By Wendy RichardsITWPA Member
On a recent trip through the heart of Kansas, hubby and I found an amazing little coffee shop located in Hays, Kansas that takes quite the scientific approach to brewing coffee.
Hays is located in the heart of Kansas’s German farm country. It is filled with limestone buildings and historical sites, all a testimony to the amazing craftsmanship of the time. This craftsmanship comes through loud and clear where Union Station Coffee & Roasterie is concerned. The small coffee shop boasts a wide variety of coffees, as well as a scientific take on making their cold brew coffee.
While I went for their dark roast drip “iron duke” and hubby got an iced latte, I was fascinated by this contraption. Cold water is dripped into coffee grounds, and then slowly works its way through the grounds until the heavenly concoction is caught in the vat at the bottom. All in all it takes eight hours to brew one pot of their cold brew coffee.
They also offer pour over coffee, another scientific endeavor that requires time, patience, and a knowledge of how the chemistry of coffee beans and hot water works together.
I didn’t eat anything, since a) I don’t generally eat anything for a couple of hours after I’ve had my coffee and we were back on the road at that point, and b) they weren’t sure what was in what I wanted, so for the safe side I stayed clear of food — though I was told if I was just gluten intolerant they had plenty of things for me to eat. Also, if dairy is what you are avoiding, they have soy and almond substitutes for your coffee. I used their almond milk in my “iron duke” drip coffee, and it was awesome. Even though I like my coffee a little stronger than how they brewed it, the flavor of their coffee more than made up for that small personal preference.
When you stop by we highly recommend you get breakfast. For breakfast hubby had their bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich on a homemade biscuit. He said it was by far the best breakfast sandwich he had ever eaten. I can attest to how wonderful it smells; my mouth was watering just sitting next to him as he ate.
The biscuit was a buttery delight, and the mix of American, Havarti, and formaggio cheeses accented the egg and bacon to make the sandwich worthy of champions.
This is a place I could see myself spending a lot of time if I were a local. It’s small, not a lot of seating, but what is there is very comfortable. While there we heard people catching up on each other’s lives, clustered in little groups around the dining room, drinking coffee and eating any number of their menu items, simply enjoying each other’s company. Union Station is open and inviting, and often busy, so patience is always appreciated as they work to craft their delightful food and coffee for your consumption.
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