Mar 28, 2019 4 min read

When Little City Coffee opened at 418 W. Main St. in Monongahela in October 2010, it wasn’t the new coffee shop on the block – it was the only one.

And it’s just what the neighborhood needed.

Nearly nine years later, the coffee house-roastery-bookstore bustles with neighbors, students, business professionals and local workers who enjoy the coffee and the cool, welcoming vibe created by co-owners and sisters Angelica Brough and Joanna Provan, and Nathan Redfield.

The sisters had no experience in the coffee business when they decided to open the coffee shop.

“Joanna and I always wanted to own a shop, and we were curious to figure out what the town needed and we wanted to fill that need,” says Brough, who was a 20-year-old student at the University of Pittsburgh when the pair opened the coffee house. “We started it as a way to bring something unique to the community.”

Redfield, 28, started working at Little City Coffee in 2013 as a barista before becoming part owner recently, when Provan decided to step away from the business to focus on raising her family and teaching violin.

Brough and Redfield pride themselves on their small-batch roasts and the specialty coffees, lattes and smoothies.

The beans are purchased from a major coffee trader, and Brough and Redfield create blends that are roasted in-house. The pair recently started making seasonal blends, and currently offers Wildflower, a spring blend.

The smoothies, Redfield notes, are themed, and change regularly. One month, they’re named after mystical creatures, another month, they’re named after Avengers superheroes.

“People like it, and we try to keep things interesting,” he says.

Brough, who graduated with an English degree, noted that few things go together better than good coffee and a good book, so she combined the two in the shop. Lovers of lattes and literature can purchase used books from the always changing selection, or curl up on the well-worn leather couch or chairs with a book from the “borrow” shelf. The shop accepts donations of books, and also drops off books to the Monongahela Library or Washington City Mission.

Little City Coffee hosts twice-monthly game nights that encourage vibrant discussion (one book shelf holds dozens of popular board games that guests can use at any time), and on one Friday a month, local bands and musicians take center stage.

Little City Coffee offers its beans in bulk and at wholesale pricing, and is also available for purchase at Cox Market in Monongahela.

Regular customer Brian Short, who ducked in on a Friday morning for a cup of joe, described Little City Coffee as “a very cool place.”

“It doesn’t get any better than this,” says Short as he adds honey and half-and-half to his coffee. “The atmosphere is nice, and the people have always been nice.”

Little City Coffee offers a limited – but delicious – dessert selection, featuring cheesecake crafted by Simply Baked in Charleroi. Patrons keep returning for the whiskey barrel cold brew cheesecake that Little City Coffee and Simply Baked teamed up to make.

“We got a rye whiskey barrel from Liberty Pole Spirits in Washington, and we age the coffee, before it’s roasted, in the barrel for about a month, and it soaks in the flavor and aroma of the whiskey, and it’s really very good,” Redfield says. “So, we made the coffee in the barrel and Simply Baked made the cheesecake.”

Brough says she and Redfield enjoy collaborating with the owners of other local businesses to “expand on what we all have to offer, draw attention to other businesses in town, and make connections, work together and promote each other.”

Four Points Brewing in Charleroi, for example, recently brewed a craft porter using Little City Coffee.

“It’s cool to see businesses partner up to do cool things,” Redfield says.

The store also sells artwork and photographs produced by local artists and photographers.

The coffee shop has attracted a loyal following, and Brough and Redfield enjoy the relationships they have developed with customers.

“It’s been fun. This has actually been really cool,” Redfield says. “I really love coffee, so I’m working with what I like, but it’s also really neat to meet the people who come in and hear their stories and get to know them.”