Common Ground Coffee

Common Ground pours Indaba Coffee from Spokane, which makes it a rare Tacoma account for a roaster from the east side of the state. Tina Sidorko owns it. It sits at 2313 Tacoma Avenue South in an airy room where the counters run along the windows and the light is the main feature, with wall tables and lounge chairs at the back for anyone settling in.

The drink list is where it gets interesting. The sprosoda is espresso shots in sparkling water with orange and rosemary, and nothing else in Tacoma written up here has anything like it. The Honey Kiss is a shakerato, a double shot shaken with cream and served in a coupe. The rest runs standard espresso, cappuccino, latte hot or iced, matcha and hot chocolate, with chocolate, vanilla, lavender, caramel, pistachio and cardamom on the flavor list. Oat milk carries no upcharge.

Food is bought in from people worth naming: Macrina Bakery pastries, egg sandwiches from Memoranda Kitchen, and vegan Dude's Donuts out of Port Orchard. Baristas write messages on the to go lids.

It opens 7am to 4pm seven days a week, which is rarer in Tacoma coffee than it should be. One practical note: the same name also runs a mobile coffee cart for events, and the website now leads with cart bookings rather than the cafe, so go by the address rather than the site if you are checking whether they are open.