BROOKINGS – A popular local coffee shop has expanded its presence in Brookings.
Kurt Osborne has officially opened the second location of Kool Beans coffee shop on the corner of Sixth Street and Jackrabbit Avenue, across the street from McDonald’s. The new location offers a variety of coffee beverages, smoothies and several different healthy food options.
It complements the original Kool Beans Coffee and Roasterie shop at 314 Main Ave. Ste. 5, which opened in Brookings in August 2017.
The biggest difference for the new location is that it has a drive-thru window. However, there is plenty of seating within the building as well. The new coffee shop is located at 1461 Sixth St. and has expanded hours, open from 6 a.m.-8 p.m., seven days a week
“The coffee menu is almost exactly the same with the exception of indoor service pour-overs – we’re assessing that option given the space. But espresso drinks, teas, kombucha, cold brew, nitro, all of those things will be here as well,” Osborne said. “I think the biggest difference obviously is the food.”
This new location offers various healthy and vegan options including paninis, wraps, salads, smoothies with no added sugar, and several variations of baked goods like scones and muffins. Bags of coffee beans are also available to purchase at the new location.
Some of the many food-based companies Osborne uses are: Old Market Bakery, Stensland Family Farm, Holy Kakow Café Organic Syrups, Little Shire Farms Honey, Sanctuary Chai and Lone Pine Kombucha. Kool Beans also has coconut, soy, almond and oat milk options for all coffee drinks.
Osborne is working with restaurant industry professionals who have several decades of successful business ventures between them.
Osborne said that it took roughly seven months of planning to establish the second location. He said since he has had great success with his downtown location that it was a “natural progression” to continue growing his business.
Osborne said that the location on Sixth is one of the busiest intersections in town. The new shop looks very similar to the one downtown.
“(We) really tried to continue with the look and feel and ambiance of Kool Beans (downtown) by using repurposed materials. We reused a lot of things and did a lot of the work ourselves,” Osborne said.
All of the wood in the coffee shop is repurposed, the concrete floor is the original 1940s concrete, and the tables along the east wall are cut pieces of the seating that used to be in Coughlin Alumni Stadium before the renovation.
A particular source of pride for Osborne is having the “Bum Alum Blend” coffee roast. Proceeds from this specific roast go to the Hobo Day Committee and are used for scholarship funding.
For more information, visit the Kool Beans Facebook or Instagram page or visit its website at koolbeanscoffee.net.
Contact Matthew Rhodes at mrhodes@brookingsregister.com.
