Coffee and Community at Pony Up Cafe

If you’ve driven through Rougemont, Timberlake, Roxboro, or Bahama over the past couple of years, you may have spotted a cute, bright green horse trailer parked in front of local businesses. If you were curious enough to stop, your taste buds were likely treated to a delicious coffee drink and sweets.

Owner Sarah Jane Baker said the Pony Up Cafe opened in September of 2022. The buildout began in November of the previous year, after she purchased the horse trailer. “It was definitely a labor of love,” getting ready to serve, Sarah said. Instead of hiring someone to convert the trailer, she explained, she and her then-fiance worked “feverishly” every weekend for nine months on the conversion.

That hard-working fiance is now her husband, after proposing to her at Hyco Lake. He surprised her with a visit to the lake and even secretly brought along her best friend from California. Sarah said it was a truly special night. “We had a fabulous time on the lake that night, catching up and telling stories by the fire pit. One of the best memories I’ll ever hold. I love Hyco Lake and it will always remain a special place to me.”

I asked Sarah why, after a 20-year career in health care, she decided to open a mobile coffee shop. “As a nation, we have always gone to food and drink as a means of socialization. Whether we are at a restaurant, our families’ homes, parks and so on, food and coffee have helped us bond and commiserate. It brings joy, laughter, and togetherness. Society had a very difficult couple of years” before she opened, “and I wanted a place where people could gather in an environment that everyone would be comfortable in. To be able to have a genuine conversation over a cup of coffee within your immediate community was the principal idea. It brought me so much joy to watch people come back to life. There would be groups of people talking and standing around with their favorite drinks in hand. I knew immediately that something great was happening.”

She had to overcome a few obstacles to bring her dream of community over coffee to fruition, she said. “Learning how to pull a fantastic and delicious shot of espresso” was a challenge. “It was quite the humbling experience being able to understand the ‘whys’ of espresso pulling art.” But, after research, hard work, and help from an experienced barista, Sarah got the hang of it. A constant challenge is the weather, Sarah said. She is “not able to serve full time due to inclement weather. This has been by far the biggest challenge,” she confessed. Heat, cold, and rain are tough on the equipment and the operator. She said inflation was also a challenge, but “my community’s generosity, along with coffee, has not gone out of style.”

From the beginning, Sarah told me, the “community has been incredibly supportive – almost as if they had been ready for something new and positive themselves. As a Ruritan member since 2015, I have grown to know many folks in Bahama and the immediate surrounding communities. The coffee trailer took that to an entirely different level. I can not believe the amount of substantial relationships that have been built throughout this journey.” Shortly after opening, she held a blanket drive, and, “The Ruritan parking lot was flooded with families, community members, and blankets galore! I recall having tears in my eyes as I stared out the window, watching people laughing and sipping their coffees while contributing to a great cause. I thought to myself, ‘this…this is what it’s all about,’” she said.

Customers who “pay it forward” are the most rewarding thing about the cafe, according to Sarah. “I love seeing people being kind to one another. It happens quite often and brightens both of their days. This is the entire premise of visiting Pony Up Cafe. It is community and friendships. Whether it’s good news, bad news, exciting news, it’s being there and genuinely listening. Watching customers’ kids growing up, hearing about career changes, challenges, seeing tears, deaths of loved ones and so on. There’s nothing better than serving a teacher who sees a 20-year-old who they taught in kindergarten! The reconnections within the community are awesome. It brings me so much joy to be a part of it all. I care about my customers so much and am very grateful for their continued support. I’ll always have a hug, smile, and their favorite coffee ready.”

Pony Up Cafe serves beans by Durham-based Derby Coffee Roasters, offering traditional cappuccino, more decadent flavored coffees, flavored iced teas, strawberry lemonade spritzers, and frappes. Cold brew is a top seller. Pastries from Ninth Street Bakery in Durham are also available. Summing up her experience thus far, Sarah said, “It was important to bring something unique to our more rural areas. We tend to be underserved when it comes to specialty craft offerings such as gourmet coffee and pastries. With a long stretch of highway and nowhere to stop, I wanted to deliver convenience to Bahama, Rougemont, Timberlake, and other areas. I strive to bring an exceptional experience every visit, along with some incredible craft coffee. As the coffee trailer motto states, ‘Come have a cup of coffee with a neighbor. Looking forward to serving you soon!’” Locations are listed on the Facebook page each week.

Open most Wednesdays through Saturdays
7:30 am to around noon at locations in
Timberlake, Rougemont, Roxboro
Bahama and northern Durham
Facebook.com/ponyupcafe
[email protected]