On an unassuming corner of Main Street, Doghouse is more than just another old coffee shop in Delta; it’s something unique and special. When you step inside, you smell a warm and rich aroma from the freshly ground coffee beans, and smell the gentle sounds of music and conversation. The walls are adorned with some exposed bricks and wood paneling, giving them a rustic and cozy charm, with paintings, mementos, and little treasures hung up on the walls and counters.
Tacky yet fun greeting cards are placed neatly next to the counter, where you will find an assortment of baked goods ranging from bagels to brownies to muffins.
Cassie Vest, the current owner of Dog House, has been there since the coffee shop’s early days, taking ownership a year after the coffeehouse opened in August 2006. “Dog House created the coffee culture in this town… There wasn’t one at the time when it was opened,” Vest said.
It all started when the original owner, Bob McNair, invited Vest to see the new coffee shop he was opening. She agreed to start working there after being invited to work at Doghouse. She was then asked if she was interested in buying Doghouse, and, according to Vest, the rest is history.
The shop’s commitment to the community runs very deep. Vest used to live in Olathe with her kids, but as soon as she bought the coffee shop, she decided that “We have to fully commit to this community. And so I switched all my kids over to Delta schools and just fully immersed ourselves in the sports in Delta and the community in Delta.”
Vest also supports local schools through her business, “I just try to support anything that, you know, pretty much comes through the door as far as kids go,” Vest said. “We’ll just bring loads of coffee and, you know, there’s like 65 teachers, and we’ll bring all the coffee and bagels and stuff like that for them. And that feels good, because teachers are kind of unappreciated,” said Vest.
Apart from doing so much for the local communities’ schools, what truly makes Doghouse special is its atmosphere. Vest likes “to keep it weird in Delta, you know, we like to shake it up.” Her favorite part (other than the coffee) of Doghouse is that everyone is welcome to it. Though she also understands that “we’re not for everybody”, Vest tries to “ keep it original in here.”
The coffee shop has also become a place of unexpected love stories. Doghouse Coffee has hosted three different weddings. Vest herself has a personal love story in Doghouse’s early days, explaining how she met her husband, Bryan, at the coffee shop during a challenging time of her life.
Bryan Vest, Cassie’s husband, who works at the shop, appreciates the shop’s uniqueness. He finds it rewarding, saying, “so many people know you and are just happy all the time when they see you, always grateful for waking them up every day.”
The shop has even provided comfort in some hard times for people. Bryan Vest said, “[one of our] customers’ wife passed away, and so he would come in all the time and get the drink she would get, and [I would] not say anything, just giving him the drink, perfectly made. Every day, they said that really helped them get through a dark place in their life.”
Another thing that makes Doghouse’s business model stand out is its commitment to quality, sourcing all its milk from Rockin’ W Ranch in Olathe and using the same Seattle-based coffee roaster for 18 years.
Vest is happy and satisfied with how the shop is going. “I just feel like Doghouse is complete,” Vest said. “We’ve kind of reached the pinnacle.”
