Nine of Cups
Tarot, Pastry, and Ginger Beer Matcha: Why Nine of Cups is Greenville’s Most Exciting New Bakery Routine
Finding a bakery that nails the classics is great, but finding one that completely rewrites the rules of pastry is what excites me. Named after the tarot card for contentment, Nine of Cups in Greenville, SC, does exactly that. What started as a hyper-popular series of brunch and bakery pop-ups has blossomed into a permanent fixture that beautifully pairs traditional European baking techniques with warm, welcoming Southern hospitality.
While you can easily roll in for a classic buttermilk biscuit with house jam, it is the bakery's wildly innovative, boundary-pushing creations that steal the show. Because the menu changes daily, every single visit feels like a brand-new culinary discovery.
Here is the breakdown of the pastries, unique drink pairings, and the pop-up roots that make this spot a mandatory addition to your weekly routine.
The Pastries: Flawless Classics Meets Wild Innovation
At the baseline, the laminated dough here is incredible. If you order their classic Butter Croissant, it is exactly what you want: shatteringly flaky, wonderfully buttery without being greasy, and never dried out. But the kitchen quickly leaves the traditional behind to create some absolute delights:
My Favorites
The Outsider: This hand-braided croissant is a total showstopper. Sweet, savory, and umami flavors, it’s layered with a honey gochujang glaze, furikake seasoning, and a rich, savory Korean cheesy corn filling. It hits you with just a subtle hint of creeping heat, making it one of the most innovative and unique pastries in the Upstate.
Apricot & Cardamom Knot: Another hand-braided croissant variation, this one features a warm, brown sugar cardamom filling, a bright apricot glaze, and a classic crunch of pearl sugar on top. More classic than innovative, it is perfectly spiced and beautifully balanced.
The Elevated Chocolate Chip Cookie: Very classic, but elevated, they have perfected the chocolate chip cookie by utilizing brown butter and rich dark chocolate. The brown butter gives the dough a deep, caramelized nuttiness that guarantees crispy edges while maintaining a perfectly chewy center.
The Daily Rotation
Because the menu is written by whatever inspires the kitchen that morning, you never quite know what you’ll find on the counter. On any given day, you might stumble across a savory Ham and Cheese Croissant elevated with smoked gouda and prosciutto, a vibrant Lemon Meringue Danish built from flaky croissant dough and filled with sharp lemon curd, or fresh, olive-oil-rich Focaccia. They also occasionally feature a Pistachio Croissant loaded with pistachio filling, topped with pistachio cream and crushed pistachios — which I’m dying to try.
The Pop-Up Roots: A Legacy of Flavor
To understand why the daily menu is so wildly creative, you have to look at Nine of Cups' history as a pop-up. Back then, they built a cult following by switching up the menu entirely for every single event.
Their past lineups read like a high-end restaurant board: savory quiches made with marinated artichokes, manchego, and fresh herbs; a rich mortadella sandwich served on house focaccia with stracchino cheese, mustard, and Duke's mayo; and a spectacular galette filled with pear, pistachio cream, and an apricot-cardamom glaze finished with crunchy Demerara sugar. They’ve even done a peanut butter cream-filled doughnut with a sweet jelly glaze.
The kitchen team also has an incredible handle on making meringue. Past pop-up highlights include a variety of Pavlova featuring pandan cream, citrus-macerated raspberries, Chantilly, and candied kumquat, as well as a moodier version highlighting fresh fig, macerated blackberries, and hojicha Chantilly. Apparently the cakes are spectacular too. If you ever see a pavlova or a cake on their daily menu—like their chocolate cake with tonka bean, milk chocolate toffee bits, and satsuma maldon—I’m told you need to order it immediately.
The Beverage Program: Beyond the Espresso Machine
You can also get an expertly pulled classic here, from a cappuccino, cortado, americano, drip coffee, to a standard latte customized with their house-made syrups — vanilla, dark chocolate mocha, raspberry, honey, and lavender. You will be perfectly happy with any of them. But much like the pastry case, the specialty drink menu is where Nine of Cups really shines.
The Castaway: This is a brilliant, refreshing spin on a morning pick-me-up. It’s an iced matcha latte mixed with smooth coconut milk and a touch of coconut syrup, cut aggressively with spicy ginger beer. It is ever-so-lightly sweet, balancing the earthy notes of the matcha with a sharp, fizzy ginger kick.
The Hermit’s Cup: The ultimate cozy beverage, featuring a smooth latte infused with a house-made orange and aromatic five-spice syrup for a complex, warming flavor profile.
Hive Mind: A latte sweetened with a rich, salted honey syrup.
Crimson Morning: A decadent, fruit-forward latte that pairs rich dark chocolate mocha with bright raspberry syrup.
The Verdict
Greenville has no shortage of coffee shops, but Nine of Cups operates on an entirely different level. By treating their bakery counter like an evolving culinary canvas and backing it up with world-class lamination and exceptional espresso, they have built something truly special. Whether you are stopping in for a quick, classic cortado on a Tuesday morning or lingering over a complex creation like "The Outsider" on the weekend, it is impossible to leave without feeling inspired. It will definitely be a permanent fixture in my Greenville rotation, and I am already plotting my next visit to see what the kitchen dreams up next—and to hopefully snag a pistachio croissant sometime.
