A Guide to Toledo’s Coffee Roasters

Toledo constantly seems to be growing in popularity nationwide, and its coffee scene has also grown to be impressive, with no fewer than five specialist independent coffee roasters in the area.

Even in a state with so many independent roasters, I think “eclectic” is a great way of summing up the various single-batch roasteries Toledo (including BG) has to offer, and here you can learn where to find ’em.

Maddie and Bella

We might be biased, but as an official partner of Ohio Coffee Club, we have to give M&B the early shoutout!

Their espresso roast is a personal favorite of mine, creating a silky smooth shot with just the right amount of acidity and kick. But really, every coffee bag they put together is roasted with care, and the Nicaragua Cafe Diego and Peru Chanchamayo Highland blends worked just as well for a shot as they do a pourover.

As with a lot of Ohio roasters we feature, roasting beans began as a simple hobby that turned into something awesome. Named after the family’s Australian Shepherd dogs, Maddie and Bella, the brand has now grown to having two locations, one in the warehouse district in Toledo and another in historic Perrysburg Ohio.

Flying Rhino

This is officially Toledo’s oldest roastery, supplying great beans to local coffee shops for over 20 years now.

Their roastery is usually open Wednesday through Friday and they’re also a regular feature at the Toledo Farmer’s Market on Saturdays. They have innovative canned coffee options like iced coffee to buy, as well as freshly roasted and ethically sourced beans.

Just take a minute and admire the literal rhino with wings that appears front and center on their 12oz bags. Kind of reminds me of Royal Flamingo, who are another great in-state roaster that make our list of the best Columbus coffee roasters!

Actual Coffee

Actual Coffee don’t have a coffee shop, but they operate out of a roastery and showroom that you can buy beans from, and they roast every Tuesday and Thursday so you can guarantee you’ll get fresh beans when ordering from them!

While they don’t have a “store”, they do have an amazing coffee cart that allows them to cater to events like weddings.

This is a really cool brand whose motto is “coffee without the BS” and they have modern, sleek branding on both their bags and merch (of which they have plenty!)

Grounds for Thought

As an Ohio Coffee Club roaster partner, Grounds for Thought are most certainly not an afterthought! We just figured as they’re based in BG, it’s not technically Toledo, but great beans in the area deserve a mention.

Head roaster Kelly sources her beans for her Colombia El Carmelo roast directly from a farm in Colombia, and over the years has developed a close relationship with the owner, Miguel. Building trust with a farmer like this for so long puts Kelly arguably ahead of her time, as we enter a coffee era where more people are interested about where and how the coffee was sourced than ever.

The quality shows in their beans. They’re consistently voted the best coffee in Bowling Green.

Flatlands

Another BG roaster that had to make the list, Flatlands was officially voted “best coffee in Ohio” in 2022. We like to think we know something about Ohio coffee beans, and there are a lot of great ones, so that’s no mean feat from Flatlands to scoop that award up!

Flatland meticulously roast their “Nordic style” coffee to ensure the flavor is the same throughout the whole bag, and combine blends from several regions in coffees such as their “Chocolate kiss espresso” ranging from Colombia to Vietnam.

You can find them at their shop in downtown BG and they’re also a regular at the local farmers’ market.

Iron Bean Coffee

If you’re looking for a coffee that’s a little more aggressive, at least in its branding, Iron Bean are a unique brand that’s made their Ohio coffee beans known nationally for their fire-and-brimstone style naming and artwork!

With a medium roast named “Ride or Die” and a dark roast “My Little Friend”, you get the picture… Iron Bean is certainly a deviation from the norms of third-wave coffee, but the veteran-owned brand boasts a strong and dedicated following.

From Northwest to Northeast, and everywhere in between, we’re compiling a list of the best roasters our great state has to offer, so be sure to check our list of Cleveland coffee roasters for even more local legends who are doing coffee proud in Ohio.