The decor of Daily Grind Unwind features warm-toned wood and natural colors contrasted with black granite and stainless steel.

Daily Grind Unwinds Coffee Houses in Mid-Atlantic

VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA – How cool would this be?  You roll out of bed on the weekend and really need a pick-me-up to clear the cobwebs and energize you enough to complete all your errands.  With one eye open, you make it to the elevator, push “one” and descend to the ground.  When the doors open, you’re in a coffee house.  As long as you can mumble “macchiato,” you’ll get one of the best cups of coffee you’ve ever tasted and be good to go!

            This is a reality for the tenants of 342-unit Cosmopolitan luxury apartment building within The Town Center of Virginia Beach.  They have a Daily Grind Unwind coffeehouse on the ground floor! 

Daily Grind Unwind is one of the newest tenants in The Town Center of Virginia Beach.  The coffee shop franchise is operated by Hampton Roads husband and wife team, Frederick and Juliet Smith.   Also in Hampton Roads, Daily Grind Unwind recently signed a ten-year lease for a storefront located at 300 High Street in downtown Portsmouth.  They are also interested in sites in Norfolk on Granby Street and in Smithfield and Chesapeake.

Erica Meekins and Mary McGovern of the Virginia Beach office of Divaris Real Estate, Inc. are tenant representatives for Daily Grind Unwind who are searching for additional sites for the coffeehouses throughout Hampton Roads.

That’s where the company is going, but from where is Daily Grind Unwind coming? In the early 90's, Ed Chapman and his family spent several years in Seattle.  This was where and when he fell in love with the coffee industry.  While there, he participated in seminars and training given by some of the West Coast's best coffee companies and gained a diverse knowledge of the coffee industry.  Rick Rawlings and his family visited the Chapmans in Seattle, and also got a taste of the specialty coffee experience. Then the journey began.

After returning to their native Winchester, Virginia, Chapman and Rawlings began planning the first coffee house in the area. While eating at Ernie's, a local food establishment, Rick and Ed 'jokingly' made an offer for the restaurant. The owner accepted and Daily Grind opened its doors a short three months later in November of 1995. The first location in Old Town Winchester was a hit, and soon there was interest throughout the area for this type of relaxing atmosphere along with a great cup of coffee.

After nearly five years of development into a multi-store chain, the owners decided to turn their operation into a franchise in order to give individuals who wanted to own and operate their own business a chance to become a part of the Daily Grind family. This was when the true expansion began. Daily Grind Unwind is now a growing franchise operation with almost 70 stores operating or opening soon, throughout Virginia -- especially the Shenandoah Valley -- as well as in West Virginia, and Maryland.

The success of the chain rests on the quality of the products for sale.  Barista specialties at Daily Grind Unwind include espressos, cappuccinos, latte’s and hot or iced flavored drinks like Black Forest, German Chocolate and others that taste like America’s favorite candy bars.   Besides all sorts of baked goods to go with that grande cup of Joe, patrons can satisfy their appetites with breakfast or lunch sandwiches like a Feta and Spinach Specialty Croissant or a Not So Classic BLT served on a fresh baguette with Daily Grind’s Special Bistro Sauce.

On the bottom floor of an office building, urban Daily Grinds can have as many as three entire walls of glass. The décor consists of warm-toned woods, and a large counter so the ordering and waiting process isn’t cramped like at other coffee shops.  The counters and tabletops are black granite to contrast with stainless steel appliances and legs of the tables and chairs.  The overall effect of the earth-tones is an attractive, upscale, high-quality, yet calming atmosphere where helpful staff takes the time to answer questions about the different beverage offerings.