California Kahve will move into its first permanent location in Menlo Park
If it feels like Molly Welton and her mobile coffee shop California Kahve were just in the news, it’s because they were. But just over a month later the business looks to grow beyond being a daily fixture in Stinson Beach: Welton will open her first brick-and-mortar cafe in the five-star boutique Park James Hotel in Menlo Park on El Camino. The entrepreneur let her fans know of the opening in an Instagram post over the weekend. “It’s a lot,” Welton says. “There’s a lot of unknown, but I’m super excited. They’ve been so awesome, and they love my brand, so we’re going for it.”
Representatives for the hotel reached out to Welton in early April and the deal came together throughout the month, she says. The hotel has no coffee option currently, but it does have a big outdoor and indoor space used by Oak and Violent Restaurant at night. For all intents and purposes, the space will be California Kahve throughout the morning and day — Welton will hang her logo and menu this week before the opening.
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The menu will be the same as what’s offered at the mobile setup, but the food and matcha sides of things will be elevated. Welton wants to check out loose leaf tea, like a lavender mint matcha to create a simple syrup, and to amplify seasonal features on the menu, too. Welton will continue to make standards like her wildflower honey latte and dark chocolate orange mocha with Tiny Footprint Coffee, a reportedly carbon-negative coffee importer that supports reforesting the Mindo Cloud Forest in Ecuador. “I’ll definitely stick with my classics,” Welton says. “But I’m excited to expand, too.”
Every day Welton will take over the space with quiche, ham and cheese croissants, and bowls, such as spirulina and frozen fruit bowl and a golden poppy bowl highlighting turmeric. Amour Wholesale in Redwood City, one of three bakers that Welton interviewed, will supply pastries such as a pistachio cranberry cake. Look for California Kahve at the Park James Hotel as of May 23 from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
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