Imagine opening a door and being greeted by the warm, rich, relaxing aroma of mochas, espressos, cappuccinos, pastries and more.
Then friends and classmates greet you. They invite you to join them at one of the couches. As you make your way over, you notice people are reading, talking, studying, using laptops. In essence, just plain hanging out. You notice the crowd is not just college students. It’s also local business people and a few families.
Could such a place really exist?
It can and it will. Coming in early March, Kaldi’s Coffee House will open on Sam Houston Avenue and 17th Street next to Subway.
According to owner/operator Rick Francis, Kaldi’s is looking to create a genuine coffee house atmosphere for coffee drinkers, students, families, or anyone just wanting to hangout.
“We want this to be a place for people to feel free,” Francis said.
The name Kaldi comes from the original discoverer of coffee, Kaldi, who was an Ethiopian goat herder. His story goes back to 500 A.D. when he first noticed his goats eating coffee beans. After trying the beans himself, Kaldi took them to monks thinking they were a gift of God.
The monks believed they were evil and threw them into a fire. The beans gave off a warm, rich aroma. Such a wonderful smell, that the monks thought the beans had to be a gift of God. They pulled the beans out and put them into water to cool off. The water started turning a dark brown color, and the rest, is history.
Kaldi’s will serve a variety of high quality coffee beverages, non-coffee beverages, and pastries, ranging in price from $1 to $3.50.
The coffee house also hopes to have laptop hookups. Along with couches and a warm, rich color scheme, Kaldi’s is hoping to generate the hangout atmosphere students and community members are looking for.
Francis said he has felt very welcomed by the community and everyone involved with the coffee house. He wants everyone who goes into Kaldi’s to feel the same way.
As a way to get students involved, Kaldi’s sponsored a logo design competition. The competition was open to all students, organizations and departments.
Francis said there was a huge response by the students in the SHSU art department. The winning logo will be unveiled during opening ceremonies. The winner will receive $100 and a year of free coffee from Kaldi’s.
Francis said he believes the coffee house will be a success not only because they will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., but also the location and atmosphere.
“We want this to be everyone’s coffee house,” Francis said.
For more information about Kaldi’s and job opportunities, contact Rick Francis at 832-978-5486.