Reading Coffee Company Douglasville: Worth the Ride

There are few things more motivating than running out of coffee. When I woke up and realized I had nothing to brew, the decision was easy. I was going to ride over to the new Reading Coffee Company Douglasville location and restock. Two problems solved at once: no coffee at home, and a good excuse to get out on the bike.

Reading Coffee Company has been around for over 35 years. They started in a corner shop on 8th and Windsor in the city of Reading back in 1989 and have been roasting daily in small batches ever since. Their primary roasting operation runs out of Birdsboro, which is where I had visited before. That experience wasn’t great. But the new Douglasville location looked like a different story, and I’d been eyeing it since I happened to be broken down practically across the street from it months ago waiting on a tow truck. Better circumstances this time.

I took the long way over, cutting through the back roads rather than the straight shot on the main road. If you’re going to ride, ride. The major thoroughfare wasn’t going to happen.

The Ride Out There

I live in the Boyertown area, so the run to Douglasville is short if you want it to be. I didn’t want it to be. I swung through some of the old back roads including Hill Road off Old Airport Road, which is a stretch that brings back a lot of memories for me.

I grew up around here. My family moved out of Philly to Douglasville when I was about 15, and when I was in my late teens and early twenties I spent a lot of time on these roads on a Suzuki GS450L. I had swapped the stock exhaust for what I think was a Hart exhaust off a Honda CB350, which made it considerably louder than it had any right to be. I remember just roaring through these back roads having an absolute blast. Hill Road in particular takes me right back to that. It’s changed a fair amount over the years but it still does something for me every time I come through.

If you’re riding out from the Boyertown or Pottstown area, the back roads through Douglasville make for a solid little loop even if coffee isn’t the destination.

What the New Location Looks Like

The new Reading Coffee Company Douglasville spot is attached to a new luxury apartment complex. Brand new construction, looks sharp from the outside. Inside it’s clean and modern, music playing, the whole thing. Trendy without being annoying about it.

I will be honest, I have terrible stage fright and I was not about to walk around the place with a camera while people stared at me. So I got in, I bought my coffee, and I got out. What I can tell you is that the vibe was good and the service was noticeably better than what I experienced at the Birdsboro location. Leaps and bounds better, actually.

There’s also a spa and salon going into the same building, if that’s your thing.

What I Bought

Reading Coffee Company carries a wide selection, which is part of what they’re known for. They supply whole bean coffee to a lot of restaurants and diners around the area, and when a place carries their coffee they tend to put up signage with pride.

I went in expecting to spend somewhere in the $15 to $16 range on a bag. I walked out spending $19 for a 12 oz bag, which I’ll admit gave me a moment of pause. I’m usually a Twin Valley guy and I typically pay between $15 and $17 there, with single origin stuff sometimes running up to $19. The difference is I don’t usually pay single origin prices for a blend. That’s what I did here.

When I’m trying coffee from somewhere new I tend to reach for the blends first. The thinking is that making a good blend takes real skill. With single origin you more or less know what you’re getting based on where the beans are from. A blend tells you more about whether the roaster knows what they’re doing. They had a couple of Philly-themed options and I picked up the Birds Brew, which is their Eagles blend. Hard to say no to that. I also grabbed their house blend.

Both are medium roast, 100% Arabica, whole bean. I was looking forward to getting home, grinding them up, and seeing what Reading Coffee Company is actually working with these days.

The Verdict

I would go back. The new Douglasville location is a genuinely nice space and the service made a real difference after my experience at Birdsboro. Whether the coffee earns the $19 price tag on the blend is something I’ll know after a few mornings with it. But the ride alone was worth it, and if you’re in the area and looking for a local roaster that’s been doing this since before most of us were seriously into bikes, it’s worth a stop.

If you want to see the full ride and the visit to the shop, the video is up above.

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