404 Coffee is a Love Letter to Old and New Atlanta

When living in the city, the discussion of “new Atlanta” and “old Atlanta” is hard to escape. However, at 404 Coffee, a café located in the historic Black Pittsburgh neighborhood, that debate is put to rest as owner Kelli Jones pays homage to all Atlanta’s culture has to offer, one cup of coffee at a time. 

“My main focus in opening up this coffee shop was to enrich this neighborhood,” Jones said. “I was born and raised over here — legacy resident — and I love the community. I love what we stand for and what we can be, and I see the growth in the city; I want us to be a part of it in a nostalgic way.”

That nostalgia hits you as soon as you enter the intimate space that reads like a love letter to the city. Plastered from wall to wall are pictures of the past, from Club 112, My Brother’s Keeper Entertainment Complex, and Golden Glide to well-known celebs and Atlanta figures drinking coffee alongside iconic images such as the Atlanta Falcons logo, street signs, and peaches galore. 

For Jones, it was important to create a community hub where locals and tourists could fellowship, network, and connect while also reminiscing. As a native resident of the Pittsburgh neighborhood, she has seen the city’s changes first-hand. When she opened 404 Coffee in June 2022, her intent was to infuse the parts of the old and the new that people have come to love. 

While doing that, she wanted to preserve its history in a creative way. In an area welcoming new development and revitalization, 404 Coffee ties the past to the future of the South Atlanta neighborhood, cultivating growth while keeping the culture intact. 

When patrons order a coffee, the cup sizes range from Zone 1 (small)  to Zone 3 (large). From specialty drinks named ‘96 Olympics, Freaknik, and Memorial Drive, lattes dedicated to Peters Street and Old Nat, a dragon fruit refresher named The BeltLine, and hot food items named after areas such as Bankhead, Midtown, and Ashby, Jones’ admiration of the city’s culture bleeds through. 

“When building the menu out, it was just more about Atlanta and what I remember and what made me feel good about the city. Everybody across the world knows Bankhead; Bankhead stands for something. But, they’re changing the [street] names, so it’s like losing the history. So, why not incorporate those in and still let them know we have an Ashby and a Joseph E. Boone?

“It means so much more to us than changing the street names and gentrifying the area. I love growth. I want the best of the best, too. But just remember that, without a Bankhead or Stewart Avenue, it would be no Metropolitan Parkway, it would be no BeltLine, it would be no West Midtown.”

For many Black-owned coffee shops in Atlanta, the idea of a café goes beyond coffee, and it’s no different with 404 Coffee. Jones said they often host community events and work with the City of Atlanta to support youth and provide direct-hire jobs. They also partner with foster care to create spaces where the youth can be seen and heard.

In the future, Jones hopes to bring the 404 experience to spaces such as the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Centennial Yards, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium. 

“It’s been wonderful just creating that community space for people. I feel like, whether you just come in here for a hot second, you still want to feel that southern hospitality, that warmth that comes in.”