REVIEW: InHouse Coffee fills need for afterschool hangout spot

Assistant+sports+editor+Colleen+Mulligan+writes+that+InHouse+Coffee+will+become+a+new+spot+to+chill+because+of+its+welcoming+atmosphere.++

Colleen Mulligan

Assistant sports editor Colleen Mulligan writes that InHouse Coffee will become a new spot to chill because of its welcoming atmosphere.

Colleen Mulligan, Assistant Sports Editor

Downtown Northborough gained a new retro coffee shop called InHouse Coffee. The 70’s style interior, free wifi, less than five minute wait, location and relatively low prices make InHouse the place for any high schooler.

About two miles from Algonquin, across the street from CVS Pharmacy on 17 West Main St, Northborough, MA 01532. InHouse Coffee recently replaced Shattuck Pharmacy. The InHouse owners have tried to spice up a cement cube of a building. With a green and brown exterior and weird styrofoam coffee beans stuck everywhere, the outside doesn’t match the updated interior. The outside of the building looks slightly tacky, but they stepped it up on design on the inside.  When you enter the inside, there are fun chairs, comical quirky signs and a beautiful glass display of pastries.

The Northborough location of InHouse opened in April 2019 so it has no website yet, but you can get a good idea of the menu from the Worcester location’s website. They are open from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. every day, and with a wide variety of menu options, InHouse is the place to be.

InHouse offers many different coffees, like lattes and cappuccinos, both hot and iced, with unique flavors like cinnamon bun and toffee. For non-coffee drinkers, they offer hot chocolate and steamers, which I’ve heard good things about. The steamers are steamed milk with flavoring, resulting in a coffee free latte. For your morning meal, they have many breakfast options like pastries, muffins and egg sandwiches. They also offer milkshakes and fruit smoothies.

The prices are reasonable and comparable to Dunkin’ Donuts and other cafes. The coffee was even a little better than the more commercial places I’ve been to, with a richer deep coffee flavor. A medium iced latte with flavoring is about $3.50.

The customer service was one of the most notable parts of my visit. I was greeted with a warm smile as I walked up to the counter, and the the woman serving me was very patient with how long it took me to order my coffee. After I ordered my iced caramel latte, the barista chatted with me until my coffee was ready since there was no one behind me in line. It took them about two minutes to make my drink. It was delicious with the caramel adding the right amount of sweetness without overpowering the coffee flavor. The coffee was smooth and not acidic at all. The barista did not overfill the cup with ice, so a medium was the perfect size for me.

InHouse Coffee is the perfect addition to downtown Northborough with high quality food and drinks at a reasonable price with a hip new style. It is a perfect high schooler hang out spot, with plenty of space to sit with friends or to finish up some homework. There are also job opportunities open for high schoolers just in time for the summer. I’d recommend it to any and everyone. My experience was more than I expected and I will definitely be returning.