The future location of drive-thru coffee business High Grounds Coffee Company, seen here, is at 717 Signal Mountain Road, which is accessed via Signal Hills Drive.While driving from his home on Signal Mountain toward downtown every day, Justin Mulloy noticed that a line of cars forms on Signal Mountain Road, especially between the hours of 7 and 9 a.m., in front of a chain restaurant that specializes in coffee and doughnuts.
When a lot came up for sale off Signal Mountain Road which cars could easily get in and out of via Signal Hills Drive, business owner Jim Boren and Mulloy, his director of operations, saw an opportunity to fill what they saw as a need in the area.
They plan to open High Grounds Coffee Company by mid- to late-February. The coffee shop will be housed in an immobile, custom-built trailer with a double drive-thru in the empty lot behind Food City next to B’s Sweets. The business will offer high-quality coffee from local and regional suppliers, such as Mad Priest Coffee Roasters, as well as morning snacks including scones, danishes and muffins from Red Bank bakery Bread and Butter, Mulloy said.
“We wanted to offer folks coming off or over the mountain a higher-level alternative to other things they might pass on the way in [to Chattanooga],” he said.
He and Boren hope for this to be the first of multiple locations, and to eventually launch a mobile concept as well, Mulloy added.
High Grounds Coffee will be at 717 Signal Mountain Road and can be reached at 837-4171 or info@highgrounds.com. For more information, visit highgrounds.com.
Email Emily Crisman at ecrisman@timesfreepress.com.