For a few years, Connell has enjoyed having a local specialty coffee shop. But on January 15th, 2019, new owners Adam and KaTrina Kunkle opened Kaffrin’s Coffee with a new and fresh community minded vision. The local shop was restructured under a different name and with a lot of new ideas to generate community engagement while still providing quality beverages with personal service. Kaffrin’s serves coffee, teas, smoothies, Italian sodas and many other items as well. Adding yet another level of business to the coffee shop, they also opened their doors to local artists and craft vendors to bring in their items to display on the walls and to offer to customers.
Kaffrin’s Coffee (pronounced Kaff-rIn) got its name from the owners daughter (Katherine – 4years old) as that is how she says her name. “She is a social butterfly and can light up any room she walks into, as well as make friends with anyone and everyone. She has a magnetic personality and she’s the reason I was brave enough to try and save Connell’s lone coffee shop”, says owner, KaTrina.
The Kunkle family moved to Connell in 2012 and had no plans to open a business – but this opportunity fell into their laps at a great time and they jumped at it. KaTrina goes on to say, “Besides our daughter, we have an older son (as well as a newborn son now) and when our older son started school Katherine was absolutely lost without her best friend, so we would go to the coffee shop and she made friends with all the baristas and a lot of the patrons. She would always order a “Kaffrin Coffee” (hot coco) and then tell them if I wanted a ‘mommy coffee’ or ‘mommy tea’. I couldn’t see her favorite place go away, I had to do something! So now, here we are.” Funny fact about the owners though – KaTrina is super outgoing but also loves to be a homebody and enjoy time with her family, with coffee of course! While Adam doesn’t actually like coffee (crazy huh?), he does enjoy the smoothies, Italian sodas and lemonades too.
Kaffrin’s Coffee has been a boost to the Historic Downtown area of Connell – hosting many community events in less than a year of being open – and they don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. They offer a community hang out, a place to come get cozy with friends and enjoy a favorite drink. In May they hosted the first annual car show, bringing in many people for that event. They have also hosted several paint nights, board game days, a teen night, and just this last weekend a Ladies night. Several home based businesses have come in on Saturdays for customers to shop. Be sure to look at the chalkboard in the shop to see upcoming events or check out the FaceBook page – Kaffrinscoffee and click on events tab to see what is happening in the next month or Instagram - @KaffrinsCoffee.
This summer, they put in many hours of hard work to create an outdoor space in the backyard for customers to enjoy as well as having a couple different conversation areas inside: couches, tables, benches – something for all ages to sit and enjoy. As far as expanding – they plan to expand only locally in the Connell Shop. Hopefully someday (3-5 years) adding a little drive through, serving soups, salads and sandwiches. They currently have 4 part time employees.
Kaffrin’s Coffee Shop is located at 257 N Columbia Ave in Connell – you can reach them at Kaffrinscoffee@gmail.com or on Facebook or Instagram. They are open Monday-Friday 6:00am-6:00pm and Saturdays 8:00am-2:00pm during the school year. Their summer hours are posted at the shop (typically only altered hours for July and August). With the holiday season coming up and cold weather setting in – come and bring a friend for a warm drink or grab a few gift cards for some quick gifts from family, friends, teachers and neighbors.
