Cool Bookish Places

A Charming Bookstore Café

Rebecca Joines Schinsky

Chief of Staff

Rebecca Joines Schinsky is the executive director of product and ecommerce at Riot New Media Group. She co-hosts All the Books! and the Book Riot Podcast. Follow her on Twitter: @rebeccaschinsky.

In the last week of October, when the leaves were in their full autumnal glory, my husband and I took a short getaway, fleeing Richmond for the Blue Ridge Mountains and Shenandoah National Park. When we stopped in Waynesboro, VA to have lunch before beginning our journey up Skyline Drive, I pulled out my phone to figure out where to eat, and I was delighted to see Stone Soup Books and Café pop up. You can keep your Big Chain Bar and Grill and your mom-and-pop diner. If a bookstore café is on the menu, that’s where I’m going, especially if it’s named after a beloved children’s book

And I’m so glad we stopped at Stone Soup because it just oozes charm. There’s not much to see in Waynesboro, but Stone Soup makes it worth a stop if you’re in this neck of the woods. I mean, what could be better to prepare you for a hike in the woods than a hearty lunch and a new book?

It’s unassuming from the outside, just a lovely Victorian house nestled on a small hill.

stone soup sign

stone soup exterior

It was a dreary, overcast day, perfect for book shopping.

It’s warm and welcoming inside, with carefully curated shelves of mostly used books.

Stone Soup 1

 

The place was hopping at lunch time, and all the customers were in the café area. There’s extra seating spread throughout. Note to self: bookstores may be struggling, but a good café is always busy.

stone soup interior

You can head upstairs to check out themed rooms. There were two older ladies having a music lesson in one and a pair of friends having lunch in the other during our visit, so I didn’t take photos in them.

stone soup steps

Or walk through to the café in the back.

stone soup register

stone soup cafe

 

There’s a counter to the left, so you can sit and watch the kitchen while you enjoy soup and a panini. Then head out to the spacious patio for some outdoor reading if the weather holds. We were there right before Halloween and spotted this literary Jack O’Lantern.

stone soup pumpkin

Have you ever stumbled on a cozy bookish spot in your travels?

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