For the first time since opening their hidden cafe in Prospect clothing store off Park City’s Main Street in 2016, Pink Elephant Coffee Roasters opened a new shop in Heber City dedicated to serving locally-roasted coffee.
Just two doors down from their roastery, Pink Elephant’s new cafe space lies within Ritual Chocolate’s retail space, an open warehouse shop with plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. Owners Mitch and Kelley Baker are excited about the new addition, even if it’s a little off the beaten path.
“It’s a good change from our Park City shop. We love our Park City spot. We have a lot of local people who come there every day, but it’s very tourist-based just being where it is on Main Street. So it’s nice to be here, where we get a little more connection with the customer,” says Kelley.
Pink Elephant’s long-time friendship with Anna Davies of Ritual Chocolate created a natural opportunity to start running the cafe, and the space will soon be known as The Factory Cafe by Pink Elephant Coffee & Ritual Chocolate.
With a steady stream of regulars already, the space also works well for digital nomads looking for a place to work. And the owners welcome these customers: “If we can help somebody out, we’re happy to do it,” says Mitch, adding they may up the internet speed to accommodate more visitors.
Founded in 2014, Pink Elephant Coffee Roasters reflects two people’s love of mountain town living. There’s a down-to-earth, humble quality about the couple’s enthusiasm for quality coffee and sustainability. As their hobby turned into a business — first selling at the Wednesday Park City Farmers Markets — persistence was key through years of slow growth and rough moments, they say.
Their products slowly but surely found a demand and market, allowing for continued growth. Forming lasting relationships with their community and other small business owners is another big part of Pink Elephant’s success, they say.
“We would never be able to do Pink Elephant without our relationships,” says Mitch.
Most of what they use is local, selling pastries and products from local businesses like Auntie Em’s Baked Goods, Land Juicery and Normal Ice Cream, and using chocolate from Ritual Chocolate in their drinks.
“There’s enough market here for a small company like Pink Elephant to just do well, thrive and take care of the small radius that is Heber Valley,” says Mitch about their focus on sourcing local.
Local support goes beyond the ingredients, though.
“Another thing that we do that’s really important to us and in our mission statement is we donate proceeds to places like Utah Open Lands or Sage Land Collective,” says Mitch. Pink Elephant makes personalized coffees for various groups — like their Rocket Sloth 157 Blend, which donates a portion of the sales to the Utah Bike MS fundraiser that raises money for research to find a cure for multiple sclerosis.
Another upcoming product is their Dark Skies Blend, which will donate sales to the International Dark-Sky Association that advocates for dark skies in Heber Valley. Groups interested in collaborating with Pink Elephant on a personalized coffee can email [email protected].
They aim for quality in everything they do: using the finest ingredients, packaging, machinery and processes for a trustworthy product and an Earth-conscious impact.
“Our philosophy on roasting has always been: We buy the highest quality ingredients that we can source … roast to highlight the region’s unique characteristic, and then almost everything we do is a light roast or medium roast,” says Mitch. Freshness is also paramount, so their whole-bean coffee is shipped to buyers within a day of roasting. Packaged in artisan, fully recyclable and compostable packaging, their bagged coffee is available for purchase online, at their two cafes, or in wholesale locations like Harmons Neighborhood Grocers and Ritual Chocolate.
“We’re trying to do remarkable coffee, and I think we have something that appeals to everyone … from an Ethiopia Yirgacheffe purist, and that’s all they want, to a dark roast,” adds Kelley. Currently, they are selling seven coffee varieties, and planning to jump to 12 types in a few weeks, including a single-origin Ethiopian espresso. New products also include two flavors of canned Pink Elephant Nitro Cold Brew and instant coffee.
Try Pink Elephant’s coffee, at The Factory Cafe at 2175 W 3000 S, Suite 100, Heber City, is open daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., or visit their Main Street Park City location, open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information: pinkelephantcoffee.com.