“Getting the honor shows us that we’ve done something really special, not just for ourselves, but for the community, too,” said Orchard co-owner Cabell Tice. “There’s a lot of different coffee shops that do a lot of different things, but I think we have a couple of things that set us apart from other places — we love it.”

Ranked No. 4 in the nation — with number one through three located in Brooklyn, New York; Los Angeles and Santa Cruz, California — Orchard has only been in operation since late spring. Since its launch, you’d be hard-pressed to find a seat in the busy, yet cozy, establishment. 

“I’ve always been a people person and I think that everybody is worth investing into, everybody deserves a chance to feel seen. We treat everybody who comes into our door with kindness,” Tice said. “We’ve gotten so much community support already and we’re sincerely grateful for all of our customers who come in and feel at home here.” 

Tice and his extended family (which runs the entire business) found Waynesville by happenstance, only to fall in love with the community — ultimately deciding to extensively renovate the three-story art deco building where the shops stands today. 

“When we showed up here, we wanted to add something to this town and to the landscape of the town. Small towns like Waynesville were in a decline for a long time in our country, but that’s all changing,” Tice said. “It’s taken a little bit of belief from people from all over to show up in these towns, to invest in them by putting in businesses that work for the community — we’re all in this together.”