Tappahannock Cafe Owner Says Costs Keep Climbing

Jeans Owens, who runs the Java Jacks cafe in Tappahannock, Virginia, said the cost of running her business has risen sharply. She described the increases to NPR, which reported on how higher prices are affecting businesses and households in the state's 1st Congressional District.

Java Jacks started in 2006 in a former one-story home on the main road through Tappahannock. Owens and her husband took over the business about eight years ago. Owens said the cafe's coffee prices are up more than 30 percent since 2022.

Packaging has also become more expensive. Owens said the cost of a to-go box rose from 12 cents to nearly 30 cents. The combined cost of a to-go cup, lid and straw rose from about 3 cents to more than 20 cents.

Her electricity bill has grown too. Owens said the cafe's power bill, which normally runs $450 to $500 a month, now tops $1,000.

Owens said she has tried to hold down what customers pay. She has kept some meals at $10 to keep menu prices affordable. To cut her own costs, she buys milk and juice at Walmart and fresh fruit at a local grocery store rather than through a supplier. She also compares prices among three suppliers.

Business has also changed in other ways. Owens said senior citizens sharing an order used to number one or two when she bought the cafe. Now, she said, the shop sees multiple split tickets each day.

Owens also operates another coffee shop across the river in Warsaw, Virginia. She said both locations have been short-staffed for months at a time.

The area's economy is modest. NPR reported that the median income in the rural Tappahannock area is around $50,000 a year.

Owens's experience reflects broader price trends. In September 2026, the U.S. Consumer Price Index, a standard measure of what consumers pay for goods and services, rose 0.6 percent for the month, according to Reuters. Over the past 12 months, the index advanced 3.7 percent. Gasoline accounted for more than half of the monthly increase.