Location: Coffee Hound Roasters and Cafe, Bloomington, IL
Rating: 👍🏻
Today we started our day with coffee at Coffee Hound Roasters and Cafe, which is on Route 66 in downtown Bloomington.
I got an O Canada Latte (maple, vanilla bean, cinnamon).
Dad got a Jose and Emma pour over coffee.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
See full list of Our Route 66 Adventures here and Google map here.
Date of Visit: September 11, 2026
Location: Pullman Coffee Club, Chicago, IL
Rating: 👍
The Pullman National Historical Site and the Pullman Coffee Club was originally something we planned to visit on our June road trip to North Dakota (and Yellowstone and Mount Rushmore), but since that trip did not work out as planned and I had not finalized our plan for getting to Chicago to start Route 66, I added it to our Route 66 itinerary.
The Pullman Coffee Club is located in the building that was once the Pullman Club, which was a club for managers at the Pullman factory. There are some exhibits about Pullman and a video about the house. As part of Pullman National Historical Park, there is also a park passport stamp here.
I got a latte.
Dad got a Turmeric Ginger Chai.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Location: Kentucky Signature Coffee (Richmond, KY)
Rating: ❤️
We did not originally have a coffee stop planned this morning as we were getting on the road at 5am and our first stop was 6 hours away at a coffee shop in Chicago. We almost just went to Buc-ee’s, but I decided to see if I could find something along the route and found Kentucky Signature Coffee was not too far off the interstate and it was already open.
We were glad to have happened upon this coffeeshop as we discovered they air roast their bean, which is different than usual.
They have three different roasts - Brazil, Ethiopia, Colombia - and you can choose which you want used for a latte.
Dad got a Columbia drip coffee, which he ended up getting free because for September 11 instead of their usual discount for military and first responders they were giving them a free cup of coffee. I had a Maple Brown Sugar Latte made with Colombia as that is the roast they have available in a decaf option.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Location: Stella Blue (Mytle Beach, SC)
Rating: 👍
We've been watching for Stella Blue to open for months. Yesterday, Mik wanted to do a last coffee outing before Dad and I leave for Route 66 this week and it was the one weekend I did not check to see if Stella Blue was now open, so we ended up at Forest Brew Company. While doing errands later in the day, we noticed that it looked open, but it was just after their closing time. Thus, we decided to do a second coffee outing this weekend and try out Stella Blue on Sunday.
I got a Salty Dog Iced Coffee (salted caramel w/ Vermont maple foam). Salty Dog is actually a latte on their menu, but they do not have decaf espresso and it was made with decaf coffee instead.
Mik choose a Cherry Jerry (chocolate, cherry, whipped cream). He also got some chocolate covered bacon. He also thinks think lunch menu looks good and wants to come back to eat lunch here sometime.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: August 11, 2026
Location: Calming Goat Coffee Co., Point Pleasant, WV
Rating: 👍 (Like)
On the way home from cottage, Mom and Dad had to get coffee since there was no real breakfast at the Travelodge in Gallipolis, OH. Dad found this interesting coffee shop in Point Pleasant, WV on the other side of the Ohio River with intriguing story about how a goat discovered coffee.
The place did not disappoint. Mom had a Sugar Cookie Cold Brew.
Dad had an Oatmilk Flat White made with their Cass Railroad Espresso Blend.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: July 3, 2026
Location: Bully Brew Coffee, Dunseith, ND
Rating: 👍 (Like)
On our way to the International Peace Garden, we spotted Bully Brew and I asked Kirsten if we could turn around to grab some coffee.
They had several appealing options on their summer menu as well as on their regular specialty drink menu (would have got the Salted Nut Roll if I had noticed before I ordered). I ended up getting the Captain Hook Latte (cherry, white chocolate, mocha, coconut soft top).
Mom got the LandShark from the summer menu. It is a cold brew with salted caramel, spiced chai, cream, and coconut soft top.
I also picked up a bag of decaf coffee.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: June 27, 2026
Location: Fairgrounds Coffee (Millenium Park), Chicago, IL
Rating: 👍 (Like)
Date of Visit: June 26, 2026
Location: Blue Sky Coffee, Fairborn, OH
Rating: 👍 (Like)
Usually when in Ohio we end up at a Winan's as I like to stock up on their decaf flavored coffee beans, especially the Maine Blueberry. We did end up at one later in the day, but we started the day trying out Blue Sky Coffee.
I had a Berry Cobbler Latte (white chocolate, blueberry, strawberry, brown sugar).
Dad had a Flat White.
Mik had a Strawberry Sunset (strawberry, peach, tea, lemonade).
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: July 15, 2026
Location: Forest Brew Company, Surfside Beach, SC
Rating: 👍 (Like)
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: June 25, 2026
Location: Hilltop Coffee Co., Crab Orchard, WV
Rating: 👍 (Like)
As we headed to the Canyon Rim Visitor Center in the New River Gorge National Park, we stopped at Hilltop Coffee Co. The name is very appropriate as it is located up on a hill.
Dad had a New River Latte (macadamia nut, honey, salted caramel).
Mik had an Airliner (cookie butter, white chocolate).
I had a Slice of Summer Latte (blackberry, cheesecake).
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: June 24, 2026
Location: Our Coffee Shop, Winston Salem, NC
Rating: 👍 (Like)
We started our day in Winston Salem and got our morning coffee at Our Coffee Shop.
I got a Warm Spices Latte.
Dad got a Chai Latte, which the barista called Heaven in a Cup.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: June 23, 2026
Location: Lula's Coffee Co., Florence, SC
Rating: 👍 (Like)
Mik and Dad saw Lula’s Coffee Co. when they had lunch next door when they went to Florence for the initial appointment with his new pump refill doctor and decided they would try it out when they went for his refill. Thus instead of getting coffee as we left Myrtle Beach, we allowed for time to get coffee here before his pump refill. We all enjoyed it and Mik plans for it to be a regular stop when he goes for his refills.
Mik and Dad got drinks off the June Specials menu. Mik got the Golden Delight (cold brew, toasted marshmallow, honey cold foam). Dad got the Ronaldo (mocha, banana, espresso, milk). I had a Rose Latte.
In a park nearby, we found The Lorax.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: June 20, 2026
Location: The Cloak and Wand, Myrtle Beach, SC
Rating: 👍 (Like for non-coffee drinks) 👎 (Never Again for coffee)
We didn't plan on do a coffee outing this weekend as we are about to hit the road again, but Nora, Mik, and I really wanted to check out The Cloak and Wand that opened earlier this month. The Cloak and Wand is a wizard theme store, but it also has a potions bar with a wide variety of drinks including coffee.
The coffee drinks cannot be done decaf, so only Dad got a coffee based drink. He got the Black Cat's Curse (raspberry, dark chocolate, griffin whipped cream, raspberry drizzle). He liked the flavor, but it is just coffee and not espresso and with the flavor you could not even tell there was coffee in the drink. Thus, we rated this place a rare Never Again rating for coffee, but we certainly plan to visit again for the other drinks, especially since they mentioned having ciders in the fall.
I got a Frozen Wizards Beer (butterscotch, vanilla, topped w/ caramel cold foam).
From the Summer Mocktails part of the menu, Mik got Rhyme & Coconut (key lime pie, coconut, vanilla, unicorn cream, griffin whipped cream, maraschino cherry). Nora got a Frosted Flame (frozen hot chocolate w/ griffin whipped cream and chocolate drizzle).
In keeping with the potion bar theme, each drink has magical properties, which are listed on the label. Dad's said it would give him good luck for 13 seconds. Mik's was a Bard's Spell that makes you speak in limericks. Nora's said it would make her magically toasty and slightly unstoppable. Mine gave icy courage.
While in Springfield, Missouri, for the Route 66 Centennial Kick Off, we discovered the Ozarks Coffee Trail. It is a digital passport that you earn points for checking in at participating coffeeshops. Most of the coffeeshops we visited during our time in Springfield were part of the trail.
We stopped checking in once we had enough points for the stickers as we did not want the t-shirt and it was also kind of a pain to ask for the code to get the check in sometimes. I did notice that some places have an extra check in deal, which is worth paying attention to such as 10% off a bag of coffee or Buy One, Get One, but none of the coffeeshops we visited this trip had any of those deals.
Towards the end of the weekend I realized there are exclusive drinks just for the trail at some (or maybe all?) of the locations. You have to click the Exclusive Menu at the top of the passport to find them instead of them being listed on the check in page for the location, so we never remembered to even check if we wanted to try them.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
Date of Visit: May 30, 2026
Location: Liberty Brew Coffee, Conway, SC
Rating: ❤️ (Love)
This weekend's coffee outing was to Liberty Brew Coffee because we wanted to try their Salted Caramel Toffee Latte.
Mom and I had the Salted Caramel Toffee Latte hot. Mik had it iced. Dad had the Golden Hour Latte (white chocolate, raspberry, pistachio) from their May seasonal menu.
See full list of Our Koffee Trail stops here and Our Koffee Trail Google Maps list here.
