Photo: Owner Tina Tatum (with hat) and the staff of Coffee Central Squared are shown in front of the 39 W, Commerce Street location in Hernando. (Bob Bakken/DeSoto County News)
On Jan. 1, a familiar name in the DeSoto County coffee house world expanded to a new location.
Coffee Central Squared has been in Hernando as part of Side Alley Gifts and Cafe since late October 2019 but as the new year started, the place that brings “coffee and community together” opened at the old Lady Bugg Bakery location, 39 W. Commerce Street in Hernando.
The original Coffee Central flagship location continues at its Southaven shop, 5627 Getwell Road, but the expanded Hernando space allows more opportunity to offer some unique items, said owner Tina Tatum.
“We will have raw-pressed juices here,” Tatum said. “They’re juiced in-house, no one else in DeSoto County offers that. We have a full kitchen and we are baking everything in Hernando and taking it to our Southaven location, so we don’t have to outsource any of our baked goods except for one particular item that’s done really well by our baker, and that’s our bacon cinnamon rolls. We’re bringing in our sausage balls that we’re really known for.”
The raw-pressed juices are from the Abundant Juices Company, which Coffee Central will have an exclusive offering with during the 2021 year.
Tatum added the kitchen will be opened up in the next couple of weeks to add soup, salad, and other items that will all have a healthy variety.
The additional space and the historic uniqueness of the building led Tatum to shift Coffee Central Squared from the Side Alley Gifts space near the Courthouse Square to the Commerce Street space. The building has a collection of rooms for small groups and there’s also an upstairs area that can be used for meetings of up to 12 people.
“There are not a lot of buildings like this available for business in the DeSoto County area period, much less in Hernando,” said Tatum. “So we just took the opportunity to expand our product offering in a space where the community can be building meaningful connections.”
Since its opening in Southaven nearly two years ago, Coffee Central has become a very popular place for people to meet and pass an hour or more chatting while enjoying some java…or more, a growth spurt Tatum is very grateful for.
“People of DeSoto County really have supported local business through this COVID-19 situation,” Tatum noted. “We did not have to eliminate any staff. We’ve really sown into DeSoto County because we believe in the aspect of community here, and the faith-based community. It doesn’t surprise me that people show up to support locals.”
The musical and non-profit sectors get a chance to express who they are with something Tatum coined as “Coffee With A Cause.” Once monthly, a musician or musical group is brought in and a selected nonprofit gets the benefit of exposure and a share of the evening’s proceeds.
“We’ll have live music and the nonprofit will share their story and what they do so we can connect our community with them, the musicians’ community with them and we give a percentage off the register and take donations and let people know how they can connect with that nonprofit,” said Tatum.
The first “Coffee With a Cause” in Hernando will be Saturday evening, Jan. 31.
Hours at Coffee Central Squared, 39 West Commerce Street in Hernando, are 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-9 p.m. on Saturday, and closed on Sunday. Coffee Central Squared has a Facebook and Instagram page and is also found on the internet on the Coffee Central website. The phone number is 662-469-4349.
Coffee Central owner Tina Tatum (with hat holding scissors) cuts the ribbon as the new Coffee Central Squared Hernando location is welcomed at its new location, 39 West Commerce Street. The event on Tuesday, Jan 12 was a joint ribbon cutting with the Southaven and Hernando Main Street chambers of commerce. (Courtesy photo)
