(WSB photos. Above, mural inside Lula Coffee)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
“Be your own kind of beautiful.”
That’s one of the inspirational suggestions featured in art on the walls inside Lula Coffee Co., which celebrates its grand opening this Friday and Saturday (January 24-25) at 4451 California SW in The Junction.
The space has been transformed from its former identity as Red Cup Espresso, under new owner Taylor Platt and manager Caitlyn Johnson (L-R below).
Platt is a veteran of “the coffee world” – 9 years at Cutters Point Coffee Co. (Lula’s roaster), and she’s a former vice president of development for Gravity Coffee Co..
She says she has longed to take over this shop since she first saw it shortly after moving to Alki five years ago and was excited to get the opportunity after it went up for sale last year. She wants Lula to be known for more than coffee; she’s worked to create a “super positive atmosphere,” which she says ex-employer Cutters Point is known for in Gig Harbor.
In particular, Platt says, Lula is a celebration of “girl power.” But girls aren’t the only ones likely to find meaning in the art by Tori Kirihara. Overall, the intention is for Lula to be “a place where everybody feels comfortable.”
And there are other reasons to hang out there: Seating with outlets (including USBs), for one.
Breakfast burritos made for Lula by adjacent taco truck El Chapulin Oaxaqueño (which doesn’t open until 11 am otherwise) and heated super-fast by the new Turbo Chef oven, one of the equipment upgrades. Pastries and bagels are available (multiple providers). And, Johnson adds, “We offer great milk alternatives at no additional cost, including oat, coconut, hemp, soy, and almond. We also use ‘clean label’ syrups.”
More changes are ahead – Platt hopes to install a speaker box for ordering, to “move people more quickly” through the drive-up line, one of just a few in West Seattle. And the hours are about to expand, to 5 am-7 pm weekdays, 6 am-8 pm Saturdays, 7 am-6 pm Sundays. (Maybe later in summer.)
You’re invited to stop in and give the shop a try during the grand opening Friday-Saturday, with specials including $1 12-ounce hot drinks.
P.S. About the name – it’s a nod to Platt’s mom, who, she explains, wanted to name her Tallulah. Some customers have called her Lula, she says, and that news thrilled her mom (“It’s finally happening!”). Whether you call her Lula or Taylor, she says, just come on in.
| 11 COMMENTS