Detour Brings Over the ‘Moon’ Coffee Discovery

I relish in how easy it is to remember the directions to D Magazine’s office: left on Walnut Hill Lane, right on the tollway, and go straight until you see the tall office building with a big, red “D” on it. 

It’s become muscle memory, so I was peeved when Walnut Hill construction blocked my usual route.

I turned onto Midway, mapped out my new route — left on Northwest Highway, right on the tollway — and a familiar sign caught my eye. 

No lie, my jaw dropped, and I made a phone call:

“Mom, there’s a Summer Moon opening!”

Summer Moon Coffee’s first true Dallas location opened at 4343 Northwest Highway by Suze and The Original Pancake House, where a Starbucks used to be.

Unless you’ve been to its Frisco or Fort Worth locations, or you’re a Longhorn like me, you probably don’t understand the hubbub.

I’ll be blunt: It’s one of the best coffee shops I’ve visited.

A family business born out of the Texas Hill Country, Summer Moon Coffee roasts its beans over seasoned Texas oak logs and uses Moon Milk, a seriously out-of-this-world signature sweet cream comprised of seven secret ingredients.

Friends introduced me to Summer Moon coffee my first year at the University of Texas, and since then, we have made it a tradition every Monday to study there for our hardest classes. 

Sipping on my latte infused with Moon Milk made accounting less painful. 

It’s even become a tradition to stop at Summer Moon when Mom visits me in Austin.

While the coffee shop offers the usual staples like cold brew, espresso, and tea, the drinks that set Summer Moon apart are Moon Milk infused, including the popular Summermoon, a hot latte, and Wintermoon, an iced latte. 

You can adjust the sweetness Moon Milk adds in quarters. For me, the sweet spot is three quarters, but friends who don’t like sweet coffee usually go for a quarter or a half. 

If you find yourself in line and unsure what to try, I suggest my go-to order: a three-quarters Wintermoon. 

Emilea McCutchan, an Ursuline Academy graduate attending the University of Texas in Austin, is wrapping up her fourth D Partners internship with People Newspapers.