Downtown coffee shop under new ownership
A staple in downtown Beaufort, Common Ground Coffee House has been under new ownership as of the beginning of October, but don’t worry, the fabulous chai teas, fresh market lunches, seasonal pumpkin spiced lattes, baked goods and even the house special blend Dancing Goats coffee are all safe and will still be around for a long time to come.
New owners Dedra and Scottie Kaylor, recent Beaufort transplants, are looking forward to making some changes with their new 
venture. After visiting the area for some time from their home in Charlottesville, Virginia, the couple fell in love with Beaufort “because it reminded us so much of Charlottesville with the same small town qualities and appeal. We wanted to move here and operate a business”, said Scottie.
Look for the popular internet cafe to grow in its offerings after the end of this year. In addition to plans of roasting their own coffees, we’ll eventually see new seating and tables and a different feel with the already-spacious interior. “It’ll be good for the local professionals who traditionally hold their business meetings at the cafe, and will offer more comfortable and practical seating for all of our guests”, Kaylor said. “Our porch will remain pet friendly, of course.”
On the market side of the house, plans are to introduce gelato, more pastries, specialty cakes and pies, and to provide Beaufort with a larger variety of lunch options with made-to-order sandwiches, salads, organic fruits and other specialty food items.
The Kaylors are serious about their sweets. We sampled some homemade banana cheesecake, and it was absolutely decadent.
Back in Charlottesville, the Kaylor’s own Miller’s Downtown, a mega-popular restaurant with a rather storied history. We were perhaps just a slight bit in awe when Scottie told us “our bartender for four years was this guy named Dave Matthews, he formed a band there with guys he’d met at the restaurant and the rest is kind of history”.
Whoa. Ok. So, we did some research and found that what Graceland is to Elvis fans, Miller’s is to DMB loyalists. Pretty cool. Any chance of Dave visiting Beaufort? [no answer] Pretty cool indeed.
It’s going to be interesting watching what happens with the popular coffee house that hosts many Beaufortonians (and their pets) daily and many more looking for a warm-up in the fall while downtown shopping or enjoying Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park.
