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Cherita Rice, founder and co-owner of Mad Priest Coffee Roasters, has been having a challenging year. But while some businesses have powered down, Mad Priest has pivoted, balancing atop a shifting wholesale/retail mix to get the most out of the market, give the most to the market, and keep Chattanooga caffeinated.
Since 2016, Rice says, Mad Priest has been a primarily wholesale roaster, partnering with restaurants and cafes. Since then, they’ve grown retail locations on Broad Street and now they’re opening a new, drive-through caffeination station in their roastery in East Chatt. That means wherever you are on your commute, you’ll likely drive past a convenient port of call for some of the town’s top roasts.
“We asked what’s safe during COVID,” Rice says. “Our roastery in East Chatt used to be a dry cleaners; it has an awning so it’s perfect for drive-up service. We thought, ‘Why don’t we open a drive through?’”
With the new drive-through located near the Wilcox-Shallowford junction, drivers on the commuter corridor down Shallowford to Wilcox will benefit. However, Rice has the local neighborhoods—Eastdale, Avondale, and Woodmore—in mind as much as commuters.
“There’s no coffee shop in the neighborhood,” she says. “The closest is Hamilton Place down Shallowford.”
A Mission Transformed
Mad Priest has always had a mission to educate Chattanooga about coffee and especially the people to grow it; related to that mission, they’ve emphasized hiring immigrants and have partnered with Bridge Refugee Services to help people fleeing violence abroad. This year, Rice says, Mad Priest is focused on hiring diversely from local neighborhoods.
“We’re looking for people who might not have thought about being a coffee roaster, but who have the skills and personality,” she says. “We’re excited about our team this now.”
With less in-person interaction, more of Mad Priest’s advocacy and educational work has moved online. They’re also trying to help the community out by delivering smiles, in the form of silly short videos on their website. It’s an idea their employees came up with, Rice says.
Seasonal Specials
Mad Priest has a number of seasonal specials going for your sipping pleasure.
In the Coffee Deal through the end of September, you can get bags of Peruvian and Guatemalan coffee at two for $20.
Or buy the Give-Back Blend to get a bargain while contributing 10 percent of profits to the Sankofa Fund, a Black philanthropy association of Chattanooga.
If you like fancy coffee beverages, get sippy with the Seasonal Drinks, such as Down the Rabbit Hole, a blend of cold brew concentrate, coconut milk, tamarind, and honey. A little sweet, a little sour, this magical mix is evocative of South Asia. And while it’s cool enough to refresh you on a steaming September day, its spicy taste hints that fall is just around the corner.
Find Mad Priest
- Southside: 1900 Broad Street, beside Koch’s Bakery
- East Chatt: 3399 Wilcox Blvd.
- madpriestcoffee.com
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