Ben and Michael Powell, owners of Drift Coffee & Kitchen at Autumn Hall and in Ocean Isle Beach, have opened a third location at Mayfaire Town Center.

The Powells, who opened their Ocean Isle cafe in 2014 with little experience in the food and beverage industry, now have 40 employees among their three locations.

The brothers say they drew upon their travels as professional surfers, where they experienced coffee shops and restaurants around the world, when creating their vision for Drift. 

The menu, while similar to the Autumn Hall location, includes a variety of breakfast options that are served all day, as well as several lunch choices designed to accommodate employees of the surrounding businesses. 

Among the breakfast items are several types of toast, including avocado, smoked salmon, and almond butter topped with banana, cinnamon and honey, as well as a chia cup, granola and yogurt with seasonal berries, an acai bowl and the market bowl with eggs, avocado, sweet potato, mixed greens, quinoa and roasted tomato. 

Lunchtime fare includes a chicken pesto bowl, a tahini brussel bowl, a smoked salmon salad and a chicken mozzarella toastie with house-made pesto. All items are under $10 and can be customized with add-ons. 

“While we’re not a health food restaurant, we do offer a lot of healthy options and I think that is what most consumers in this area are interested in,” Michael Powell said. 

Powell said he and is brother also hope to help satisfy the high demand for coffee in the area by serving premium hot and iced espresso drinks. They also serve smoothies, holistic drinks such as matcha, golden and beet lattes and a variety of hot and iced teas. 

For the decor at Mayfaire, the Powells enlisted the help of designer Caroline Walkup, who worked with them to design the Autumn Hall location, to help create a calm, inviting space.

“We want to say how thankful we are to be new in the neighborhood,” Michael Powell said in an email. “At Drift we strive to give each person a moment of positivity in their day, an oasis from the headwinds of our day, a place to be recharged and to feel accepted.”

Drift Coffee & Kitchen at Mayfaire Town Center is located at 1005 International Drive and is open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

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