The Coffee Drop

On Saturday Scott, Yone, Garry and I went to The Coffee Drop. Yone and her blue-eyed husky Milo (see them both here), traverse the hills of SW Portland regularly, so she had seen this place and suggested we try it. With my love of any creative use of space and the small house movement, I too was curious about this unusual little yellow building on Barbur Boulevard. And when I say “on” Barbur Boulevard, I am being almost literal.The front door is at one corner of the small building.Javier Santos, owner and barista, greeted us.The drink menu had everything we were looking for.As he made our coffee, Javier told us a bit about himself and his business. His grandparents were coffee growers and producers in Guatemala, and his parents still have a small operation there, so he learned about coffee at an early age. When he came to Portland he worked for European-style restaurants for several years, where he learned the “espresso culture.” He opened The Coffee Drop, his first business, ten months ago.The coffee was presented to us on this bar with beautiful wooden inlays, andwas lovely and delicious.Javier said he uses coffee from Sisters Coffee Company not only because he is friends with the owners, but because they produce a consistently excellent product.Scott tried the Mayan Chocolate and said it had “a little kick” – possibly cinnamon – that he liked.For those of us who are gluten-free, the Coffee Drop carries pastries and cookies from local bakery New Cascadia. The mural here was painted by the former business owner who operated here for only one month.Javier fixed the mural a bit and painted the interior walls a deep brown. I told him that walking into the rich colors of this little shop was like walking inside a tiny drop of coffee. He said this was not his intent, but smiled at the idea. The shop had just enough space inside for three comfortable chairs next to the window.In the back Javier installed a tiny terrace, with room enough for one table, built by another of his friends.I like the detail of the to-scale landscaping next to the back terrace shown above. The building itself is truly tiny – just 184 square feet according to Portland Maps - and is triangular in shape.As he prepared to open the business about ten months ago, Javier decided to change the yellow color of the exterior. Then he learned that this “little yellow building” was something of a landmark and reference point for other businesses along this stretch of road, so the yellow stayed.As shown in the pictures above and below, the yellow color indeed is kind of a beacon for itself and the nearby businesses.Just to the west of The Coffee Drop is Bye Engraving and H&R Block.To the east is Larry Rodman State Farm Insurance, Hoot-N-Annie Children’s Resale Boutique, and Northwest Optometric.The Coffee Drop is one of the few independent coffee shops in my neighborhood, so I am very happy to have it here, and plan to visit often.Yone, thank you for the topic suggestion and for contributing a number of the pictures shown here. And thank you, Scott, for buying! The Coffee Drop is…

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