Inside the brand new Present State Espresso Roasting roastery cafe in Shawnee, Kansas. All photos courtesy of Present State Espresso Roasting.
There’s no time like the current to take pleasure in a top quality cup of espresso in Shawnee, Kansas, the place Present State Espresso Roasting’s new roastery cafe now stands on the prepared.
The roasting firm’s first cafe fills an almost century-old red-brick constructing in downtown Shawnee, with heated concrete flooring and excessive arched ceilings supported by industrial rafters.
“We needed the constructing to steer the design, as a result of it’s a historic constructing, pushing 100 years previous now,” Nick Robertson, co-founder and occasional director of Present State Espresso Roasting, informed Each day Espresso Information. “As a substitute of design heavy, we needed it to only be heavy.”
A rammed-earth bar with layered colours anchors the house whereas supporting separate drink-prep stations at both finish. Strong walnut cabinetry and oak chairs constituted of previous church pews add to the sturdy really feel, whereas a windowed garage-bay door opens the store to a entrance patio with inexperienced steel chairs and tables, garden and potted crops.
“We needed it to really feel like a manufacturing unit that you simply’re invited into to be part of,” Robertson, beforehand the inexperienced espresso purchaser and co-founder of Kansas Metropolis, Missouri-based Messenger Espresso, mentioned. “We’ve acquired the roaster entrance and middle, for everyone to see.”
Kiersten Rex, additionally a founding companion and former head roaster for Messenger Espresso, leads roasting for Present State on an 18-kilogram-capacity US Roaster Corp machine in full view of visitors, utilizing inexperienced coffees chosen and sample-roasted by Robertson.
Present State’s first roasted coffees hit the wholesale market late final yr, whereas the model publicly launched in January 2026. The corporate was co-founded by Robertson, Seleno Espresso Proprietor Josh Greenlee and Seleno Espresso Co-Founder David Weber.
For Present State, Robertson mentioned he leans towards clear, historically processed coffees from a targeted group of manufacturing international locations. The present lineup contains coffees from Colombia, Guatemala, Ethiopia and Peru, plus a decaf from Mexico, bought by means of importers together with Shared Supply, Swift Espresso Sourcing and Cafe Imports.
The aim is to not inform the story of the whole espresso belt or chase breakthroughs in post-harvest taste science, the corporate mentioned. Present State as a substitute takes a back-to-basics strategy, showcasing terroir and processing strategies historically related to every place the place the coffees are grown.
“The idea of the model is leaning into an early-2000s model cafe. You in all probability gained’t see loads of funky coffees on the menu,” Robertson mentioned. “In the identical spirit of a high-quality Pilsner brewery, discerning high quality in espresso or in a beer is concerning the fundamentals of processing, and never the imposing of different flavors to make it palatable.”
That philosophy extends to the home espresso program, which leans into an old-school, Italian-spirited strategy, with wealthy, low-acid triple-basket pictures forming the bottom for traditional drinks ready on a three-group La Marzocco Linea Traditional paired with a La Marzocco Swan grinder.
On the different finish of the bar, a single-group La Marzocco GS3 and Bee Home drippers deal with single-origin espresso and guide pourover brews, respectively. Robertson mentioned that facet of the bar showcases the corporate’s “extra progressive American espresso perspective.”
Robertson mentioned cultivating a tradition of appreciation will stay an ongoing challenge at Present State, whose subsequent step is just to remain current and hold enhancing.
“Although the imaginative and prescient is easy, we’ve acquired a protracted option to go earlier than we’re excellent, so the subsequent step is simply making an attempt to realize perfection,” Robertson mentioned. “We undoubtedly wish to simply fill within the house that we now have and work out what Shawnee desires probably the most. The Present State model is about being current, being in your present state, taking note of espresso.”
Present State Espresso Roasting is situated at 11217 Johnson Drive in Shawnee, Kansas.
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Howard Bryman
Howard Bryman is the affiliate editor of Each day Espresso Information by Roast Journal. He’s primarily based in Portland, Oregon.
