Just Love Coffee Café Now Open in Downtown Tuscaloosa

The artisanal coffee shop Just Love Coffee Cafe is open for business in downtown Tuscaloosa after a soft opening Thursday.

The eccentric coffee and waffle shop was founded in Murfreesboro, Tennessee in 2011 and is being brought to Tuscaloosa by two brothers, Jack and Alex Roberts.

The duo, both Tennessee natives and University of Alabama alumni, started setting up shop in the former home of O'Henry's Coffee on University Boulevard earlier this fall, and their vision has been coming together neatly since then, Alex told The Tuscaloosa Thread.

"We had a pretty surprisingly big opening weekend," Roberts said. "It's been a lot of people familiar with the brand, but also a lot of people around the area that just stopped by. We wanted to add a few pieces as well that would tie into Tuscaloosa and make it very local."

As Just Love has grown from a few coffee shops in Tennessee to a national franchise with more than 100 locations, the Roberts brothers saw an opportunity to bring the brand to Tuscaloosa after they graduated from UA and fell in love with the city.

Alex said he originally started this project with his father, but after his sudden passing in March, he enlisted the help of his older brother Jack to honor their father.

"We're able to balance each other very well," Alex said. "I'm very operationally minded, and Jack is very financially marketing-minded."

Roberts says that what makes Just Love stand out is their approach to their menu -- everything is focused around their signature waffle iron technique, where almost everything they serve is pressed onto the iron first. Roberts said this gives every dish on the menu a distinct taste and texture.

This is even represented in the form of a giant decorative waffle hanging from the ceiling -- a staple of the shop.

The menu features everything from grilled wraps to club sandwiches to unique breakfast options like the Stuffed Nutella or the Berry Berry Bo Berry Waffle.

Just Love also roasts all its own coffee, filling the cafe with the unbeatable smell of freshly ground beans browning in the oven.

Roberts says he hopes to have a grand opening for the cafe sometime in early December but definitely doesn't want to discourage any business beforehand.

Just Love Coffee is open now from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Sunday. For more information, visit their Facebook page, or call 205-759-2587.