Coffee and croissant connoisseurs will find nirvana on the bottom floor of the shiny new Smith Barney building north of ASU (aka Crane State).

California-based Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf is introducing what it calls “yogurt ice-blended beverages” in three flavors — original, mango and strawberry — to its menu and will offer the drinks free from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. today. Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf has stores in Scottsdale, Mesa. Tempe and Chandler. Info:

Coffee bean prices received a jolt this year, trading at a fiveyear high. Folgers, the nation’s top seller in the morning pick-me-up industry, has raised its prices twice in the last few months.

Coffee bean prices received a jolt this year, trading at a fiveyear high. Folgers, the nation’s top seller in the morning pick-me-up industry, has raised its prices twice in the last few months.

Coffee has become my new favorite ingredient when roasting meat.

SEATTLE - Got three bucks? That and a nickel will buy you a coffee drink at Starbucks. Starbucks Corp. said Thursday that it planned to raise prices of its lattes, cappuccinos, drip coffee and other drinks by 5 cents, or an average of 1.9 percent

Mesa’s historic Main Street is getting its first specialty coffee shop.

Expressing concerns about the City of Tempe is no longer limited to city council or committee meetings. Tempe City Council Member Joel Navarro is starting a new conversation series, “Java with Joel,” where residents can spend an hour on Saturday morning drinking coffee and discussing city issues. Having been chair of the neighborhood Quality of Life and Revitalization Committee and recently appointed to the new Neighborhoods and Education City Council Committee, Navarro has made neighborhoods the topic of his first 8:30 a.m. community discussion on Oct. 27 at Xtreme Bean Coffee Company, 1707 E. Southern Ave. A schedule of future sessions is currently unavailable, but Navarro said he intends to make to make the community discussions a regular event.

People who like wine and spirits often are passionate about other food and beverages, too — which is why I’m devoting this column to coffee.

The Country Club Drive and Main Street intersection in downtown Mesa saw an unusual jolt of activity with the opening of a coffee cafe Friday.

The Human Bean, a coffee shop that took over a neglected but high-profile corner next to downtown Mesa, is history.

In a world with a coffee shop on nearly every streetcorner, two Gilbert businessmen say they've found an unusual niche their competitors aren't filling.

The kickoff of the winter entertaining season means one thing to savvy hosts: hot toddies and coffee drinks. Sure, we live in the desert, but still romanticize the idea of a white winter landscape complete with roaring fire and a mug of warm goodness.

At this exact moment, there’s a farmer somewhere in the world growing coffee beans in order to meet the demands of people hooked on the aromatic, often energy-enducing substance. It is up to those like Valley entrepreneur Jason Silberschlag to head out to exotic locales and find these farmers in order to obtain nothing short of the perfect coffee bean.

Coffee drinkers are facing a tough wake-up call: Retailers are finding it increasingly difficult to hold the line as rising commodities prices percolate through the system.

I’m not one to find myself looking for a place to just hang out very often. But I recently found myself with some precious time to kill. At the advice of a friend, I discovered the coolest coffee bar in town: Lux Coffee Bar, on Central Avenue across from Central High School.

While the last few years have witnessed the closure of more than a few local businesses, Dutch Bros. of Arizona — the local franchise of the popular Oregon-based family of drive-thru coffee kiosks — has continued to expand in the Valley.

Lisslotte Eckhoff's friends don't offer her coffee with dessert. They won't even make it in front of her for fear of doing something wrong.

There was a tiny mom-and-pop diner back where I grew up. "Holler If You Want More Coffee" was printed on a sign near the register. No one ever noticed the sign. But the custom was understood among regulars: If you wanted a refill, you'd holler. Like a banshee.

Under normal circumstances, Sam Clark would hesitate to want the term “mob” associated with his upstart downtown Mesa coffeehouse.

Under normal circumstances, Sam Clark would hesitate to want the term “mob” associated with his upstart downtown Mesa coffeehouse.