California Cold Co. coffee shop opens in Brick
Coffee fans in Brick are about to have a new option for their morning cup of joe.
And maybe the afternoon, too. California Cold Co. opens Saturday in the Town Hall Shoppes plaza on Cedar Bridge Avenue. This is the second location — the original is on Route 9 in Manalapan.
“We are a New Jersey-born company, but our inspiration comes from the craft coffee culture in California,” said owner Samantha Romano, 30, of Wall, who has been transforming the former Nicole’s Boutique into a coffee shop since last July.
“The craft coffee experience ... the definition of that is the beans tell you a story.”
The coffee shop’s beans are locally roasted. The house roast is from Kona, Hawaii; the espresso is their own blend.
California Cold Co.’s specialty is craft lattes, like the La Jolla with espresso, milk, cinnamon, vanilla syrup and milk. The Monterey Bay has chocolate and coconut.
“All of our lattes are hand-crafted,” said Romano, adding that ingredients like Fruity Pebbles milk, which is used in the popular Pebble Beach latte, and vanilla syrup are made in house.
Others, like lavender buds used to make flavored syrup and foam, are sourced from local vendors like Pleasant Valley Lavender farm in Marlboro.
The lattes can be bottled to go, and the coffee shop also sells bottled cold brew, regular drip coffee, tea and lemonade.
The food menu includes oatmeal and bakery items like Pop Tarts, scones, macarons, cookies and muffins.
“Something that’s grown into its own is our toasts,” Romano said.
Built on Dave’s Killer Bread, these are topped with avocado; peanut butter, banana, almond and honey; mascarpone, fig butter, pistachios and balsamic glaze; Nutella, strawberry, banana and coconut flakes; and hummus, cucumbers, shredded carrots and Sriracha.
While California Cold Co. has a large following in northern Monmouth County and the surrounding area, “we wanted to get into a completely new community,” Romano said.
Plans were in the works to expand shortly after the original coffee shop opened in 2018, but the COVID-19 pandemic slowed things down. Then, the Brick space became available.
“We’re just excited to reveal our cafe to everyone,” she added.
The 20-seat cafe, which will add outdoor tables in March, will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekends.
Go: 990 Cedar Bridge Ave., Brick; californiacoldco.com. Also at 520 Route 9, Manalapan.
Sarah Griesemer joined the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey in 2003 and has been writing all things food since 2014. Send restaurant tips to sgriesemer@gannettnj.com, follow on Instagram at Jersey Shore Eats and subscribe to our Jersey Shore Eats newsletter.