Village Bakery & Cafe, Athen Ohio

First off, this place does not have espresso. Now I have never heard of a cafe that doesn't not serve espresso, until now. They have fair trade coffee and organic food, with a menu true to their theme. I would say this place is not bad. It is kind of like a cafe meets a market meets a gift shop. With stickers, mugs, t-shirts, and other various items to purchase, they let you buy just about anything that's not nailed down. They have two different seating areas. One is more diner-esk with padded booths and a bar by the wall. The other is in their little market area, more secluded in the back. Pasta, meat, Paw Paw popsicles, cheese and, yes, wine, entice the passers by to take a gander and browse. The atmosphere is like a vintage diner meets a hippie commune, in a good way.

Now, lets get to the good part....what I ordered. Because they have no blended drinks nor cold coffee, I got a regular cup-o-joe. They have self-serve coffee with optional 2% milk or half and half. (Those of us with a lactose intolerance are SOL it will seem.) They also provide honey and organic sugar for sweeteners and cinnamon and something I assume is cinnamon sugar seeing as how nothing but the milk was labeled. I decided to get something to eat, to complete the experience, and purchased a lemon yogurt cookie.All of this came to $4.35, eat in tax included. The coffee was 2.50 so 1.50 for a cookie the size of my fist (and I have small hands) is not a good start.

The coffee is bold and nutty with definite traces of bitter dark chocolate (which I find altogether pleasant). The cookie is.....well lemony. The yogurt gives it a crisp, freshness about it, but it still is a little dry. The combination isn't bad at all, though the prices are a bit steep for a cup of coffee and a cookie. I would want to revisit this place. It is quiet and seclusive enough for my anti-social personality. I highly recommend stopping by, if just to glance, at their market items. They strongly promote local products, like Snowville Creamery. (Their chocolate milk is AMAZING.)

Even though I kinda like this place, there are some down points. No espresso at a coffee shop should be a sin. They might want to rethink having their pastries in a refrigerated case with no containers or wrapping. Finally, and this is not something they can control, their parking options are the worst! I am a horrible person when it comes to backing up and their parking lot makes me cringe. So, for the whole experience, I give it  3.75 stars.  I really like espresso.