Thirsty Armadillo Coffee Bar

Didn't know armadillos liked coffee...

https://www.thirstyarmadillocoffeebar.com/

I wasn’t aware that grocery store parking lots could be relaxing. Yet here I am sitting in the strip shopping center astride the parking lot enjoying a nice latte after devouring a pillowy cheese danish. I’ve got a half hour before I really need to start working, so I’ll just sit here and listen to the cold front roll in to Central Texas and rustle the leaves and branches of the surrounding trees. 

For some context, I live in a part of Austin that’s inexplicably devoid of good coffee. Sure, there is a Starbucks, but notice the qualifier “good” in the previous sentence. Which, despite my affinity for their PSLs is not what I’d call good coffee. 

Lucky for me, as I continue to navigate working remote for a company in California and being two hours ahead of them, Thirsty Armadillo Coffee Bar just opened about 10 minutes away. I’ve been watching this shop with expectation for quite some time now. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve wished they were open so that I could enjoy a peaceful cup while wandering the grocery store in my weekly attempts to find foods that are healthy and my feral children will eat. 

My first time at the Armadillo I was joined by my oldest child, who happily joined after being cajoled by the possibility of a treat being purchased. The inside is unlike most coffee shops in Austin, no modern and bleak white walls or cement countertops. Walking into the Thirsty Armadillo is like walking into your mom’s kitchen, assuming she’s unabashedly Southern and has good coffee at hand. The decor has several signs which implore you to “Live”, “Laugh”, and “Love” which is cliche (I know) but also charming. Especially because the owner and barista is so wonderfully nice that you can’t help but think that this shop is merely an extension of her kitchen at home, and really how lovely is it to be invited into someone’s home for coffee? That charm extends all around the space, which is practically bursting with locally made sweets and treats of all kinds. 

The coffee is good, I’d place it at a dark to medium roast, certainly better than what shoots out of my Keurig most days, and definitely better than the stuff from Starbucks. I’m positive that I’ll become good friends with the staff there as I’ll pop in most weeks for a cup before my weekly shopping trip.because coffee makes things that are dull much better. Also, their sizes are immense. Their medium is 16 oz, which is startling every time I see it. I’ve not bought a large size yet, but there’s probably a day coming when I’ll need that level of caffeine. The latte I had on my second trip was wonderful and well made. The milk was beautifully silky and the sweetness offset the bitter notes from the darker roast. The cheese danish was amazing, not quite sure which bakery they sourced from, but whoever it is was well chosen. 

That’s pretty much all I feel like rambling for today. Thirsty Armadillo Coffee Bar is a neighborhood place, and the few neighbors I have that also read this have already asked me if it’s good. I’ll definitely be back, and I’m sure they’ll go as well. 

With all that said, thanks so much for reading, go out and find yourself a neighborhood place and become a regular. Until next time thanks so much for reading, and I hope you have a great day.