Time for a Coffee Break + Change

Laurie and I were out and about in Lenoir City Tennessee…probably for a doctor’s appointment or some other medical need.  In any case, when we were done, it was time to reward ourselves for being up by 8 AM and having completed our required task.

We headed to Master Donut to pick up a well-deserved treat…only to discover that the family that operates Master Donut had gone off on a spring break!  Bummer!  What to do now?  Laurie had a solution for us which could provide some solace…

The sign on this side of the building identifies this as the Ugly Mug Coffee Café.  On the other side, where we parked, another sign proclaims that this is Ramblin’ Joe’s Coffee.  Name or brand clarity didn’t prevail and I’m fairly sure that it used to be just Ugly Mug.  In any case, we’d been here before…Laurie more often than yours truly, and we knew the coffee was good! 

Ugly Mug is not a huge place with a scattering of tables inside, the outside seating shown in the first photo…and of course, they have a drive-up window.  As you can see, they had folks waiting in line for their coffee and accompaniments…

A review of the websites for Ugly Mug and Ramblin’ Joe revealed that they are part of the same company.  Why two names are used is not clear.  As per one of the sites, Ramblin’ Joe works for Ugly Mug Coffee and is their ‘head discovery person’.  He travels across the country and around the world searching for unique coffee flavors and products.

Laurie and I were at Ugly Mug for coffee and of course a treat to boost our morale…or as a reward for doing what we had to do medically.  In addition to a variety of beverages including coffee, smoothies, hot chocolate and even tea, they offer a number of breakfast and lunch options ranging from sweet treats to sandwiches… Decisions, decisions!

Ugly Mug is open 7 days a week…Monday – Saturday from 7 AM to 7 PM, then Sunday from 8 AM until 3 PM.  Please note that the sweets in the display case were fairly depleted as it was around lunch time when we stopped by.

Ugly Mug in Lenoir City has been open for quite some time now…measured in years.  As a testament to the establishment’s popularity, many regular customers keep their own personal mugs here for their frequent visits.  That is quite a collection.

Who in the heck is that old timer with the classic t-shirt, beard and the big mug of coffee?!  Well, when I was 18 I looked like a young Clark Kent…

I should have gone with my Master Donut fantasy with a sweet treat, but instead I ordered a ham and cheese breakfast bagel. ($6.93) It was OK but I was left a bit let down re: my original expectations.  As Laurie would tell me, once again I ordered wrong… The coffee was excellent though!

Ugly Mug is a locally owned, Tennessee based coffee roaster, something that they’ve been doing for 3 generations.  Their coffee beans are sourced directly from the farms and they head roaster ‘crafts’ the beans to coax out the most distinct flavors in an effort to create a product that their customers love…

For her reward/breakfast treat, Laurie chose a Cream Danish. ($3.65) It was good, but what she really raved about was her beverage, the medium size Full Moon Latte with white chocolate expresso. ($5.15) It was quite eye catching too!

Ramblin’s Joe’s Coffee and its sister coffee roaster, Ugly Mug Coffee, were founded in Memphis Tennessee in 2002.  It is a bit strange that the 3 stores are in Memphis, Nashville…and relatively tiny Lenoir City Tennessee.  I think that family might be involved with the latter location.

Ugly Mug Coffee in Lenoir City is located at 108 South ‘B’ Street.  Phone: 865-816-6355.  Website: Lenoir City, TN Cafe – Ugly Mug Coffee Roasters.  The web site for Ramblin’ Joe’s Coffee is found at Ramblin' Joe's Coffee – Ramblin' Joe's Coffee (ramblinjoescoffee.com).

We have a new addition to our neighborhood!  Last week, a porta potty sporting the University of Tennessee Volunteers bright orange was dropped off right across the street from our house.  Lovely to look at…but it gave us hope too as the lot had been cleared a year ago and then left to go fallow.  It was pretty ugly.

I wonder how many porta potty companies exist here in the Knoxville metropolitan area… I do know that at least 30 of them are in place within a mile of our home!

As anticipated given the porta potty delivery, this week the heavy equipment moved in to grade, dig the base for the foundation and break up the granite that is everywhere under the homes in our neighborhood!  Hopefully, by Christmas we’ll have a finished home across the street rather than the unkempt lot we’ve experienced for these many months.  Sadly, it’s one more space gone where our local wildlife roam.  Fewer and fewer deer, and turkey are showing up…but our local fox family has dug in and is loving all the little critters our lawns and gardens attract.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave