Story and Soil Serves Coffee and Greater Frog Hollow Community

CAT MACLENNAN ’20
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
A local coffee shop is bringing together a community, offering a warm cup of joe on the side. Story and Soil is a small coffee shop located in Frog Hollow, a neighborhood of Hartford. The coffee shop is not only focused on quick service and yummy treats, but also bringing a sense of community into Frog Hollow, a place in the city where this sense was much needed. A Trinity College alumnus and his wife are the founders of this coffee shop. The name “Story and Soil” quite literally means paying tribute to the story and place that each ingredient comes from to make their drinks and food so special.
Although the menu was small, we were able to pick out a few interesting things. We ordered both hot and iced chai tea, which we all agreed was a little watered down. This was surprising because usually a chai tea can be too sweet or maybe too spicy but this time it was just a little too watery, taking away from the sought after flavor of chai. As for food we got two different types of toast. One of them was a goat cheese toast with honey and herbs on top – it was amazing! The honey added a perfect sweetness and the herbs made for an incredible contrast with the honey. I would definitely recommend this toast! Next, we ordered a simple avocado toast. Story and Soil happened to be out of garlic that day, making this toast a bit blander than it would typically be. The avocados used were for the most part fresh, but a bit of brown told us they may be a few days old which could be because they take pride in conserving resources!  Many restaurants would toss the avocados that were a few days old, but Story and Soil chose not to waste their produce and used the fruit despite its slightly off-putting appearance. They are also a multi-roast shop, which allows the patron to enjoy a different coffee everyday from the same shop, radiating a sense of versatility and creativity.
The treats were satisfying and worth trying. Other items on the menu such as yogurt bowls and more toast options all got us thinking we wanted to visit Story and Soil for a second time. The fact that it’s so close to campus makes it an easy commute, and a place to do homework for a nice change of scenery.