Monkey Brew Coffee

I was contacted by the owner who explained the situation and invited me back. That’s rare customer service.

When I travel, I like to find ‘off the beaten path’ shops, restaurants & coffee. With that being said, I always end up doing a lot of research ahead of time. I came upon an article that proclaimed, «Woman Tires of Owning Bar, Turns it Into Coffee Shop» & that was it for me. I knew I had to go meet this Joy gal & her coffee shop.
Here’s the article:
I decided to include the article because why cite something if you can’t back it up, right? Joy is a breath of fresh air in the snooty plethora of self-​proclaimed baristas & corporate ran let’s-jump-on-the-coffee-trend bandwagon. The shop itself has tall ceilings, wooden floors & a soft, quiet ambiance of an era gone by. The hand stenciled monkeys around a pole make it charming & whimsical. There are plenty of electrical outlets to plug in your laptops, smart phones & iPads. The atmosphere is quiet with soft, happy chatter & laughing that makes you feel homey, cheerful & isn’t intrusive to your concentration.
Remember Steve, in «Sex & The City»? When we first meet him, he’s bartending at an old bar, while reading a book. He engages in a conversation with Miranda. Now make his character a real person, female version & the bar is now a coffee shop. And you’ve got Joy. She’s not your average coffee shop owner. So you don’t just get a great cup of coffee, freshly made bakery items, in a nice atmosphere with friendly clientele. You get Joy.
So if you’re ever out of town, in the area of Covington, KY, you need to stop in for a spell of awesomeness. You won’t be disappointed.

Visited Cincinnati for a long weekend and came across this coffee shop as we were staying in Covington. The coffee at Monkey Brew is fresh and hot and the dark roast featured robust flavors that danced out of the cup.
Post-​half-​marathon, some fuel was certainly needed so the toasted blueberry bagel with cream cheese hit the spot quite nicely. The group of four of us all had coffee and everyone was happy with their selection. One member in our party had the banana, chocolate chip, walnut bread and raved about it.
The owner of the coffee shop told us that she owned the bar that used to be at the location and needed a life-​change so switched the business over to a coffee shop and thank goodness she did as it provides a nice coffee house in an area that needs one. The owner was one of the nicest, most-​friendly baristas around and smiled and chatted us up throughout our stay!

Love this little place! I needed a spot to plug in and work on my laptop for a few hours, and Monkey Brew hit the spot! Upon walking in, I was received with such a warm welcoming by the sweet lady that owns it.
She made me a delicious chai latte with coconut milk, a wonderful surprise as most shops only offer soy as their dairy alternative.
This coffee shop is a lovely quiet place that I would definitely frequent if I lived in town! I will most certainly come back any time I am in the area. And free parking is a super plus!

Was in the area and stopped in for a coffee. Cute shop with lots of little fun things to see and maybe buy… like jewelry and stuff. Coffee was good, and the barista was fantastic. Super nice and friendly. Loved her!

Monkey Brew is a cute and cozy hippie-​vibe coffee shop, with a lot of fun local merchandise (think soaps, candles, etc). Coffee is pretty good, and I really enjoyed the chocolate chocolate-​chip muffin. Hurray for local coffee in Covington. And it has a parking lot! It’s kind of lost in the slew of fast food around the 4^th and 5^th street area near the highway on-​ramps, but definitely convenience for a stop by if you are on your way in or out of Covington!

Good coffee. I like the house Ethiopian blend. The owner is really nice and happy to answer any question. Charming and inviting atmosphere. Shop for merchandise by local artisans here.