Captain's Grounds Coffee: Oceanside, CA

My sister, Sweetpea (yes, that's her name!), has been raving about Captain's Grounds Coffee on Coast Highway in Oceanside for years.  I finally got a chance to meet up with her to check it out today, and the family owned coffee cart did not disappoint! I ordered an iced coffee, sweetened with cream, and sat down in the shade next to a planter overflowing with all sorts of gorgeous succulents. Seriously, you can't go wrong with coffee + succulents in my book!

Captain's Grounds is open 7 days a week 7am-3pm and proudly serves coffee made with beans from local roaster San Diego Coffee Co.. You can find owner, Jen Stoddard, serving up hand-crafted beverages, Monday thru Friday, while her daughters, Chloe and Cassidy, hold down the fort on the weekends.  It's obvious from the constant smile on her face that Jen really loves what she does and is passionate about serving her very loyal local patrons.  The Stoddard family took over the coffee cart in front of Captain's Helm (a vintage retail shop) in 2012, and have since developed a strong knit community of regulars who seem more like friends than customers.  

About a year ago, Sweetpea noticed that Jen had removed some boring overgrown plants from the planters around the coffee cart and offered to plant some of her own succulent cuttings in their place. Since then, the succulents have taken over and are really flourishing! I don't know what it is about downtown Oceanside, but succulents seem to love it!  Below are a few photos I took of the pretty succulents around Captain's Grounds. If you are in North County San Diego and enjoy a good cup of coffee accompanied by some succulent eye candy, please pay them a visit! 

You can also follow them on Instagram @captainsgroundscoffee!