Motivated by an enthusiastic recommendation from a loyal reader of earlier reviews, on November 15 the Trail Taste Adventure Crew (John and George), assisted by Joe Hermann, backtracked south from central Loveland to the previously overlooked Branch Hill Coffee Company, located just a couple of hundred yards west of the trail on Bridge Street and diagonally across that street from the previously reviewed Kirby's. Branch Hill Coffee specializes in basic American breakfast and lunch fare, and also offers a wide variety of muffins, scones and other baked goods. No alcohol is served, but a heavy duty and very impressive espresso machine stands ready to provide a wide variety of coffee drinks. Drive-through service is available (see photo of menu lineup), so trail visitors should be aware of such traffic as they make their way into the intimate 16-by-19-foot interior eating area. In that space is the counter to place your orders as Branch Hill Coffee lacks a wait staff. Customers can take their orders outside in fair weather to a number of tables on the non-drive-through side of the building, or choose one of the only three 4-person tables or two 2-person tables inside.
Service was both prompt and congenial, and all personnel were helpful, personable and knowledgeable.
Joe led off, and chose the $9.75 Salad Trio: scooped portions of tuna salad, egg salad and chicken salad atop a bed of greens. He devoured every scrap, and pronounced it excellent. John picked a $5.95 breakfast burrito (in today's world, another basic American breakfast dish), and was quite satisfied with it. George, seeking something lighter, ordered a $4.75 bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup which was long on chunks of chicken, thick noodles and fresh veggies but disappointingly short on flavor. He didn't bother to finish it.
Positives: Good people, efficient service, excellent coffee, comfortable atmosphere, bike rack out front and good food reasonably priced.
Negatives: Minimal interior seating, no table service, no alcohol served and rest rooms must be accessed from the exterior, much like an old gas station.
The group agreed the positives significantly outweighed the negatives, so the Branch Hill Coffee Co. receives four bells.
Branch Hill Coffee Co.
371 Bridge Street, Loveland
Phone: 513/774-7774
Hours: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
November 2017
