Restaurant: La Reunion Coffee Café, Helena, Alabama
I love coffee.
No, really…I do. I don’t drink it as often as I would like, mostly due to cost, but I do allow myself a treat every now and again. Whether it’s Starbucks, Caribou, a local chain, or an independent shop, I love to indulge every now and again in a hot (or cold) coffee or espresso drink.
While I was visiting with my family for the holidays, my sister and I made a coffee date. She’s been drinking coffee longer than anyone I know. I think she was the only elementary school kid to sit down with a Styrofoam cup of joe at church. She was a hipster long before she knew she was a hipster. Gotta love my sister.
And I do. Which is why we planned a girl’s coffee morning. Our location for our coffee beverage…a little coffee café in Old Town Helena, the heart of Helena, Alabama. It’s called La Reunion Coffee Café and both of us were quite excited about trying it out.
Walking into La Reunion was like walking into a friend’s home. The dimly lit, eccentrically decorated, homey feel of the café is very welcoming. Groups were meeting at the scattered tables throughout the shop, and the quite buzz of their conversations was comforting. We were greeted warmly by the baristas who allowed us time to decide on what we wanted to try. While many of the drinks on the cold menu sounded fantastic (hello, Reese’s Reunion and Orange Dreamsicle), it was a chilly morning so we decided to go with warm coffee that day. My sister ordered the Milky Way, a delicious mix of espresso, milk, chocolate and caramel. I finally, after much contemplation because…it wasn’t like I would be able to come back for awhile, decided to get the Alpine Caramel with soy milk, which was a fantastic combination of espresso, soy milk, white chocolate and caramel.
As my brother was stopping by my parent’s house with his kids before driving to Atlanta for Christmas, we got our drinks to go and stepped aside to walk around the shop while the baristas went to work on our order. They had epically delicious looking muffins in their case (which my gluten sensitivity forbid me to try) as well as other delicious cakes, brownies, and treats. They looked fantastic. Crafts were displayed on shelves, that were up for sale. We browsed for a few moments, commenting on some of the items, and then the barista walked our drinks over to us and bid us a good day.
We thanked her and left, warm coffee cups in hand, and headed to the car.
And it was there that we got our first taste of the delicious, fantastic drinks offered at La Reunion. Honestly…the espresso was timed perfectly. Not bitter. Not too strong. And the flavor combination was fantastic. I’m normally not one to praise a drink with white chocolate in it…but this was amazing. I allowed my sister a sip and she liked it too. But she really loved hers. And when we got home, she gave her non-coffee-drinking husband a sip and he really liked it too.
WIN!
La Reunion seems like the perfect spot to just settle in with friends for good conversation. I look forward to returning and trying another of their coffee drinks (the Heart Murmur or Nuttin Honey, perhaps!). And maybe this time I’ll stay awhile, soak in the atmosphere, and join in the buzz that fills the shop.
If you are anywhere near Helena, Alabama, I highly recommend trying out La Reunion for your coffee cravings. The people are wonderful, the atmosphere is welcoming, and the drinks…are out of this world!
The Celiathlete 