Coming soon: Popular pop-up coffee shop to open a permanent location in downtown Matthews
The story of new concept Brakeman’s Coffee & Supply starts with three guys who are Matthews residents. Though they all have full-time jobs, they decided to create an intentional space for slowing down, indulging in coffee and congregating for conversations in downtown Matthews.
There was a coffee void in downtown especially after Dilworth Coffee closed its Matthews location, Brakeman’s co-founder David Johnson said, “and really a lack of a watering hole, a community space for the residents to just gather and share life together.”
The family men behind the concept, which currently operates as a weekly pop-up, are Johnson, director of nonprofit Silent Images; graphic designer Dave Baysden; and Mark Moore, co-founder of MANA Nutrition. Their wives have their hearts in it, too — Andrea, Mandy and Marnie, respectively.
As Johnson puts it, they are just three families who want to chip in some cash and make this magic happen. They’re not coffee people — they’re community people.
And they want to slow this community down. Their new business name reflects the role of the brakeman in a train caboose who slows down the vehicle. Brakeman’s coffee shop will be a place to slow life down a little.
The full-time shop, set to open in late June, will be set in a revitalized house built in 1925. Despite this concept of slowing down, the shop will offer fast service and fast WiFi, not to mention couches, comfy nooks, old farm tables, artwork by local artists, extra space upstairs and a back patio for musicians. There will be a nostalgic, modern/vintage vibe.
As for the drinks, the Brakemen’s group is leaning on coffee experts to complete their vision. They hired a coffee consultant and are getting training. And they are featuring beans from Methodical Coffee out of Greenville, S.C., and Summit Coffee Co. out of Davidson, with HEX Coffee in Charlotte as a highlighted brand.
For now, they will continue to host the Saturday morning pop-up coffee counter they started a month ago on the front lawn of their still-under-construction home. They’ve been drawing in crowds of close to 150 people from 7:30-10:30 a.m. (a good stop en route to the Matthews Community Farmers’ Market) while serving drip coffee and items from a cappuccino machine. Think Americanos, cappuccinos and lattes.
Come the opening of the main house, Brakeman’s will expand the menu a bit. Customers can expect coffees, teas and pastries, with baked goods sourced from local bakers like Whisk + Wood, whose products you can already find at the Saturday pop-ups. More community partners are expected to join the venture.
On a monthly basis, the full-time Brakeman’s shop will donate a percentage of its profits to Matthews-based charities and offer anyone in uniform free cups of coffee.
But uniform or not, come have some coffee on Saturday. Come have more coffee in June, when Brakeman’s main doors open.
“Stay for a while,” Johnson said.
And slow down.
Get a taste
Until the Brakeman’s Coffee & Supply opens full-time in late June, the goods can be enjoyed Saturday mornings from 7:30–10:30 a.m. 225 N. Trade St., Matthews.
Photos: David Johnson
This story was originally published May 24, 2017 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Coming soon: Popular pop-up coffee shop to open a permanent location in downtown Matthews."