Three Powell Coffee Shops You’re Going to Love

If you’ve lived on the North side of town for very long, you’ve gotten used to having to drive to the other side of town for almost everything, including coffee. But times are changing. Powell now has three different coffee shops to choose from. Let me tell you about the three Powell coffee shops you’re going to love.

After years of having to either go to Starbucks or drive out west to meet friends for coffee, it’s absolutely wonderful to have three lovely coffee shops within a few miles of each other.

Now, before you tell me I’m forgetting some of the coffee shops on the North side of town, let me remind you. I’ve already written about two other coffee shops in North Knoxville: Cultivate Coffee and Mahala’s.

First on the list of the three Powell coffee shops you’re going to love is Life House Coffee. If you aren’t familiar with Life House, you’re probably going to miss it as you drive by on Emory Road. It’s located at 7545 Brickyard Road across the road from Joli B’s at the corner of Brickyard and Emory. As far as I’ve been able to tell, there is no signage telling you about the coffee shop, but there is signage listing Redemption Life Church. Apparently, they used to meet in this building.  

it’s been years since I visited Life House Coffee. I thought they were no longer open. While driving to drop off sweet little Murphy at the groomers, I discovered Life House was still open. I hadn’t eaten lunch, but I thought I could make do with a pastry and some coffee.

Thankfully, I didn’t have to. Life House Coffee offers a lunch menu. I decided a raspberry white chocolate latte with a BLT sounded wonderful. And it was. Sometimes a raspberry white chocolate latte can be overly sweet. This one wasn’t. It was perfect. In addition, when I let it get cold as I worked, the staff was sweet enough to warm it in the microwave for me.

The BLT was served on ciabatta bread with fresh crunchy lettuce and a juicy crimson tomato slice. The bacon was perfectly crisped, and the bread was delicious

I got right to work as I ate my BLT and accomplished a great deal in a short amount of time because the shop wasn’t very busy, and they didn’t have loud music blasting out of the speakers.

Life House consists of two areas. The first holds their kitchen area and some seating. The second room is what makes this family-owned coffee shop shine. This area reminds you of your grandma’s house with mismatched comfy chairs and sofas grouped together to provide cozy seating areas. In addition, there are two large tables and several smaller tables interspersed throughout the area providing spaces for small group meetings or workspaces.

All of this makes Life House Coffee a great place to work when you’re tired of working from home. When I was there, it was relatively quiet although there was a steady stream of customers.

However, given the proximity of Powell High School, I would guess that during the school year when school lets out, there might be an influx of high schoolers dropping in. So, if you’re going to Life House Coffee to get some work done, I would plan accordingly.

What more you could ask for than to combine two of my favorite food items… coffee and chocolate? These two super-foods (in my opinion) are the perfect combination to power through a sticky problem, lift your mood when it’s drooping, or celebrate a completed project.

If you spend much time downtown, you may have dropped in at the original location of Coffee and Chocolate on Union Avenue. According to their website, the downtown location is one of Knoxville’s longest running coffee shops, created in 2006. Coffee and Chocolate expanded with the Powell location in 2023. They provide the second of the three Powell coffee shops you’re going to love.

Coffee and Chocolate is located at 3531 Emory Road in Powell’s Place a few doors down from NikNak’s Ice Cream. Walk into this coffee shop and you’ll face the temptation of fresh coffee, in-house baked pastries, and exquisitely designed gourmet chocolate.

While I was tempted to try the Mocha which (according to the website) is made with Ghirardelli Chocolate and locally roasted espresso, the seasonal Berries and Cream Latte was calling my name.

When it came time to choose a pastry, I was torn. Should I go with the chocolate chip cookie, the chocolate almond biscotti, or the caramel shortbread bar. I opted for the caramel shortbread bar which was covered in thick velvety smooth chocolate and reminded me of a huge, freshly made Twix bar.

I’d made it halfway through the shortbread bar before I realized I hadn’t even had one sip of coffee. It was that good. When I ordered the Berries and Cream Latte, I was concerned it might be a little too fruity, but it was perfectly blended with just the right amount of berry syrup.

Powell’s Coffee and Chocolate isn’t a spacious shop. There are several small tables suitable for two people lining part of one wall. A bar top occupies the remainder of that wall. There’s a large table that would hold my coffee group and an additional bar that faces the window. In addition, there are several tables outside which can seat three or four.

When I was here with my coffee group, we ended up sitting outside. Thankfully the outside area is covered so even if there is a little drizzle going on, customers can still sit outside.

As I was writing this, I realized that I hadn’t even mentioned the selection of chocolates at Coffee and Chocolate. Since Hubby and I are celebrating an anniversary this weekend, I opted to purchase a small box of chocolates. It wasn’t easy, but I finally managed to narrow down my choice. I wish I had realized that their website has a flavor chart that describes each of the carefully crafted chocolates. It would have made my decision so much easier.

Our final coffee shop on our list of three Powell coffee shops is the new kid on the block: Velocity Coffee and Roasters. Located at 7101 Clinton Highway, Velocity opened in May of this year to rave reviews from Powell customers excited about finally having a coffee shop on Clinton Highway.

I personally had been watching this coffee shop as it prepared for its grand opening for what seemed like forever. I was excited about this new coffee shop and couldn’t wait to try it.  

That’s why last month when my coffee group was looking for our next coffee shop to visit, I suggested Velocity, and everyone agreed.

It was a rainy Saturday morning when my friends and I made our way to Velocity. We were greeted by the enticing fragrance of expertly roasted and freshly ground coffee.  Velocity’s indoor seating was packed. Thank goodness, they had covered outdoor seating. We were perfectly comfortable as we enjoyed our coffee and bagels.

While we are talking about bagels, Velocity’s bagels are shipped from New York. You’ve got quite a choice including blueberry, cinnamon raisin, jalapeno pepper, and rainbow just to name a few.

What’s a bagel without some cream cheese? Velocity has you covered with plain cream cheese and flavored selections that are created inhouse by using local cream cheese and adding their own toppings. Their blueberry cream cheese has entire blueberries in it. Put that on a blueberry bagel and you’ve got a glimpse of paradise.

If bagels aren’t your carb of choice, Velocity also offers banana nut, blueberry, chocolate chip, and coffee cake muffins. I can attest that the coffee cake muffins are fabulously moist with the perfect touch of cinnamon.

After my initial visit with my coffee group, I knew I had to take my New York born hubby to Velocity to try out those New York bagels. He loved them. And unlike me who loves a latte, hubby goes for the single origin drip, and he is a huge fan of Velocity’s Puerto Rican single origin coffee.

Did I mention that Velocity also has a drive-through? It’s perfect for those of you headed into Knoxville from Clinton.

With three different Powell coffee shops located within a few miles, Powell and Halls residents have a tough decision. However, what’s truly remarkable is that each of these three Powell coffee shops has its own distinct personality, and that makes your decision easier..

If you’re working from home and need a break from the same four walls, I’d suggest visiting Life House Coffee or Coffee and Chocolate. If you’re making yet another trip to Home Depot on Saturday, or are looking for a lazy Sunday afternoon treat, you might want to head to Velocity. And if you’re meeting a couple of friends, Coffee and Chocolate or Velocity are the choices. And finally, if you are planning on meeting a larger group of friends and you might want to include lunch, then Life House Coffee is the answer. I’m just excited that we’ve finally got a choice.

What about you? Have you visited any of the three Powell coffee shops?