A Cup of Joe

Letters to the editor for May 8, 2022

BY TONY OVERMAN

A CUP OF JOE In 1986, the aroma of roasted coffee beans wafted over downtown Olympia. Dick Batdorf could be found checking the beans in his roaster, which was placed just a couple of stools from the end of the B&B coffee bar. With Shannon Bronson ensuring the shots were pulled to perfection, the little Batdorf and Bronson coffee shop became many workers’ pre-dawn coffee watering hole. Many became regulars and friends. Not long after B&B opened its door, Larry and Cherie Challain opened Dancing Goats coffee shop a few blocks away, serving B&B roasted beans with an upscale atmosphere and gourmet baked goods. At the corner of Legion and Capitol Way, Starbucks laid down the challenge to the little coffee shops around the corner.

One might think that it gave the small independent roasters the “coffee jitters.” It didn’t; Olympia’s B&B/Dancing Goats have since prospered — along with many other local roasters like Olympia Coffee. And now, at that Legion and Capitol Way location, Dancing Goats coffee is being served. 

“On the corner of Legion Way

There once was a Starbucks Café

Alas, it is gone

A new brew has dawned

Dancing Goats kick up hooves and play.”

Miguel Perez-Gibson

Read full article here.

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