By Anna Grace Moore
Photos by Blair Ramsey
The brainchild of Miranda Whitcomb Pontes, Frothy Monkey was first founded in 2004 in a quaint bungalow space in the 12South neighborhood of Nashville. Current managing partner and owner Ryan Pruitt joined the team as a barista in 2006, working his way up to general manager.
Then in 2011, Ryan purchased the company with the aid of several investors, creating what is now a nationally-known brand. His business partner and friend, Jenn Sheets, who works as Frothy Monkey’s creative director and head of marketing, says supporting Ryan’s vision 15 years ago has evolved into one of her favorite projects to date.
“I remember my very first time as a customer,” she says. “I feel really fortunate to be a part of this thing that we’ve grown because people love it. I was one of them. As a marketer, to be able to really be passionate about what you sell and what you do makes your job easy.”
Hailing from Massachusetts, Jenn attended a small, private college outside of Boston and majored in psychology and special education before branching out into the world of advertising and graphic design.
“I ended up in this space, where I was passionate about helping small businesses grow and communicate their story,” Jenn says. “It’s exciting to take somebody’s dream and make it a reality.”
While working in marketing, Jenn went back to school to study visual communications before moving to Nashville in 2001. She then worked in advertising for the Nashville Predators and was eventually recruited by a fellow co-worker to join her start-up boutique marketing firm.
As a Frothy Monkey “regular,” Jenn formed a great relationship with Ryan. She often heard him talk about his vision to expand Frothy Monkey into Franklin, Tennessee, creating an “all-day cafe” just like he had seen touring with his band in Europe.
Jenn joined the team in 2012 as a consultant, and in 2014, she officially became a managing partner of Frothy Monkey. Now celebrating its 20th anniversary, Frothy Monkey has nine locations across the Southeast, including its own roasting plant, Frothy Monkey Roasting Co., and a wholesale bakery.
In 2019, Frothy Monkey’s management team set their sights on Birmingham, wanting to expand into the “foodie city.” While they first fell in love with Homewood, no places stood out to them at that time.
Through some mutual connections, they were introduced to Tomasz “Tom” Wrzesien, the founder and owner of Urban Standard in downtown Birmingham. Tom was looking to retire, and after getting to know Ryan, he turned over the keys to the building.
In the “Our Story” statement on frothymonkey.com, Tom says, “I knew that they would be a wonderful fit to take over the Urban Standard space and to carry on our mission to serve this neighborhood and community.”
Frothy Monkey opened up in the former Urban Standard space at 2320 2nd Avenue North in 2021. Then in 2022, Red Rock Realty Group approached Frothy Monkey about opening up its second Alabama location in Edgewood off of Oxmoor Road.
Through Red Rock Realty Group, Frothy Monkey partnered with local architect Tyler G. Price and contractor Matt Shelby to renovate their new space. Before beginning the project, Tyler toured several locations to get an idea of the desired aesthetic.
Tyler says what stands out about the business is its endeavors to revitalize older buildings, capitalizing on the infrastructure already in place. Located in the former Homewood Antiques space, Tyler drew up three, separate tenant spaces and focused on the longer, more narrow building in the middle for the new cafe.
“We wanted to bring the scale back down to this comfortable level and create a little patio space to give people a threshold of when you know you’re going into Frothy,” Tyler says. “The experience starts at the sidewalk.”
On Tuesday, March 26, Frothy Monkey opened its doors in Edgewood for the first time. Strolling inside, customers enter through the recessed, family-friendly patio before walking into the cafe, whose open dining space and elongated bar draw them into the heart of the business.
“This is a family community with people of all ages, who are going to be in this space,” Tyler says. “We hope it’s warm, fun and comfortable for everybody to come and make it a part of their home.”
Sure enough, the customer experience remains top priority for the staff, and the experience starts with serving delicious meals.
“We roast our own coffee,” Jenn says. “We bake our own bread. We make all of our own syrups in-house. We make it a little hard on ourselves, but it’s worth it. Everything is made-from-scratch, using great ingredients.”
Glancing at Frothy Monkey’s menu, one will notice the plethora of small businesses and farms its partners with such as Knoxville Honey Co. and Bee Creek Farm, which are where Frothy Monkey sources its honey.
Hoff & Pepper, which was started by Aaron Hoffman in Chattanooga, now provides a line of signature sauces and syrups often used in several menu items including the Bloody Mary cold brew coffee.
“We really wanted to take the top items we sell–eggs, milk, coffee, bread–and know who we’re sourcing those from and supporting small businesses in the process,” Jenn says. “Hatcher [Dairy] is one of our oldest relationships. They’ve grown their farm with us. That’s really cool to see as someone who loves small businesses and seeing them grow.”
Whether one is interested in brunch, dinner or just drinks, he will find something he loves on the menu. A favorite among longtime customers, the Havana latte is made with espresso, steamed milk of choice, house-made sauce with condensed milk, vanilla, star anise and cinnamon.
The Apple Bottom Jeans, too, is another fan favorite. It is a cranberry apple cider with pomegranate molasses, cinnamon, sage, cloves and nutmeg.
Pair that with the BE-Hive Bowl, Jenn’s favorite, for a delectable brunch. This bowl is a medley of BE-Hive vegan breakfast sausage sautéed with basil and garlic-roasted vegetables layered over kale and drizzled with sprouts and garlic mozz.
The Julie Bagel is an “OG favorite” named after one of Frothy Monkey’s former employees and is her own recipe with a twist: KY Farm-fresh eggs, tomato, feta and basil on a sourdough bagel.
One would be remiss not to sample the dinner menu after 4 o’clock. The Herb Crusted Trout over mashed cauliflower is topped with wilted arugula and lemon sage butter, yielding a sensation of flavor with every bite.
The Shrimp and Grits entrée, which is now served breakfast through dinner, is another can’t-miss option. It combines blackened shrimp with local andouille sausage, tomatoes, red peppers and onions over smoked gouda grits.
What is even more wholesome than the menu is how each server greets both new and longtime customers with the same, cheerful salutations.
“The thing that is impressive to me is not only the retention of leadership that Frothy has, but also the buy-in they all have and the responsibility they’re all given and take advantage of,” Tyler says.
Truly, everyone at Frothy Monkey from the hosts to the chefs to the management enjoys what they do–and a lot of this contentment stems from Ryan’s pride in his entrepreneurial dream.
“We really take care of each other, and we care about how what we do impacts the rest of our team and the community,” Jenn says.
Looking forward, Frothy Monkey pledges to further its brand in Edgewood and beyond, focusing on quintessential meals sourced from sustainable, small businesses. If by giving back Frothy Monkey can play a part in the harmony of its communities, then it will continue to thrive, paying homage to the people and partnerships who have built the business from the ground-up.
Frothy Monkey is located at 930 Oxmoor Road in Homewood. It is open every day from 7 a.m.-9 p.m. For more information, visit frothymonkey.com/locations/homewood-al.
Chef Picks
Coffee
Turtle Latte
espresso, steamed milk, house-made caramel, chocolate sauce and Frothy Monkey pecan syru
Brunch
Garden Omelette
two KY Farm-fresh eggs, feta, mushrooms, kale and diced tomatoes
Dinner
An Artisan Charcuterie Board to Share and a Salmon Arugula Salad
grilled salmon, pickled onions, sundried tomatoes, parmesan, pomegranate vinaigrette, arugula and your choice of bread
