There's a thing that happens when you live in a small city. People assume you drive to the nearest bigger city for anything good. Coffee especially. Like good beans and a decent latte require a population threshold to exist.

They don't. I promise.

I have two coffee spots I want to tell you about. One is five minutes from my house. The other is worth a drive through some of the prettiest landscape in the Finger Lakes. Both are proof that Central New York takes its coffee seriously — you just have to know where to look.

Roast + Toast is my home base.

By day, it's a coffee shop that also serves toast and grilled cheese. They pour solid coffee drinks, make a black cold brew that I've built an entire personality around, and offer what they call an Electric Fizz (caffeinated soda water with fun flavors) alongside a bunch of other drinks that you won't find on a standard café menu. It's the kind of place that keeps things interesting without trying too hard.

But here's the thing about Roast + Toast that I don't think you'd get from a photo or a menu: it feels like home.

The staff has been there for a while. Not a rotating cast of whoever's available — the same people, consistently, who know what you order and ask how your week is going. That might sound small. It's not. It's the difference between a coffee shop and your coffee shop. The vibe when you walk in is warm. You can post up and get work done, or you can grab a table with a friend and lose an hour. Both are equally welcome.

And then — after four o'clock — the whole thing transforms into a cocktail bar. Same space, different energy. It's one of those details that makes people tilt their head when I describe it. A coffee-shop-slash-toast-spot-slash-cocktail-bar in a city of 25,000?

Yeah. That's Auburn for you.

This is the place I take people when they visit and ask where we should go first. It's the place I mention when someone says "but what's even in Auburn?" It's my answer to a lot of questions, honestly.

What to order: Black cold brew if you're like me. An Electric Fizz if you want to try something different. And if you're there after four — stay for a cocktail.

Now, this one requires a little intention.

Overlook Coffee Co is in Burdett — a tiny spot in the Finger Lakes, about 45 minutes to an hour from Auburn depending on which route you take. And every route is beautiful, so don't rush it.

Overlook is a small-batch roaster, and you can feel that in everything they do. The space is clean and deliberate. The kind of place where you can tell that every decision was made on purpose. There's a neon sign that reads "Overlook Coffee Co" that somehow manages to be cool without being kitschy. It's a fine line and they land on the right side of it.

But here's the real thing: the shop backs up to an overlook (the name earns itself) with a view of a waterfall. You're standing there with genuinely excellent coffee in your hand, looking at a private waterfall, and the whole experience costs you less than a mediocre latte at an airport Starbucks. That math doesn't make sense and I love it.

If you're a beans-at-home person, their Ethiopia Natural is one of my favorites — bright, complex, the kind of bag that makes your morning feel a little more intentional. And if you're there in person, order the affogato. I don't say this lightly: it's some of the best I've ever had.

Overlook is the kind of place that makes the drive part of the experience. You're going through Finger Lakes wine country, past farms and gorges and views that make you forget you're an hour from home. By the time you get there, you've already had a good day. The coffee just seals it.

What to order: The affogato, no question. Take home a bag of beans.

This newsletter is about paying attention to where you live, and where you get your coffee is one of the most honest reflections of a place.

Big cities have a coffee shop on every corner and you pick the one with the shortest line. Here, you pick the one that feels like yours. You learn the staff's names. That's not a consolation prize for not living somewhere bigger. That's the whole point.

This post isn't sponsored. Nothing here ever will be unless I tell you otherwise. I write Want to talk about a partnership or sponsoring the newsletter? Reach out at [email protected]. Want to become a Regular? Click here.