Dwellhouse Coffee and Tap

So this is the new year and I don’t feel any different.

Welcome back, dear readers! It’s wonderful to see all 60 (!) of your bright shining faces again in this fantastic new year! There’s certainly no way that 2022 could be worse than 2020 or 2021 — or is that just tempting fate? Also, since it’s been a couple years, I want to apologize to all the corporate leaders who didn’t get to have their 20/20 “clear eyes” year. All that you wanted was a year that fit into what optometrists call normal vision so that you could make the most obvious pun ever and what you got instead was a dumpster fire. I feel your pain. 

Enough about that, on to better topics. It’s been a wild few weeks in my new job and being Santa’s delivery elf, but the holidays provided some much needed time off to go visit a few coffee shops I’ve missed going to, as well as a couple I’ve noticed on social media which looked interesting. Side note: if you missed my regular substack content, you should go check me out on Instagram! I tried to post a bit more on there during the break. 

First up, a little place in Hutto (a city I would happily uproot to live in solely on the fact that it’s totally cool to have a cement hippo in your yard) that’s new on the scene: Dwellhouse Coffee and Tap. As I mentioned earlier, they’ve got a good if small Instagram game, so they piqued my interest. They’re also located in an HEB parking lot shopping center, which is the second coffee shop I’ve been to lately located in one and is quickly becoming the go-to spot for new shops. Dwellhouse also happens to be right next to a hair & nail salon, pediatrician, and a Montessori school, which is the fullest package I’ve probably ever seen. Whoever did the retail mapping for that one deserves an award. 

Now, on to the coffee: it was quite good. They’re using Cuvée’s beans for their drip and espresso, which is always good. They’re also not afraid to be different and intentionally slower than a normal shop, which is a bold choice. When I ordered my usual black drip coffee, they confidently informed me it would take about four minutes before I’d have my cup. When I’m usually confronted with this issue, it’s because they’re busy brewing up another large batch, but for Dwellhouse the wait was intentional: you see, they ground and brewed my coffee on the spot just for me, providing a high quality product but with a slightly added wait. Far from being annoyed at the delay, I got to hang out and punch this silicone bubble thing with my son that he got for Christmas. It was great having some intentional slowness for a chance, to play with my son, and enjoy the design of the shop. 

Let’s talk about that interior design for a moment. My wife and I have very different takes on what is appealing, with very little overlap. I prefer something she’d describe as “austere” while I’d say that I genuinely enjoy a nice concrete wall. She likes a style about as diametrically opposed to my own, so our house is probably more warm and inviting than I’d like it to be. Right in the middle of both our tastes is a thing we like to call modern farmhouse, nice and clean but inviting. Dwellhouse really nails that look. It’s a place I’d enjoy spending time alone with a good book on a rainy day, but I can tell that it would also be a great place to meet up with friends and chat for a while. 

Alright readers, I’ve waxed poetic far more than I needed to. If you’re in the area, go check them Dwellhouse. Thanks so much for reading, welcome to 2022, and I hope you have a great day.