Local Lion

Set out to try as many local Cafe as I can while in the area and Local Lion did not disappoint. Had the Blueverry Jasmine donut and Local Lotus with my Cortado. Because why not? 😎😁 The​ donut was soool yummy and the Jasmine scent really came through, yet in a sweet suttle way. The lotus was like... Imagine a donut and a cinnamon roll had a baby. Not too overly sweet. Friend staff. Quick service. Lots of seating available. Outside seating area is nice too.

I graduated AppState in 2021 and came back for a visit. The Local Lion never disappoints! The staff is always wonderful, helpful, and knowledgeable. I recommend the Bee Balm, Queen Anne's Lace, and the Turtle coffees. The Maple donuts are awesome, but the Sugar and Cinnamon donuts are the best! Very fluffy and filling! The Local Lion has a very chill atmosphere, inside and out. Completely stress free. With plenty of seating and tables, it's a calm place to work and talk. The mugs are made by an Appalachian State University allumni who graduated in 2016, who was a barista here. Very impressive craftsmanship.

Quaint coffee shop with a lodge-like feel to it. Went in for a late afternoon freshly brewed bean to cup decaf coffee. Associates were extremely friendly.

We love going to the Local Lion whenever we're in the Boone area! We love the Donuts & other goodies & the coffee. It's a beautiful place to have coffee & a light breakfast or a mid day coffee break. ☕️ They have their own (free) parking lot & they have a drive-through. We love to bring our dog & have our coffee & Donuts outside on the lovely covered patio! Awesome place, great staff & service too.

Freshly roasted coffee I mean like you can watch it being roasted and then brewed! Service is great the donuts are tasty the atmosphere is so sweet. I’m praying the Holy Spirit come rest on this place and it be a morning sanctuary for peace. What a great way to start the day Christ & Coffee

Local Lion is my FAVORITE cafe in Boone! They have delicious donuts (my favorite is Lavender Glaze) and other pastries. The drinks are always incredible and there are a lot of options for flavors, which I love. I usually get an iced latte, but lately I keep going for the strawberry matcha. Local Lion is also a great place to get some work done. The inside of the cafe is very cute. Get some good treats here, you won't regret it!

This place was fantastic! Amazing coffee and great donuts. Prices were very reasonable as well. Service was awesome, the folks behind the counter even gave me some hiking recommendations. If you're in Boone, it's tough to beat this coffee spot.

Donuts were doughy and dense we liked the icing flavors but they were lost in the mouthfuls of dough in each bite. Barista needs to learn how to make late foam. We didn't finish our coffees.

Let me start by saying two things -- donuts are my favorite sweet food, my favorite treat, and every city that I visit, regardless of state or nation, I try to find their best donut shop to try; I am not a resident of North Carolina and I only go infrequently to visit a friend. All that said, of all the donuts I've ever had, the chocolate espresso donut at Local Lion is my absolute favorite. It has a thin layer of creamy chocolate, it's not too sweet, the texture is perfect, and the yeast donut rise with that hint of espresso chocolate is impeccable. I've never had a better donut. Other points -- their staff is professional and courteous, it's clean and comfortable, the coffee is wonderful, the prices are very affordable.

The Local Lion is such a quaint little spot--perfect for starting your day with a fresh selection of donuts and coffee. The friendly customer service made the experience even better, and the latte I had was absolutely delicious! One of the standout features of this café is their coffee beans. They import beans from all over the world and roast them right in-house, so you know you're getting a fresh, high-quality product. Plus, you can purchase their roasted beans in half or full-pound bags to enjoy at home, which is a nice bonus. If you're looking for a cozy place with great coffee and a welcoming vibe, The Local Lion is definitely worth a visit!

1. Roasting spot for a few local shops, so there's a roaster inside with a pro doing his roasting which is entertaining for the kids too.... 2. Super people that work there 3. Delicious and fresh donuts even with GF options 4. their mantra is "conquer your mountain" Local artist mugs and items to purchase too 5. Amazing local spot for the win!

Delicious coffee, assortment of doughnuts and pastries available, cozy atmosphere. What's not to love.

The Local Lion is a great little coffee shop in Boone near the Appalachian State University campus. They have a nice selection of specialty coffee drinks and sweets, to include donuts. I had the Hazelnut Truffle Latte, which was very delicious. The staff is friendly, and they do a nice job of cleaning up and sanitizing the tables after use.

Watch the youtube on Boone and this was featured. Anything donut, I'm in. We came to Boone with some relatives today and of course made this our focus to hit. It did not disappoint friends. The donuts were light yet full of flavor. I enjoyed my maple donut and we got a few to take home for our son. He said his espresso donut was delicious. The place was very cozy, you could sit there with friends or with a good book and eat donuts and drink coffee all day, at least I would.

Such a cute spot with a warm vibe inside and outdoor seating as well. Fresh baked goods for sale and all kinds of lattes, coffees and teas. Staff was friendly and prices were fantastic. The GF lemon poppyseed muffin was to die for!!!

Was looking for a donut as part of my fueling plan before a big ride event this weekend. There weren't too many choices, but this place stood out. I'm a cake donut fan vs yeast. Their main offering was more of a yeast donut than cake, but not the traditional yeast donut. I got the cinnamon and sugar donut with an americano and husband got the traditional glazed donut. They have traditional flavors such as chocolate and sprinkle donuts. It had a nice texture, almost chewy. Husband and I both liked it. The Americano was average, but was a good match with the donut. We returned the next day on our way out, and they did have Blackberry glazed and Lavender glazed. I usually don't like glazed donuts as I don't like too much sweetness, but I wanted to try the Lavender glazed. I wasn't disappointed. It had a subtle, but noticeable lavender flavor. It also wasn't overly sweet. They also have a few selections of cake donuts and muffins. I tried the peach cinnamon muffin as well. Husband tried the powdered sugar cake donut. The muffin was a bit dry on the outside, but moist inside. It had small chunks of peach and a nice spiced flavor. It wasn't that sweet at all. For someone like me who enjoys a treat, but doesn't want too much excess sugar, something like this works for me. For those, like the rest of my family, who are looking for a sweeter item, this would not be it. It also seems like the muffins sold in Boone tend to be on the less sweet side. The cake donut was kinda dry. I would pass on this next time. The space is great. Lots of seating inside and outside as well. You can do some work or study here. It's not too loud, but has an easy, comfortable atmosphere. Service was always friendly and prompt. Overall, we love their main donut offerings. If we were in the area, we'd definitely stop by again and probably would be regulars. I think any of their main donut offerings would be great. I do recommend the Lavender one.

As I said on my review of Mast General we were looking for a donut place we saw on a YouTube video about Boone. Why not just go back and look at YouTube and see the name? Well I make it a point of talking to locals about their town, so The Local Lion was a favorite of several locals and it turned out to be the one on the video. You can tell right off from looking at this place Boone is a college town and it would be my go-to if I was living here. Not only do the fresh donuts taste incredible but they roast their own coffee which you can smell the second you open the door. I got a wonderfully rich 16 oz Sumatra coffee that was the best coffee I've had in months. To go with the coffee a cake donut wit cinnamon and sugar that was truly dunkable. A top stop to wake you up or chill you out.

My fav local coffee shop in Boone! Love the convenience of a drive through coffee shop while also supporting local. This is their lavender latte, which is my go to! Also have great pastry's. Always feel like family when I'm here.

The Local Lion The best donut in town, they're freshly made, very spongy inside and crusty on outside, soft and textured at the same bite, and covered with very generous toppings, an impressively delicious donut. They stay soft for the rest of the day too! The service also very friendly, they'll wait patiently until we decide which flavors we'll choose. The whole restaurant is uniquely designed, you'll see large coffee bean bags as decorations, also coffer mills at the front window surrounded with coffee beans bags on the floor. Also the restaurant smells wonderful even from parking lot. Can you imagine the coffee smell and fried donuts smell mixed in the air. What could be more wonderful than those?? We will love to stop by for another visit whenever we're there! Here are the donuts flavors they had when we visit! Strawberry lemonade Chocolate sprinkles Chocolate coconut Chocolate Espresso chocolate Cinnamon sugar Lavender glaze Maple glaze Orange glaze Original glaze Local Lion 791 Blowing Rock Rd, Boone, NC 28607 daily 7AM - 8.30PM, Sun 8AM - 7PM starts around $1-10 restrooms inside the restaurant, accessible for both strollers and wheelchairs. accessible for strollers and wheelchairs free parking lot around the building, it's limited. #locallion #locallionbooneNC #boonenc #preservefootprints

Only donuts and a savory biscuit were available at about 2 PM on a Saturday. Got an espresso chocolate doughnut ($1.87) and a cinnamon roll donut/pastry ($2.50). The espresso chocolate donut was not very good, the dough was too sticky and not cooked/prepared well. The espresso chocolate glaze was okay. The cinnamon roll donut dough was a lot better. It was very sweet, tasted okay. One positive were the prices. The staff person that helped me was nice.

No vanilla crème donuts. Probably has great donuts of different flavors. Nothing more to say.

This is a cute place. Staff is friendly, helpful and quick. Love the decor and the ambience. Very chill. Love the logo. Coffee was good. Hubs had a Cortada. He enjoyed it. The variety was great on the donuts and the coffee. Donuts- lots to choose from!! I had a chocolate glazed (one of my go to choices) and whereas it looked good-- it was very dense. Ugh!! I love a light yeast donut that's light and my teeth sink right into it. These donuts were heavy and dense. Bathroom was clean-ish. Tables could have used a wipe down.

On a prior trip, my middle son purchased coffee here and recommended we stop. It was pretty quiet inside, presumably because of holiday break at the local university, but the service was friendly and appropriate in length for the orders placed. My orders included a drip coffee - single origin - and an Americano. Both cups of coffee tasted good and were both surprisingly affordable. Fresh donuts from a local bakery are plentiful and looked good although we did not purchase any. Plenty of indoor seating and a number of outdoor seats were available, which happens to be especially helpful during the pandemic. A drive through option is available but I do not know the speed of service since we walked in to order each time. Bags of single origin coffee are available for purchase. Parking seemed a bit limited and when we parked at the Circle K one time just to order and go, a Circle K employee stepped outside with a no parking for coffee sign. Side Note: During my short stay in a nearby town, I was able to frequent this local coffee shop enough to become the "Duke" and might have been able to keep the designation but alas had to return home to another state.

The donuts were light and fluffy and flavorless... I was so disappointed. I thought, for sure, my kid would eat them because they were after all, donuts, but even she would not eat them. After one bite said they aren't good & trashed them. One was supposed to be a glazed doughnut, but instead seemed to only have granulated sugar sprinkled across it. The other was topped with chocolate espresso... The topping was not awful, but didn't help the flavorless donut.

Popular coffee spot! Interior is very cute. Tons of seating and looks like a great study spot. Parking lot is TINY and can get very crowded with the drive thru line as well. I went at opening (7am) on a Friday morning and the parking lot was already pretty filled. A long line formed behind me and I had some trouble getting out of my parking spot. Ordered their seasonal hazelnut choco latte which was ok. Did not have a strong hazelnut or chocolate flavor which was unfortunate but the coffee was very strong. Ordered a dozen donuts which was about $16 and 2 Bavarian creme donuts on the side so the total was about $22 dollars before tip. When the donuts are fresh, they are SO delicious. I'm not a fan of cake donuts but they were so fluffy, lightly sweet, and delicious. Overall the Bavarian creme donut was my favorite. The creme was very light and not too sweet, the actual dough was warm and fluffy, and the chocolate icing on top was the perfect sweetness. Overall a great local spot and would try again if I'm in the area. Docked a star because of the parking lot and coffee.

THIS is the place to be in Boone NC! The coffee was great. The donuts were great. We stopped by on a Saturday morning before hitting a hiking trail. The line for inside service was out the door and there was a line of cars all the way to the street for pick up. There is plenty of seating both inside and out. If you are a coffee snob, you really need to give The Local Lion a visit.

First time at this location. It's nice having gluten free options although these were very small donuts. I find most bake shops miniature size gf products. Flavor was good.

OH man. This was good. I love donuts and I really try hard to stay away from them...but this place was just too good to just drive by. Stopped by on the way to Grayson Highlands in Virginia. Ordered two coffees and two donuts and they really hit the nail on the head. The coffee was fresh and the donuts were fresh, sweet, and soft. The donuts definitely tasted homemade and what else do you want for donuts? Just look at that thing. I'll give them credit as well because everything on the menu was very affordable. Two coffees and two donuts was $8. I went to plenty of coffee shops on my trip where two coffees were $8 alone. Great job Local Lion.

We stopped in here twice in one day for coffee and donuts! The cafe is cute and there is a good selection of classic and specialty donuts. The donut holes are a great value for how many they give you. The mochas are also very tasty. They were very quick and had great customer service while have lines in the cafe and drive thru.

Sorry y'all but it's just my experience today. Came here after hiking all day, asked for a latte with extra espresso, and received a sugary cup of literal white milk. We asked had they forgotten to add the espresso entirely, and I had even paid for extra, and they insisted they put espresso in it including the extra. It. Was. CLEARLY. Just. Milk. And syrup. I ended up pouring it completely out and I hate wasting food/ drinks. The service was bizarre. Like it's ok if you mess up but you aren't going to give me what I paid for, fix it, whatever? Huge bummer especially because we were very polite about it. I stopped at a Starbucks on the way home and it was far superior, if that tells you anything. My sister and brother also chucked their drinks. Skip this if you expect any coffee based beverage to have well, coffee. Definitely go here if you want a cup of milk but to look like you're drinking coffee!

We loved this place! We highly recommend their donuts and the Queen Anne's Lace Latte was my favorite. We left with lots of merch and the staff was very kind too!

I really wanted to like this place, but there were a couple things that deterred me from giving them more stars. So the atmosphere is great. The place is very tidy, well kept, very... hipster, but surprisingly didn't smell like fresh pastries or coffee. No matter! Line wasn't long and customers were being rapidly helped. They do have a menu board with pricing, but their specialty latte flavors aren't listed there. I finally found a tiny sheet up at the register, so I felt a little rushed reading it and choosing a drink. Staff was nice, kinda quiet. I don't think I've ever seen a coffee shop run by all dudes. Everyone wore masks, they had tables spaced out accordingly, and sanitizer was available though. Bathroom seemed clean! Kinda disappointed there was no changing table. My daughter had a blow out, not their fault obviously, and my husband ended up changing her on the floor -- no worries, it happens. Now to the coffee... Maybe I'm biased because I work at a small shop back home, but I couldn't taste the espresso in my latte. I got the Queen Ann's Lace (cool name though!) which consisted of vanilla, caramel, and cinnamon. Sounds great, right? Bummed, but I couldn't taste the vanilla or caramel either. My drink was mostly cinnamon and, towards the end, I was choking on clumps of it. No worries, my husband still got black coffee. Can't mess that up, right? Well, I feel bad for dragging him there cause he said it tasted like an ashtray. Maybe that batch of beans was burnt? Okay, so donuts. I knew going in that they'd be more dense because they were cake donuts. Honestly, I've had worse, but I've definitely had better. My husband got the traditional chocolate iced with sprinkles and I got a maple glazed. The glaze was good! I kind of wish I would have thought to dunk it in my latte cause both may have improved, hahaha. Either way, I feel really bad for the people of Boone, cause this shop has 2 awards-- one for best donut and best coffee... and you can get a better version of both down the street at Krispy Kreme.

My family and I ordered half a dozen donuts to try, and were mildly impressed. They have interesting flavors like strawberry lemonade and lavender, but the texture of the donuts was a bit dry for my liking (they may have been sitting out for half of the day). We tried the glazed, maple, chocolate, chocolate sprinkles, strawberry lemonade, and lavender, and I liked the maple the best. But for ~$2 per donut, I would expect better. There was no parking available in the main lot - there seemed to be only 10 spots - so I had to park in an adjacent lot (which may have been for the neighboring store). The drive-thru was busy and there was only one person receiving orders, so waiting to place my order took longer than expected.

Good coffee. Good staff. Good vibes. Go check it out if you're in the area and need caffeine.

This was our first time there... Vacationing during the holidays. The donuts were excellent. We would definitely go back, the ambience is great.

The coffee and donuts were great! We were visiting the area for the weekend and stumbled across The Local Lion. Glad we did and will be back the next time we are in town.

Super cute coffee shop and local roaster. You can grab something quick through the drive thru or come inside and cozy up with all the wonderful coffee smells. They have coffee beans and tea for sale along with some local lion merch. Parking is a bit limited but service is quick. There's inside and outside seating.

Coffee was pretty good here and staff was friendly. Donuts look good but pretty bland and expensive. I'd hold off for Krispy Kreme not too far away. Little warm when we visited but also an outdoor seating area and a drive thru available

The Local Lion has Amazing coffee and doughnuts!! Service was great also! Will recommend to others!

Wish this place wasn't always packed but I love their coffee and donuts! They do have a drive thru that goes relatively fast if you can't find a parking space (which is quite common). They have a variety of yeast and cake donuts which are both delicious! Their specialty espresso drinks are creative and all very good. They do have smoothies and other non-caffeine drinks too.

The atmosphere here is nice and service is extremely quick. I ordered a maple glazed donut with chai latte and my wife ordered an espresso donut with a vanilla iced coffee. Both donuts tasted good but were super dense. I understand they're cake donuts but other places have better honestly. The chai latte and iced vanilla coffee was ok not extraordinary but not bad. All in all it's an ok coffee and donut shop. It wouldn't be my go to but it's enough to satisfy a donut craving.

I am a fan of this spot. My wife and I had coffee and donuts. I love me a handmade donut. We got the cinnamon roll and a chocolate glazed Bavarian cream filled donut. We also got vanilla lattes. Everything was a hit. The cinnamon roll was sweet and delicious. Both donuts were, but the roll was the star. The coffee was good. The service was fast and friendly. I highly recommend this be your go to destination for your coffee fix.

My kind of place, if coffee is your friend then Local Lion is your BFE! They will do whatever it take to insure your coffee experience meets the highest standard. They hand roast every bag to the peak of freshness. Complete your experience with one of their many homemade doughnuts. This place is a class act and will not disappoint.

Some of the best donuts I've ever had, super-friendly service, nice atmosphere. You cannot really ask for anything more, but what is more, I wanted iced tea and they make all their tea whether hot or iced to order, so I got to pick out which tea I wanted and the barista prepared and iced it for me. But the donuts, especially the maple ones, are the real attraction.

donut holes are pretty dry and not really good quality, coffee was mid but the service and atmosphere was alright, giving 2 stars bc the donut holes were cheap but not very good.

Great doughnuts! I love the Bavarian cream doughnuts. The biggest drawback to the Local Lion is the parking. There are not very many spaces to park and the Circle K next door is a very bad neighbor. They were getting a shipment of fuel the day I was there and obviously knew it before it arrived and did not block off parking spaces to accommodate the fuel delivery prior to its arrival. Local Lion customers parked in these Circle K spaces. Instead of being a good neighbor and letting customers know about the delivery and asking them not to park there or to move their cars Circle K had the cars towed. I think I will be waiting for Local Lion to relocate before I patronize them again. As for Circle K, I will never buy anything again at any of your stores. Bad neighbors. Block your parking lot before delivery and people will not park at your store.

We've been here a handful of times and each time our hot coffee orders have been ice cold - pretty annoying when your in the mood for a coffee. The cake doughnuts are good though.

Very cool little spot. Great coffee & doughnuts. Really good spot to spend your morning.

Amazing! Great coffee, cold brew, chai tea latte. Don't forget a local lotus aka cinnamon roll. They are the best, sorry mom!

This place is perfect for many reasons. It's located in a perfect spot off of Blowing Rock Road for commuters to swing by on their way to/from work, especially if at App or anywhere downtown. It's a 5 min drive from downtown Boone and maybeee a 10 min walk from App State. It's close enough for accessibility but far enough away to find exceptional parking and escape the hubbub of cheap college folk snatching seats for free WiFi. The drive thru is key. I'm constantly craving then mixed coffee creations (whaddup Queen Anne) that I have difficulty recreating elsewhere. The donuts are ... . When I had my very first donut three years ago I was startled by the consistency. But now I crave those too. My favorite is a classic cinnamon sugar. Service is quick and baristas pretty cool. Come here, y'all. Closed Sundays.

Local lion is a nice little spot in blowing rock near downtown Boone. Driving up to it, the parking situation is not great. Pretty small parking lot with not many spaces provides for a bit of a stressful experience. It's also important to note that Boone and Blowing Rock were extremely crowded for some reason. Walking inside, the coffee shop had a great vibe to it. Definitely a place you can relax and hangout for a bit inside or out. They have this great big roasting machine that was very cool and fresh coffee that made for a decent cup. The service was also good and fairly quick. The server behind the counter was nice enough and answered a couple questions I had about their coffee. I often find it important to find a bean/roast level that works best for a particular drink. Some beans are better for espresso drinks while others are not. I thought all in all the caramel iced latte was good but almost seemed like it was lacking something. In general, you could tell that they were using freshly roasted coffee (very important) so it definitely deserves a 4/5 but something that I can't quite distinguish at the moment is keeping it from going further. I also feel the same about the donuts. I tried several of them, ranging from regular glazed, to maple glaze, and even orange glaze. They were all just mostly okay. The maple glaze just didn't have enough... well maple in it. It was almost like a slight maple aroma without the flavor. The regular glaze also gave a similar feeling. Really just sort of lacking in flavor. I will say that the donut in itself was very good (very soft and fluffy) and not too heavy by any means. My favorite donut was the orange glaze. I thought this one had the most prominent flavor that actually stuck out to me (I would get this again). Overall I would say it was a good experience and would probably go back if I were in the area. Thanks!

These donuts are heavenly! I'm not typically a donut person, but after having one of these I want more!

These are worth the try. I'm from NC - these are neither chain but choices include a thicker yeast donut and a cake donut amoungst other offerings.

After trying every coffee shop in town, this is by far my favorite in Boone! Great coffee, atmosphere, staff, and donuts!! Wifi is great for teleworking.

My favorite coffee place in Boone. Good coffee, great donuts Nice atmosphere. Really the best place for morning Joe

Great atmosphere to work, lots of tables inside and also an outside space. Good music, not too loud or distracting. Service was great, super friendly. Coffee was ok.

Second time coming to Boone in the last decade. I was told to visit The Local Lion by at least two people so that's what we did and that was the start of a short-lived love affair! The Local Lion is located 10 minutes away from downtown/center of Boone off of a busy intersection. The parking lot situation is a nightmare! Perhaps its a little quieter early in the morning but both times there is an overflow of cars in spaces and along the sides of the lot. And there's always a line to the drive-thru line making it sometimes impossible to go around the building to find additional parking. We ended up parking in the gas station next to the coffeeshop. Its a log-like cabin vibe, with a rustic patio in front with retro furniture and wooden decore all around. Inside is a cozy set up of some booths, tables with chairs and high tops at a wooden bar that wraps the windows looking out onto the patio. They also have a roastry in the corner that was in use one of the two times we went here. There's some cool coffee paraphernalia on shelves leading up to the register. Once your at the ordering counter, there's a ton of homemade donuts on display and menus on the walls behind with all the beverage and food selections. Staff is working hard, roasting beans, busting out trays of donuts all the time, yet they are friendly and calm. During our trips to The Local Lion we had drip coffee (dark roast) and a few donuts - cinnamon sugar, orange icing, and glazed. The donuts are decently sized, fluffy with a bite and the flavoring is insanely delicious! And the regular coffee, so good, not a ton of acidity like Counter Culture or some of those trendy coffees. Has a smooth quality with a yummy warm flavor. Definitely worth a visit while in town!