☕ Common Grounds Is Looking for a New Owner

Good Morning Waco! This is The Waco Buzz, the newsletter that hits like an iced Cowboy Coffee before 7 AM.

In today's edition:
☕ Common Grounds Is Looking for a New Owner
🫘 Longshot Coffee Finally Has a Front Door
🍖 Texas Monthly’s Latest Waco BBQ Review
🛏️ Sleep in Heavenly Peace Needs Bedding

Let's get to it!
— Sam Harper

☕ Common Grounds Is Looking for a New Owner
Common Grounds has been serving Waco since 1994. This week, owner Blake Batson said he's ready to hand the coffee shop to someone new.

Batson started at Common Grounds as a Baylor barista before he and his wife, Kimberly, bought the shop in 2012. Since then, they've expanded the Common Grounds name beyond the original Eighth Street shop, opening locations in Woodway and on Franklin while building Native Sons Coffee Roasters alongside it.

For more than three decades, Common Grounds has been the backdrop for first dates, study sessions, open mic nights and countless cups of coffee. The menu has its own Waco lore, too: Cowboy Coffee, No Bull and that mysterious Secret Sauce that has kept people coming back for years.

In a note posted this week, Batson said finding the right next steward matters more to him than finding the highest bidder.

If a name comes to mind, or if it's you, the Batson's are taking confidential interest here.

🤝 GET OFF THE INTERNET

🍴 Dinner Club: Meet Five Wacoans You Don't Know Yet. Making friends as an adult is harder than it should be. Take a quick quiz, get matched with five other Wacoans, and show up for dinner on September 17 👉 Get matched here.

🧠 Social Studies: Come Learn Something With Other Curious People. Social Studies is back September 24. Dr. Andy Hogue, Baylor's Associate Dean for Engaged Learning and one of the university's rare Master Teachers, teaches philanthropy, social innovation, and politics. This time he's tackling what he calls the "Era of Seductive Despair," the question of how you stay engaged when the world's problems feel too big to fix. 👉 Grab a ticket.

🎨 Pottery Night: Make Something. Meet Someone. We're trying something new at the end of the month. BYOB, get your hands in some clay, and meet a few new neighbors. 👉 Grab one here.

Waco to Fort Lauderdale: $288 roundtrip in October. Trade Waco highway construction for a beach chair next month. Half the fun of a trip is having something to look forward to. Put something fun on the calendar.
👉 Check availability*
*_{^{Price is subject to change and may no longer be available at the time you check the link.}}

Want to get back into a workout routine without making it feel like a chore? Jazzercise just moved into a new studio at 7039 Sanger Drive, near the YMCA, and they're offering two months for the price of one through September 14.

Classes mix dance cardio, strength training, and resistance bands, with low- and high-impact options. Classes run at 8:30 AM, 4:30 PM, and 5:30 PM.

👉 See the full class schedule and lock in the sale*

☕ Longshot Coffee Lands Its First Storefront
Longshot Coffee just opened its first brick-and-mortar at 2709 Robinson Dr., a couple blocks off the Circle in Robinson, after building a following as a Waco roaster. Trevor and Juliana Davis started the company with a $10 popcorn popper and a lot of YouTube videos. Now they're roasting coffee in small batches and serving it from their first storefront.

Hours are Friday through Monday, 6:30 AM to 2 PM.

If you consider yourself a coffee aficionado, their Mystery Box is worth the ego check. You get 4 ounces of beans stripped of origin, varietal, and processing notes, just your palate against the leaderboard.

👉 Take the challenge | Follow along

🍽️ Wonder Food Hall Eyes Tinsley Square
Wonder, the multi-restaurant food hall that has spread across the East Coast, has filed plans to renovate a 3,262 square foot space at 800 S 7th St in Tinsley Square. Construction is set to start this month, with a target finish in November.

Wonder lets diners order from multiple kitchens in one visit, including collaborations with Bobby Flay, Marcus Samuelsson, and José Andrés. Translation: a burger from one chef and tacos from another could end up in the same bag. It's part of a bigger push: the company announced plans earlier this year for 100+ Texas locations by 2027.

🍖 Texas Monthly’s Latest Waco BBQ Review
Texas Monthly called Red Wagon BBQ's brisket the best in Waco a decade ago. The magazine went back this month, and it still holds up, calling it competitive with Helberg’s & Terry Black's for the best sliced brisket in town.

Pitmaster Michael Cunningham smokes twelve briskets a day in a five-hundred-gallon offset smoker. The burger deserves its own mention too: a thick patty, caramelized onions, and fried jalapeños on a griddled challah bun from Broken Grain Baking Co. Business is up 20% from last year, which Cunningham credits to loyal locals. A decade later, Waco apparently still agrees.
📍 9124 Gholson Road | Thu-Sat, 11-7

🌮 Velvet Taco Goes Dark
Sad news for cauliflower taco fans. Velvet Taco near MOD Pizza and Swig officially closed this past Sunday.

🏚️ Hewitt's Old Post Office Has a New Job
Hewitt's old post office has been given a new life, and it's looking for a local service business to move in. The Post combines professional office space up front with a shop and fenced yard out back for plumbers, electricians, HVAC crews, contractors, and other businesses that need room for trucks, tools, and materials. The space includes a 1,200-square-foot insulated shop and 7,500-square-foot fenced yard, with offices and a two-car garage also available. Take a look here. 👀

🛏️ Sleep in Heavenly Peace Needs Bedding
There are kids in McLennan County sleeping on the floor. Over the past four years, Sleep in Heavenly Peace Waco has delivered nearly 2,000 beds to local families. But every bed needs more than a frame. Each one is delivered with a brand-new mattress, mattress pad, sheet set, comforter, and pillow.

The beds are being built. The bedding is what's in short supply.

On September 12, they're bringing the community together for Bunks Across America, their annual nationwide bed-building event.

Bring your coworkers, kids, neighbors, or whoever else you can gather. You'll spend the day building a bed, knowing exactly where it will end up: in the room of a kid who needs one.

Want to help with the bedding? A new twin-size “bed-in-a-bag” typically costs $25–$50.

👉 Shop the SHP Waco bedding wishlist

👉 Register for Bunks Across America

⚖️ Voter Registration, Handled
October 5 is the last day to register to vote in McLennan County. Texas doesn't allow online registration, but you can fill out the form online, print it, and mail it in. Forms are also available at any library or the elections office.

Mail-in ballots go out the week of September 21. If you need one, request it by October 23 at VoteTexas.gov or through the elections office, and have your driver's license or Texas ID number handy for the application. If you're mailing your ballot back, don't wait until Election Day.. The postal system doesn't move as fast as you'd like it to.

Check your registration status anytime at VoteTexas.gov. Questions go to McLennan County Elections at (254) 757-5043.

What should you spend first in retirement? When should you take Social Security? What happens to your spouse if you die first?

Winnacle Wealth's Chad Castle and Jessica Burch have been walking Wacoans through those decisions at MCC since 2012. More than 950 people have taken the course, which covers the practical financial decisions that come with turning your savings into a retirement income plan.

📅 Sept. 14 & 21 | 6-8:30 PM | MCC | $29
👉 Reserve your spot*

🏈 Baylor's Weekend Was Close
Baylor Football lost to Auburn 17-16 after a two-point conversion attempt got stopped at the goal line with nine seconds left. Volleyball came up short too, though my kids got on the jumbotron, so the weekend wasn't a total loss in our house.

Football is back at McLane Saturday at 7 PM for 254 Night against Prairie View A&M. (Thank you to whoever scheduled a night kickoff in September.) Waco Rush Pass holders should already have an email for two free tickets. Everyone else, tickets start at $11.

Soccer hosts Marquette Thursday at 7 PM for a white-out game. First 200 fans get a free hat.

Tuesday, September 8:

Wednesday, September 9:

Thursday, September 10:

Want your event featured? Reserve a spot here.

💧 A Better Way to Beat September Colds: I-Vit's Immune Boost IV supports immune function, hydration, and overall wellness, right on time for the season everyone starts trading the same cough back and forth. 20% off for the month.*

🚗 Silverado Selldown: Chevy of West is putting serious numbers on 2026 Silverado 1500s right now, 0% APR for 5 years for well-qualified buyers, or $6,000 cash allowance plus another $2,000 bonus cash on select models. Worth a look if a truck's been on your mind.

✨ For a Skin Refresh: Skin & Body Refinery offers HydraFacials combining deep cleansing, gentle extraction, hydration, and LED light therapy. The goal: smoother, more hydrated skin with a healthy glow, without the downtime.*

💪 Try Waco's Full-Body Red Light Bed: Waco Bodymend has a TheraLight 360+ Bed that surrounds you in red and near-infrared light in a private treatment room. Designed to support muscle recovery, circulation, sleep, skin health, and overall wellness. Book a single session or go unlimited for the month.*

Thanks for reading The Waco Buzz today. If you found something useful, share it with your friend who still thinks Folgers is the best part of waking up.

Before you go — two things worth knowing about:

1. Job Board: The best open roles at growing Waco companies, brought to you by American Amicable Group. Hiring? Get your open role featured in front of thousands of locals.

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