The Joplin Avenue Coffee Company (506 S. Joplin Ave.) has been a downtown favorite for nearly two years, but owner Kristy Warner says there are some big changes on the horizon.

Don’t worry, those changes won’t be made to fan favorite drinks such as The Marilyn, The Van Gogh or The Dirty Monkey.  Nope, the coffee shop is making an addition.  In about three weeks time, a back room will become a full bar with live music, open mic, and stand-up comedy on Friday and Saturday nights.

The coffee shop will still be open and operating as usual during those times, so those MoSo Lions out there who aren’t quite old enough can still have a relaxing place to hang out.

In other news, JACC will be hosting an anti-Valentine’s Day party on Feb. 14 called “Keep Calm and Single On.”  So whether you’re happily single, sadly single, newly single or you just think Valentine’s Day is big hoax created by card companies, visit JACC for some Cupid bashing and the live saxophone stylings of Levi Randolph.    

The coffee shop isn’t just a great place to gather with friends, though. Warner encourages Missouri Southern students to use her shop — and its free Wi-Fi – to do homework.  Barista Leilani Vaipulu said there is even a Southern professor who frequents JACC to get work done.

Perhaps what JACC is most known for, though, is the way the staff makes each customer’s visit a personalized experience.  

First, they offer a build-your-own option with drinks.  Even if they don’t have a certain ingredient, they are willing to improvise.  Warner said a customer recently requested a peanut butter and bacon drink.  “It was a creation, but we did it,” she said.  

The baristas are known throughout Joplin for being very friendly and helpful.  

“I hire a lot on personality,” said Warner. “We have great customer service and there’s no training for that, it’s just you have it or you don’t.”      

It’s that customer service that has made the JACC atmosphere feel like a “family”, as Vaipulu put it.

“We have a small environment here, and we have a lot of regulars, so we see a lot of the same people day in and day out,” said Warner.  “We have a staff of four girls and myself, so there’s not very many of us, but everybody is close-knit.”

In addition, Warner is a supporter of local artists.  The walls are always bedecked in Four-State-made pieces, and she makes it a point that JACC has a strong presence at the Art Walks.  

The many unique qualities of JACC have led it to be nominated by the Joplin Globe as one of the Top Five Reader’s Choice Best Places for Coffee.   

The best way to find out more about JACC is to check out its Facebook page, which Warner frequently updates with new information and hilarious coffee-related pictures.