Today, we address this city’s urgent need for a coffee shop/wine bar that’s actually not an urgent need
at all but here’s one anyway. The name: River Coyote, a sort of rustic spot with intentionally
industrial-hole-in-the-wall vibes that’s open now on the LES.
Should you swing by during the day, it’s where you might claim a seat or two in the banquette nook
opposite the marble-topped bar and sip a no-nonsense caffeinated beverage next to someone who also
appreciates no-nonsense caffeinated beverages. Either keep it simple with a shot of espresso, or tell the
barista your hopes and dreams and let him or her make something custom. We’d say simplicity is the way to
go here, as their coffee is from a Brazilian farm owned by Brooklyn’s Nobletree Coffee (so, it’s good)
and their coffee-making apparatus is particularly impressive and hard to find in America. Food-wise,
everything’s pretty basic—Dough donuts, local pastries, that sort of thing.
In the evenings, you’ll swap espresso for one of 16 wines on tap or many mugs of hoppy goodness, and swap
croissants for Middlebury blue cheese with fig jam and the like. And they’ll be doing small plates like
branzino crudo and Ecuadorian lamb skewers.
We’d also be remiss if we didn’t mention that this is now the premier spot to bring dates you’re not
totally sure about.
