Friendly neighborhood coffee shop opening in Taunton this fall

After years of “grinding away” at perfecting roasting coffee and establishing a customer base for her coffee through grassroots marketing and service, Rachel Correia is finally ready to open up her storefront for The Neighbors Coffee and Co. this fall in downtown Taunton.

This storefront is something Correia has been striving for the last four years, since she first started experimenting with roasting coffee and began selling her beans online, through delivery service, and selling them, as well as her brewed drinks, at various regional farmers’ markets and special events.

“There are lots of great small businesses that make it and don’t make it. This was a lot of work and waiting,” said Correia, about her new storefront opening up at 32 Weir St.

What's being offered?

Correia’s assortment of freshly roasted and flavored, ethically sourced beans from all over the world will be available, whether hot, iced, cold brew, nitro, or in other specialty drink formats. She’s also excited about being able to have a full espresso bar for the first time.

Though the menu is not yet finalized at time of writing, The Neighbors Coffee will also serve pastries (sourced from a local baker in Taunton), breakfast and lunch sandwiches, and salads, making it an optimal coffee shop and café experience for those in-and-out customers looking to grab-and-go.

What's the vibe?

Correia said the goal for her business is to be a “comfortable casual space for anyone.” She elaborated that “the biggest pet peeve I have is walking in and feeling like I’m not cool enough to be there.” So she wants a chill environment that’s welcome to all for patrons and reflective of “the community we are in.”

The friendly, neighborhood coffee shop vibe means basic features, like a sofa and cozy chairs, a healthy mixture of lamps and natural light from windows, free WiFi, and friendly employees.

She added she also believes this will be an ideal location for remote workers needing a change of environment to come in with their laptops and carry on, while drinking their coffee and eating their meals.

Location, location, location!

With this location being within walking distance of Taunton Green, Main Street, City Hall, police headquarters, and other landmarks in the city, Correia sees The Neighbors Coffee and Co. bringing in significant foot traffic. Her research concluded that, aside from the Honey Dew Donuts on Weir Street, she will have the only other coffee place within a 1.5 mile radius.

“For me, the timing and location are right. Out of all the places I could have turned up, I’m most excited about this location.”

She adds that with the municipal parking lot across the street at Galligans Court, as well as her business being far away enough from Main Street and the Taunton Green to make in-and-out street parking easier, parking should be plenty accessible for customers stopping by.

Freshness is key

After experimenting with roasting coffee at home, Correia, in the middle of the pandemic, found commercial production space at the Dartmouth Grange 162 Kitchen to faster produce roasts and start her traveling and online retail operation selling coffee.

Before long she was roasting 60-70 pounds of coffee, 4-5 pounds at a time, at the grange weekly so she could take individual 12 ounce bags of coffee with her on the road. 

She told the Gazette last year her small batch approach ensured freshness.

Said Correia in September 2022: “I think the overall quality is the big difference between small batch and mass-produced coffee, but freshness is huge. I think that's the main thing that people taste when they have it, and they're like, ‘wow, I've never had coffee like this.’ The flavor is for sure different.”

Correia said she will continue to roast her coffee at the Dartmouth Grange due to logistics issues:  her gas coffee roaster needs to vent to the outside, and her storefront space, at this time, can’t accommodate that requirement.

Opening date

There is, at this time, no set date for when The Neighbors Coffee and Co. will open its doors. Correia is hoping for October, based on finishing the permitting process, the remodeling, and moving in the furniture.

Her online and delivery operations will continue once the storefront opens, but she will scale back her markets and events appearances.

Correia said she plans to hire four to five part-time employees for the storefront.

This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: The Neighbors Coffee and Co. opening in Taunton this fall