Ogden’s tiniest coffee shop has giant dreams. The Parlour Coffee Bar has set out to turn a 500-square-foot space into a place to connect, share ideas, and work to revitalize Ogden’s downtown.
Owner Kim Bowsher, who is also the head of the Ogden Downtown Alliance, and Erika Wynn, Parlour’s manager, expect the new shop to help people come together over quality specialty coffee. Wynn explained, “We’re all pretty strong in the community and we really value that you can have a great conversation over coffee,” which is “a driving force for creativity and conversation.” She hopes the Parlour Coffee Bar will encourage “collaboration, community, and connection.”
The new coffee bar held its grand opening in April, with live music, pastries, chalk art, and of course, coffee. Wynn said of the event, “It was awesome. It was something we’d been working on since January and then to see so many people in here connecting over coffee—I get the chills talking about it.”
The shop’s focus on community and collaboration is evident from the moment you walk in the door. The Parlour shares the building with And She’s Dope Too, a cause-based clothing brand, the Ogden Downtown Alliance, and the Ogden Bicycle Collective. The coffee bar connects these organizations and invites staff and volunteers to sit down and work together.
Even the coffee itself demonstrates local business collaboration. The coffee served at the Parlour comes from a small-batch local roaster, Mason Jar Coffee Roasters. Thomas Kiernan, owner of Mason Jar, sources his beans from green coffee importers around the world and roasts them right in Ogden. Wynn says of Parlour’s relationship with Kiernan, “I know he makes a good quality coffee. We trust him because we like his coffee and we like having a personal relationship with our roaster, who has personal relationships with his growers.”
The Parlour is also partnering with Daily Rise Coffee, a local organic coffee roaster with locations in Ogden and Layton. Daily Rise is working with And She’s Dope Too to create a personal blend (called Lady Wild) for the cause-based brand that celebrates getting women outside and involved in adventures. Once the blend is finalized, the Parlour will carry bags of it and serve it on drip to customers. Wynn says, “Daily Rise is local as well, which is something we really value. The first shop they opened is just a couple blocks down from us. Then they realized they have a niche in the roasting, so they opened their own roasting station down near Antelope Drive. It’s good stuff and we take a lot of pride in these local people who are making things big.”
In the end, the coffee itself is part of a much bigger goal. Wynn explains, “We’re about the movers and shakers. The biggest driving force for us is that we want people to come here to have conversations, get involved with the community and the revitalization of Ogden and there is no better way to do that than over a delicious cup of coffee.”
Parlour is located at 2562 Washington Blvd., Ogden, Utah
