Our Espresso Bar is Forced to Close

Posted by James Helms on

Friends and neighbors,

We are deeply saddened to announce that Saturday, December 31st Rocky Butte Espresso Bar will be closing. This does not mean that Rocky Butte Coffee Roasters is closing entirely. 

So, what happened? A few months ago, we hired a broker and attorney to help with negotiations for a long-term lease. We initially thought that we were going to reach an agreement with our landlord. When we received the actual lease to sign, we realized that it contained many troubling details that were new to the conversation, and when we tried to clear things up, we were abruptly evicted. Effort to work toward agreement was stonewalled. 

We are experiencing some big emotions about this change. From the beginning, we have been about building up this community, and we loved how the espresso bar was not just a coffee shop, but also a place where people—our highest value—could gather. Coffee was just a means to make that happen. In the last few months, we were hopeful about lease negotiations and made big plans for our future in the current space—we are having to let go of those dreams, and it is highly disappointing.

So, how can you help? We are committed to keeping our team employed as we navigate forward and are hoping that you will set up a coffee subscription in our online store. This is the most tangible way to help us quickly.

There are other ways to get involved and support the community and our coffee company (help us find a new retail location, support us in a KickStarter, help us become a B Corporation, etc) and you can read about some in this blog post. Of course, we will be posting more details in the days ahead. 

This is not the end. We hope very soon, we will be able to pour more coffee for our community in another space where we can all meet again.

-The Rocky Butte Coffee Team


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