An excellent cappuccino I had recently at Juniors on NE Prescott.
For whatever reason, coffee news is big this week. I love coffee and had a great latte from the good folks at Case Study (NE Sandy Blvd) this morning. As for the news, there are tidbits on Coava, Denizens Cafe, Barista and Roseline, and Ben & Esther’s (who serve coffee).
Ben & Esther’s
I’ll start with the Ben & Esther’s news, which is a bit of the odd man out, but still connected to the topic at hand (they also offer coffee). On social media this morning they announced they are closing their OG location on NE Sandy. Wha?!?!? They explained, “With more space and baking capacity, our NE Alberta St. location will become our sole Portland location. … We’re just seeing that we can best affect change when focusing on a broader audience, rather than smaller communities for now, and Portland is fine without 2 locations just 10 minutes apart.”
I’m kinda bummed to see that location close, mostly for nostalgic reasons (which do not always translate to good practical or economic reasons). That location on Alberta (1800 NE Alberta Street) is pretty nice and it’s good to know Ben & Esther’s will continue to serve great vegan Jewish food to the Portland community.
Denizens Cafe
This leads me to the second bit of news about Denizen’s Cafe, which Ben & Esther’s mentioned in their social media post. Turns out, I was wrong in my location speculation—which was 8878 NE Sandy Blvd, former home to Hanks Boots & Workwear. However, that location is going through a change of occupancy process, so I’m eager to see what ends up there, and hopeful it will be something good for the neighborhood (i.e., we do not need yet another cannabis shop, with three nearby already).
So, if it’s not clear already: Denizens Cafe is opening up in the current Ben & Esther’s location in Roseway (6912 NE Sandy Blvd). There’s a lot of coffee in the general area—Starbucks at the Safeway (6901 NE Sandy Blvd), Bee’s Cakes (7137 NE Fremont Street), Kainos Coffee (6633 NE Sandy Blvd), and Junior’s Roasted Coffee (7151 NE Prescott Street) a little further away—so the competition will be elevated compared to where the Rocky Butte Espresso Bar was before. I with them all the luck as they get ready to open, and look forward to seeing the food expansion they are planning.
Barista/Roseline
A Bridgetown Bites tipster messaged me to tell me that the Barista locations owned by Billy Wilson (KOIN at 222 SW Columbia Street, Alberta at 1725 NE Alberta)—are now merged with Roseline Coffee (1015 SE 11th Avenue). Branding is in the process of changing (apparently at the KOIN location they had systematically removed all the Barista branding, scraping off everything by the “B” from the window sign so it says ‘B Fine Coffee.'” This reminds me of all the awnings in NYC that were painted over by new businesses instead of getting a whole new awning—it definitely is a money saver.)
Roseline makes excellent coffee, and bonus: sells Nuvrei croissants, which is good news. I hope that will continue at the converted Barista locations.
Coava
And finally, the news of Coava closing has saturated food media this week. They are shutting down their downtown location (1171 SW Jefferson Street)—it’s funny, I was just by there on Saturday—as announced on a social media post. The reason for shutting down is the persistent threat of violence and increased crime:
“The team members at this cafe have been on the front line enduring extreme violence and criminal activity on an almost daily basis for the last few years– crime and violence that is only increasing in frequency and severity. From theft, to physical displays of violence, threats of harm, break-ins, window smashing, and repeated traumatic in-cafe incidents where both staff and patrons feel unsafe.”
Nobody should have to put up with this kind of thing. I’m sorry to see them close this location but I get it. You will be able to enjoy Coava at their other locations in Portland (
1300 SE Grand Avenue, 2631 SE Hawthorne Blvd) and at locations like St. Simon on NE 15th Street and Tillamook (which happens to be one of my favorite coffee spots in Portland).
P.S. by PoMo
A bit of a postscript: Portland Monthly put together an impressive list last week (though I am wary of the use of “definitive” in headlines, because change is real) of “Portland’s Best Indie Coffee Shops,” preceding it with a short missive about “Portland’s modern cafe scene.” The latter is food for thought and the listicle is valuable; I recommend reading both.
Have I missed any coffee news you think is notable? Shoot me an email or put it in the comments.
Meg Cotner
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Any news on when Water Ave coffee might open up on NE Sandy in the old Joule spot?
That one is a hard nut to crack! I am curious, too, and have been keeping an eye on it as I drive along Sandy a few days a week. The papered windows have been there for months at this point. I’ve reached out to Water Avenue but with no response. I wish I had better news.
Sue, I walked by the other day and peeked inside—they are no where close to being ready. Some new structures are half-built. They are waiting for a liquor license. I think it will still be a while. I’m really looking forward to when they do open up!