All for the love of coffee

Rode Haus Coffee is the name and the Hanks gals -mother Paula and daughters Reagan and Roni - in collaboration with River Roadhouse owner Machelle Brossman, have launched barista operations next to the U.S. Postal Service office on Highway 200 in Trout Creek.

"We are just so excited," said Reagan, who graduated from Thompson Falls High School in 2020, with utmost enthusiasm. "We have wanted to own our own coffee shop since I was 13 [years old], Roni since she was 12, and Paula since we were those ages," she said with laughter. "When we met with Machelle Brossman, we knew we couldn't pass up this opportunity!

"Michelle was opening the River Roadhouse and she was also going to be opening a coffee chain," Reagan explained how the four girls united. "Machelle doesn't know coffee, but she knows business and food pretty well I would say," chortled Reagan. "Since she knew that we knew coffee, it is a perfect match."

According to the Hanks gals, Rode Haus Coffee is special in that they support local businesses through their business. "We get huckleberry puree from the company [Wild] Huckleberry Magic out of the Coeur d'Alene area, Fieldheads coffee beans out of Bigfork, and 5 Sparrows out of Kalispell, where we get a good percentage of our powders," Reagan shared. "Another reason I believe we are special is because we offer Stevia sweetened syrups which is a naturally sweetened sugar-free syrup.

"It was meant to be," Reagan proclaimed. "Oh, and we all love coffee!" Roni, who is a Thompson Falls High School student in her senior year, claims her favorite Rode Haus Coffee beverage is a red lotus with raspberry and blue raspberry flavoring and cold foam on top. Rather than a coffee drink, the lotus is a natural energy drink. Reagan said her favorite is an iced hazelnut latte with oat milk. Paula favors a barely roasted white coffee with white chocolate and hazelnut flavoring and cinnamon powder on top. "We call this drink a cinnamon toast crunch," commented Reagan. "It's delicious!" Brossman prefers simplicity, and black coffee it is.

The Hanks welcome anyone to stop by and try one of their personal favorites or give them the opportunity to tantalize their taste buds. "We are open to new ideas and suggestions," Reagan added. "After all, this business is all about serving our customers. We would love to hear what you guys want." In addition to serving beverages, they also have breakfast burritos and muffins and plan to expand their food menu in the future.

Rode Haus Coffee has been open for only one week, but in the last fews days, a steady stream of customers were greeted with a plethora of smiles and excitement. Anyone who knows the Hanks girls knows the positive energy and smiles they exude. When it comes to their customers, they leave nothing behind.

The vibrant purple building says everything huckleberry and during the Huckleberry Festival, Rode Haus Coffee will feature affogato. The Italian-dessert special is vanilla ice cream drowned with coffee and any requested flavoring. They also plan to have extended hours.

The three girls showed gratitude to Cheri Bates of Cheri's Espresso and John and Barb Mosher, owners of the former Old Mill. "We would not be the baristas we are today without their guidance," Reagan admitted. "We would also like to thank all the coffee shops that have given us advice, most of whom have never even met us before. They were so kind to us throughout our journey to get here and we have been accepted to a whole new community of coffee shop owners that want to support us as we get established."

The Hanks said they are capable of finding the "perfect balance between speed, consistency and quality, all while friendly chatting with customers." These customers, "we'd like to thank for being supportive of us and for bringing new ideas to us. This really is all for the love of coffee."

Customers are welcome to drive or walk through anytime between 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday, or 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.