Longtime East Atlanta coffee shop Hodgepodge Coffee will close at the end of the year.
Hodgepodge, located at 720 Moreland Ave. SE, is set to close after service on Dec. 31, according to an Instagram post from owner Krystle Rodriguez.
“While the past twelve years at the corner of Ormewood and Moreland have been truly indescribable, this corner has also become incredibly desirable, and we simply cannot afford the significant rent hike accompanied with renewing our lease,” the statement said. “Each and every price increase we made in the last two years went directly to the rise in cost of goods and pay increases for the team as we tried to navigate the cost of living crisis in this city. We have tried our damnedest to keep true to our mission while keeping the doors open and lights on, but the reality is that success in this current landscape makes exploitation almost a necessity. I know our customers are trying just as hard to survive right now. I don’t have the power to fix that, but as a business owner, I do have a choice of whether or not to participate.”
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
Rodriguez also referenced dealing with health issues and thanked customers for their patronage. On Hodgepodge’s website, she said her impetus for opening the coffee shop in early 2012 was to “create an environment where people can go to simply exist, create or connect. The idea of what kind of space it would be changed over time, but the concept was never far from my mind.”
Hodgepodge operated through several trials over the years, including temporary closures caused by cars crashing into the front of the building, and the COVID-19 pandemic, during which the coffee shop pivoted into a neighborhood market.
In addition to the original East Atlanta location, Rodriguez also opened shops in Reynoldstown and Decatur that have since closed. Plans to open a Hodgepodge in Summerhill near the Georgia State University football stadium have been scrapped.
Rodriguez is also the founder of Leaven, a collaborative kitchen in Decatur that’s home to several local pop-ups including Sugar Loaf and Knead to Savor.
She did not immediately respond to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s request for more information on the closure.
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