Local coffeehouse company Frothy Monkey plans to launch a big new cafe in The Nations neighborhood next week. The grand opening for the location at 1400 51st Ave. N. in West Nashville is set to kick off at 6:30 a.m. this Monday, Aug. 14.
"We're working on the finishing touches," says Jenn Sheets, a partner in the company and its creative director. She says the team is looking forward to opening in The Nations area of West Nashville. "It's a good little neighborhood over here," she says, adding that some people have compared the vibe in The Nations to the vibe in 12South in the days when the original Frothy Monkey opened there, back in 2004.
The new cafe will be next door to the popular restaurant Nicky's Coal Fired and not far from the 15-story former grain silo that is painted with a towering mural — it's The Nations' most prominent visual landmark.
Sheets says the new location is a "nice, airy space" around twice the size of the 12South store, at around 3,600 square feet, and will feature approximately 150 seats, and a private dining room for events. In addition to 12South, Frothy Monkey has cafes downtown and in Franklin, plus a bakery in East Nashville and a new coffeehouse in Chattanooga. A smaller Frothy Monkey outlet in the Grimey's Too bookstore on Eighth Avenue closed at the end of July. "Our lease was up, and leading up to our opening in The Nations, we decided to put our whole focus on our places that are full-service," Sheets says.
Indeed, the Frothy Monkey coffeehouses have continued to add features over the years. The new Nations cafe, like the downtown location, will have a full bar in addition to offering food, coffee and espresso drinks. To serve the neighborhood's commuters, it will open the earliest of all the cafes — at 6:30 a.m. — and it will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner.
After Monday's opening, hours at the Nations location will be 6:30-9 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.
