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Conversation.
Community.
Custom Coffee.

We’re proud to offer a variety of delicious espresso and coffee drinks, plus all kinds of smoothies, ice cream and tasty, healthy, local food.
What makes us different, though, is how we promote community conversations in Mt. Gilead, N.C.

Community

Conversation

Custom Coffee

We’re Kyle and Myra Poplin, the owners of Speckled Paw Coffee, and we formerly published a monthly news magazine. We loved helping keep people informed and, especially, the community conversations that resulted from thoughtful news stories. We’ve seen how civilized discussion – as opposed to yelling and screaming on social media – can help bring a community together. What’s that got to do with a coffee shop? Read on…

You remember your cool hometown newspaper? Well, it’s gone … and it’s not coming back. (Curses to you, internet!) There’s a news void  in small towns that’s being filled in a variety of ways. One of those ways, we think, is the local coffee shop. Our coffee shops are not only places where news is discussed, but also where news is packaged for the entire community to read.  That’s what our newsletters are all about.

We like small towns. We like coffee shops. We think those two things blend quite well. Our goal is to provide great food and drink in a comfortable space with excellent service. We hooked up with the best coffee roaster (thanks, Cactus Creek) and bakers in the area. Our coffee and treats are definitely big-city quality. The trick is, we serve them with a small-town, down-home touch. Stop in and we’ll prove it.

Check out our newsletter!

This is the reckoning, this is our test

Here's a poem written by Andell McCoy. It's based on the message she delivered at Saturday's Black History Month celebration at the Highland Community Center. In these coming days of cruel extremes I ask, Who are we destined to be? Forever...

The suburban guide to not raising chickens

John B. Marek is a storyteller with dirt under his nails who weaves tales inspired by a lifetime immersed in nature. His insightful essays and award-winning fiction delve into the complexities of sustainable living, the heart of rural communities and the thrill of...

A meditation

A poem by Andell McCoy May   I/we be fully present and accepting of all that is  in a most positive and  productive way  in an effort to promote  more calm,  balanced healthy ractional movement  on the planet and in the world May I/we be...

Learn typewriter repair

John B. Marek is a storyteller with dirt under his nails who weaves tales inspired by a lifetime immersed in nature. His insightful essays and award-winning fiction delve into the complexities of sustainable living, the heart of rural communities and the thrill of...

Eyes wide open

A poem by Andell McCoy A beating heartA breathA vision A lifethe kaleidoscopeadventurefrom birth to deathmeasured in human timein and out ofrhythm,in and out ofrhyme The moments, the minutes, hours, days, monthsand yearsof the ticking clock,ticking, ticking,...

A mystery without resolution

John B. Marek is a storyteller with dirt under his nails who weaves tales inspired by a lifetime immersed in nature. His insightful essays and award-winning fiction delve into the complexities of sustainable living, the heart of rural communities and the thrill of...

A magnificent and wonderful picture show

This week, Mt. Gilead's Andell McCoy takes us on a train ride, via poetry. The train,  the whistle, hum  and roar of movement,  metal against metal,  steel boxes grinding against steel tracks meeting at high speeds holding, carrying  city/country folks,...

Requiem for a latte

John B. Marek is a storyteller with dirt under his nails who weaves tales inspired by a lifetime immersed in nature. His insightful essays and award-winning fiction delve into the complexities of sustainable living, the heart of rural communities and the thrill of...

How do we measure up?

John B. Marek is a storyteller with dirt under his nails who weaves tales inspired by a lifetime immersed in nature. His insightful essays and award-winning fiction delve into the complexities of sustainable living, the heart of rural communities and the thrill of...

Nobody asked for this

John B. Marek is a storyteller with dirt under his nails who weaves tales inspired by a lifetime immersed in nature. His insightful essays and award-winning fiction delve into the complexities of sustainable living, the heart of rural communities and the thrill of...

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