Want a side of great sandwiches and coffee to go with that Kentucky art?
Part art gallery, part café, at the intersection of creativity and coffee, you will find one of Lexington’s true hidden gems, High on Art & Coffee.
The quaint and inviting small shop is relatively unknown to most people in Lexington but has been recognized by “National Geographic” as a top spot to visit in Kentucky.
Tucked away on High Street less than one block from Woodland Park in the Woodland Triangle neighborhood, there you can get your morning or afternoon coffee, pick up a delicious bagel or handmade breakfast or lunch sandwich. And find one-of-a-kind art pieces and unique gifts made by local artists.
Co-owners and husband-and-wife team Ellie and Tim Harman had talked about realizing their dream and opening such a venture for several years before discovering the building at 523 East High Street — the former home of Lucia’s World Emporium — was available on Craigslist in late 2014.
The couple, who met and married in Lexington, wasted no time in seizing upon the opportunity and opened for business in January of 2015.
The establishment’s name is a nod to High on Rose, the former iconic downtown restaurant/bar that was located just down the street on East High at Rose Street, until it closed in 2005.
If you love coffee, immensely satisfying sandwiches, homemade desserts, and budget-friendly local art, High on Art & Coffee is the place for you. In addition to the selection of specialty sandwiches that are always available, you can also create and customize a sandwich to your liking in numerous ways.
“We are a café that thinks it’s an art gallery, and an art gallery that thinks it’s a café,” Ellie said. “We started with only a few items and kept expanding.”
“Tim is the kitchen guy,” she said. “He makes all of the sandwiches.” Ellie pitches in by making the wonderful desserts and taking phone orders.
Tim’s background includes working in the restaurant trade in Lexington and Florida. Ellie worked in finance in New York where she also attended college, studying art. She followed in the footsteps of her mother and brother who were both artists.
The enticing daily menu includes delectable breakfast and lunch items such as crave-worthy sandwiches, salads, homemade soups and chili (in colder weather), all-natural smoothies, milkshakes, Dean’s ice cream, bread pudding, tasty homemade baked goods including muffins, cookies and brownies, and a full coffee bar. Ellie’s famous Hot Chocolate Bombs will return to the menu later this fall.
Many items are made using family recipes and Kentucky-based ingredients, and the result is noticeable. There is something for everyone on the menu. From gluten-free to vegan to vegetarian to carnivorous items.
Think of it as an eclectic deli, featuring housemade pimento cheese chicken salad and humus, fresh herbs, and produce received daily, and more.
The standout sandwich is the Crangerine Turkey Sandwich, consisting of turkey, bacon, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, cranberry/tangerine sauce, and roasted garlic mayonnaise on a toasted croissant ($6.25.) Try it once and you will understand its wide appeal.
It was originally a holiday seasonal menu item; however, it was so popular, it soon became a menu staple and the number one selling sandwich.
“People threatened us when we planned to take it off the menu,” Ellie said with a laugh.
Another popular sandwich is the Hot Italian, made with ham, salami, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, banana peppers, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, roasted garlic mayonnaise on a toasted hoagie roll ($7.25.)
There is also the Womeletwich — a create-your-own omelet sandwich that is “popular with UK students who sleep in” — made on a waffle iron (priced by ingredients.) A womelet is also available, a version made not into a sandwich. Due to the limited size of the café’s food prep area, a waffle iron comes in handy for making eggs and takes up less space.
Two must-not-miss side items include the baked macaroni and cheese and the potato salad, respectively among the best available anywhere in town.
Due to the pandemic and spiking COVID-19 numbers, indoor dining and shopping inside for art are currently on hold. Customers instead can browse the online food menu and current art offerings at High on Art & Coffee’s website: HighonArtandCoffee.com.
Orders can then be placed by phone and picked up curbside or at a porch window. Online ordering is not available.
In the adjacent patio garden, there are three umbrella tables and chairs as well as benches for outdoor dining as the weather permits.
High on Art & Coffee’s regular customers are diverse, according to Ellie, including frequent visits from students at nearby Maxwell elementary school stopping by for ice cream, skateboarders from Woodland Park, University of Kentucky students, and the “ladies who love to lunch,” among others — and there are a lot of walk-up customers. “This is a big walking neighborhood.”
When she is not busy taking telephone orders and working the register at the porch window, Ellie is busy creating her personal artwork which also is available for sale, from jewelry to fabric painting.
Showcasing talented local artists is the mission of High on Art & Coffee and most of the art for sale is made here in Kentucky.
The current offering represents the creativity of about 100 local artists and includes everything from books, children’s toys, apparel, greeting cards, health and beauty items, handmade one-of-a-kind jewelry, journals, mugs, music CDs, pottery, sculptures, statues, vases, and vintage items, to wall art.
Serving delicious food is the secondary focus. Promoting the local arts scene where you can also get something to eat and drink is what it is all about.
Ellie sums it up thus, “People eat — they have to eat — but they don’t have to buy art. For us, it is all about supporting local artists.”
High on Art & Coffee
Where: 523 East High St. Lexington
Hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., closed on Sunday
Phone: 859-396-4366 or 859-576-3981
Online: highonartandcoffee.com/