The internet sensation of the performative male has circulated the internet, inspiring others to join their lifestyle. You may have seen images of people using wired headphones listening to indie music, wearing baggy jeans, or their most iconic staple, matcha. Matcha popularity has skyrocketed over the last few months due to this internet phenomenon. This green tea can be found all over the world, including right here in Atlanta. If you have fallen victim to the performative male lifestyle and want to try matcha, here are the best matchas in Atlanta: Foxtail Coffee, Dancing Goats Coffee Bar, Mend Coffee, The Chastain, and The Postcard.
Foxtail Coffee offers a matcha latte starting at $5.30, making it one of the cheapest matchas in Atlanta for the bigger-sized cup you receive. They provide various add-ins, such as syrups and cold foam. The matcha is less green in color, yet it is one of the most flavorful matchas in Atlanta. The matcha and syrup flavors are very prominent without the grassy taste. Foxtail offers the most amount of diversity in its menu, with many food and drink options, and a good restaurant environment.
We then tried Dancing Goats, located near the Trader Joe’s in Buckhead. Like Foxtail, they serve a variety of syrups and purees in their matchas. Here we tried their iced matcha with strawberry puree. While the strawberry flavor was delicious, we were disappointed by the actual matcha itself. The drink lacked flavor and was grainer than the other matchas we reviewed. The color was a more muted green and was on the pricier side.
Near Dancing Goats is another matcha cafe, The Postcard. The Postcard specializes in matcha, and many of their customers came to try their elaborate flavors. After a conversation with the barista, we ordered their signature matcha with strawberry rose flavoring. This matcha was a beautiful green color layered with strawberry and rose puree. The matcha itself was very tasty; it was smooth, and you could taste the tea without an overpowering taste of grass. Along with the matcha itself, the syrups and puree were very prominent. I was surprised by how well we could taste the rose flavor, something I did not know could be a flavor. While delicious, it was on the pricey side, costing around 10 dollars; however, it is a great place to splurge on a rich treat after a long day.
The Chastian, in Chastain Park, offers the best environment of all the coffee shops in Atlanta. The food and drinks have a very high reputation, but there is always a line due to the high demand. The wait time during the weekend is about 20 minutes before ordering. The matcha costs 6 dollars for their seasonal apple and caramel matcha. “I would not recommend the apple and caramel matcha from Chastain because it is watered down and tastes more like a chai latte,” said junior Ella Reagan Roth. “But I’ve had the vanilla matcha and it is much better.” Overall, the seasonal matcha was not our favorite, but many of the other food and drink options are well liked.
Lastly, Mend Coffee and Goods offers a fresh and innovative experience where they make an effort to create an inclusive and fun environment for the physically disabled community. The restaurant environment is unique as it is mostly centered around their mission. Their matcha costs 5-7 dollars, depending on the size. Junior Ella Reagan Roth says that Mend matcha is her favorite in Atlanta. “I love Mend’s use of natural flavoring and their efforts to work with the disability community,” said Ella Reagan. Mend’s matcha is on the sweeter side, so this will be a good recommendation to those with a sweet tooth. Matcha’s popularity has grown over the past few months, and Atlanta has great options for this newly popular drink.
Photo Credits: Molly Luber