It was a decent cup, not to bitter. I did two different iced lattes, and for the life of me can't recall the two names. One was a seasonal drink, one was listed under favorites. I preferred the seasonal drink to the other one (maybe tuxedo? or something along those lines)! Regardless, I'll stop again. Just not my favorite coffee ever - but the barista made it...