A coffee shop opens in Sunnyland neighborhood; a Fairhaven business takes a break
Here’s a roundup of recent retail activity around Whatcom County:
▪ A Colombian coffee shop recently opened near Hardware Sales.
The business name is COF& (pronounced coffee) and it is at 784 Kentucky St. Oscar Quintero, who is from Colombia and recently moved to Bellingham with his family, started the shop, which sells specialty coffee drinks and beans. According to its Facebook page, the shop will also whip up some empanadas.
In an email, Quintero said coffee is one of the best things about his country and he wants to bring some specialty beans to Bellingham. Quintero is from the Santander region of Colombia, known for its mountains and agriculture.
He said the farmers there have a special way of cultivating the coffee and he works with them to bring the beans to Bellingham.
Quintero said they have a lot of options to prepare the coffee; equipment includes a French press, Japanese siphon and an AeroPress.
The coffee shop is open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day. Further details can be found on the company’s website.
▪ Last week Rite Aid announced it was closing 63 of its 2,451 stores as a cost-savings measure. The company didn’t list which stores would close in the next few months, but the pharmacy is well-represented in this area. There are currently eight Rite Aid stores in Whatcom County, five of which are in Bellingham.
▪ Plans are moving forward for a new tenant in the waterfront district. A building permit application was submitted for a shipping container that will be home to Sun E Land E-bikes, which will be a bike rental business situated next to the bike track area by Waypoint Park.
▪ Edaleen Dairy announced on social media that its Fairhaven ice cream store is temporarily closing for its “winter nap” and will reopen sometime in March.
Other restaurants and small businesses around Whatcom County are temporarily closing for the week. It’s probably a well-timed closure for many of these businesses if the forecasts prove correct and the arctic dome puts this area into an extended deep-freeze.
For those planning to go to a specific restaurant this week, check the social media page or call ahead to make sure the place is open.
▪ While the opening of Jo Joe’s Doughnuts created quite a stir last week on Commercial Street, another business had a soft opening next door. Mo’s Parlor had a soft opening earlier this month and sells a variety of merchandise, including jewelry, Cosplay costume patterns, shirts and coffee mugs, according to its website. The owner of the business is Monique Green, and further details can be found on the company’s social media pages.
This story was originally published December 26, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
