The Daily Grind

The Daily Grind is a charming little hideaway in a sleepy little city. The closest Starbucks is approximately 80 miles away near Jackson, Mississippi. While I’m famously addicted to Starbucks, driving over 1 hour for a Chai Latte just isn’t practical. Luckily for the 38,000 Meridian residents, the Daily Grind offers a fabulous coffee shop experience complete with Chai Lattes and an array of blended coffee drinks and Frenzees. They also take their proximity to New Orleans seriously and offer excellent Beignets. Breakfast is served from 7:00 am until to 10:30am. Lunch begins at 11 and offers a nice selection of Paninis, salads and sandwiches. Don’t forget to top all the yumminess off with homemade cake or pie by the slice. Did I mention homemade cookies too? This warm and welcoming spot can’t be missed.

Very laid back, great place to read or write and just drink coffee! Great food and service! The owner is just «The Best!

The coffee is ok in the absence of a Starbucks. The beignets were tough but tolerable. The lady who took our order could not have been less interested in our presence as she was so into her convo with her coworker. The pixie-​like, younger lady was very polite and attentive.
We probably wouldn’t venture off the interstate to visit again.

I really liked this place. They were friendly, the coffee was good and the cranberry nut muffin was good. I will definitely come again

I am really on the fence between giving an honest review of this place, and grading it on a curve because it is in Meridian.
Meridian, a city of 50,000 people, can somehow support virtually every franchised food chain from Applebees to Logan’s but cannot keep a local coffee shop in business. It’s sad. Each time I visit my parents in Meridian, I am left pondering why this is. Do rural lifestyles force people to rise before coffee hour? Do fewer people work outside of the home? Is coffee associated with urban life, political liberalism, or pollution of the physical body? Is Mississippi simply too damn hot for coffee? I have no idea.
Anyway, the Daily Grind is pretty much it in Meridian (unless you are counting Joe Mugs inside the Crossroads strip mall, which I am not because a) it is in a strip mall, and b) a barista there once asked me to tell him how to make a cappuccino sooooo…).
So, let’s talk about the Daily Grind:
THE GOOD:
— They have actual espresso, a rarity in this part of the world.
— They have homemade pastries.
— There is abundant seating, and free wifi, and it never seems to be crowded.
— There is table service.
— There are two bathrooms.
THE BAD:
— This place is NOT OPEN ON WEEKENDS, which is incredibly weird. It seems like they are missing out on the two most profitable days of the week.
— The entire restaurant smells like old fryer grease.
— It’s a little run down and sad… peeling paint, cleaning supplies stacked in the corners, creaky tables and chairs, etc. Not in a charming way, either.
— Service is S-​L-​O-​W. This is the norm for the region, but the staff genuinely seem not to care about filling your order in an efficient manner. Every customer stands at the counter of a protracted chat, the baristas ask two and three times for your order to be repeated, and the coffee is made at a snail’s pace. Don’t go here if you are in a hurry.

Service is fantastic! Food is fantastic! I had to come to the daily grind because my internet was down at the house and require for my job. I ate breakfast and lunch here and they were so nice to refill my coffee/​tea as I worked. For the cinnamin rol lovers my wife is one and had theirs. It was fantastic! They were extremely friendly and gracious to let me work here. Will definitely return here.

In Meridian, apparently there are no Starbucks, Peet’s, Coffee Bean, nothing. Not even an indie coffeehouse filled with hipster scumbags! I found this place on Unilocal and decided to try it out.
The coffee is good, cheesecake is awesome! Danielle is a super friendly server with pretty eyes and a smile that will make you melt, and she always makes you feel right at home.
This is more of a sit-​down place than a coffee shop, and I haven’t had the occasion to actually eat a meal here, but I’m going to try before I leave Meridian.
I highly recommend this place. :)

I have eaten here for lunch several times. This is is a wonderfully pleasant place with surprisingly fun personality. Even though no one there knows me, I feel I’m welcome as a close friend. How do they do it? And the price is ridiculously reasonable. I am hooked.

Nice little local place. Fresh eggs! Made right there. Chai was good which my travel partner had. I had coffee. Which was decent. Not the best, but for the area, definitely worth the distance from the highway.

Being one of the only coffee shops in the area and with no Starbucks in the area (literally for miles/​hrs), my husband and I checked out the Daily Grind. It is super cute. The décor is fantastic and I love how she did everything! Very quaint and comfortable. I was surprised to see they had breakfast burritos on the menu and even more surprised that they were DELICIOUS! They have everything you could think of and the food is really good. I only wish they were open more often. Closed Sat and Sun so I never get to eat breakfast there unless I have the day off and they close sooooo early :(The beignets are yummy too! Check it out if you are in North Hills

Good local joint for decent coffee. Friendly «neighborhoody» atmosphere, go for their freshly made beignets!