Coffee Costs Jump 30% at Tappahannock Cafe

Coffee prices at Java Jacks in Tappahannock, Va., have risen more than 30 percent since 2022.

Owner Jeans Owens says the increase stems from higher costs for beef, sausage, and paper products. The cost of takeout boxes has nearly doubled, moving from 12 cents to nearly 30 cents per unit. The combined price of a cup, lid, and straw has jumped from three cents to over 20 cents.

Utility bills have also climbed sharply. Owens states that her monthly electricity payment, which typically ranged between $450 and $500, now exceeds $1,000. She attributes the spike to recent rate changes and increased usage.

Owens and her husband took over the cafe business eight years ago. The shop opened in 2006 in a small one-story home on the main road through town. Owens says she aims to keep some meals at the $10 price point despite the rising overhead.

To manage costs, Owens has changed her sourcing habits. She now purchases milk and juice from a Walmart in the early morning and buys fresh fruit from a local grocery store. She also compares prices among three different suppliers and switches vendors to find the lowest rates.

Customer behavior has shifted in response to broader economic pressures. Owens notes that more senior citizens are splitting orders, a trend she rarely saw when she first purchased the business. Tipping patterns have also fluctuated with gas prices, decreasing when fuel costs were high and recovering when they dropped.

Staffing remains a primary challenge for Owens. She operates a second coffee location across the river in Warsaw and has been short-staffed at both sites for months. With median income in the rural area around $50,000, she has helped employees find housing and temporarily placed them in a motel. She also carpools about five employees to work because some lack reliable transportation.

Owens plans to increase menu prices further but is focused on retaining staff. She is running for the non-partisan town council, citing local housing and transportation issues. The cafe is located in Virginia's 1st Congressional District, where the race between Republican Rob Wittman and Democrat Shannon Taylor has been tight. Owens says she wants her representative to understand the current struggles of small businesses.