A college hangout and an anchor on Spring Street for decades, Tunnel City roasts its own coffee and has a loyal following for its house blend — its roastery has recently moved to the renovated Norad Mill.

It is more bakery than cafe, known for treats like chocolate cheesecake, fruit tarts and linzer hearts. Beyond quiches and breakfast sandwiches, it does not lean toward lunches or savory dishes, but more to bagels and chocolate chip banana bread.

In the pandemic, Tunnel City offers an online shop — they’ll ship and wrap — and they’re open for a hot drink to warm up downtown.

It opens early and offers a welcome haven for visitors looking for a hot drink and quiet on a winter morning at sunup. And it is a cheerful, buzzing place, and often full by late morning and into the early evening, especially when the college is in session.

Tunnel City also runs a coffee shop in the old mill complex at Mass MoCA in North Adams and serves baked goods and hot drinks around the corner in the new cafe at the Norad Mill, fresh from its roastery upstairs.

BTW Berkshires
Shares