Welcome to the Neighborhood
October 29, 2005
When, driving home from work the other day, I noticed that downtown Baltimore’s first Starbucks (well, not counting the ones inside Harborplace, Barnes & Noble, the Radisson, and the convention center…) had opened just a few blocks from my apartment building, I was admittedly excited (while I don’t drink coffee, I am addicted to Tazo passion tea). The next day, though, I was even more surprised that the long-advertised-never-opened coffee shop that’s had “now hiring” signs in the windows for months has finally opened their doors. Peace and a Cup of Joe is small, cute, and very friendly.
I stopped by on Saturday morning around 10:30, and the tiny (but cozy) lounge area up front seemed relatively full with four people in it. The benefit of being small, of course, is that not many people have to stop by in order for the joint to look positively hoppin’. The inside was better-decorated and a lot more put together than I was expecting. And fortunately for my dopamine levels, but unfortunately for my waistline, there was a small display case full of sweet things I have no business ordering, along with pre-made sandwiches, salads, juices and everything else you’d expect.
The folks at Peace are pretty smart; they’ve used Starbucks’ tactics in order to compete with them. While Starbucks completely aped the trendy coffeehouse vibe, Peace copies the things you like about Starbucks (right down to sizing the drinks “tall,” “grande” and “venti”) while staying totally competitive on price. My grande Café Mocha and a blondie (I never said I had willpower) totaled $5 and change, about what you’d expect to pay at That Other Coffee Place Down the Street.
The people working behind the counter were really, really friendly, albeit just a little bit tentative working with the checkout. No worries; they’ve been open less than a week. They’ll have it down in no time.
I noticed the shop has an upstairs, but I didn’t ask about what’s up there. It may be storage space, it may be more seating or even a meeting room. It’s fun to speculate.
All in all, while unfortunately parking in the area is a little bit rough, if you live in the Ridgeley’s Delight area, an unfortunate resident of the Sail Cloth Factory, or you spend your days at UMB, definitely stop by Peace and give them a shot. The coffee’s hot, the sweets are sweet, and you get the smug satisfaction of not buying your caffeine delivery system from The Man.