Deja Brew at The Pines, a new venture featuring a scratch-made bakery, coffee creations and energy drinks, will open for business Monday, March 23.
The location features a drive-thru and is at The Pines Pizza and Pub, 4100 River Ridge Dr. NE. Hours will be 6:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Initially, only drive-thru service will be available, with dine-in service expected to open in the coming days during the same hours.
The idea for the full-fledged Deja Brew location was born after owner Kara Molle met Jeff Beer, owner of The Pines, at her Tiffin, Iowa, store. Mr. Beer was exploring the possibility of adding a coffee menu at his establishment.
Ms. Molle’s original Deja Brew gained popularity in Tiffin, first operating out of a refurbished 1958 camper. Ms. Molle, who focused on baking during the COVID-19 shutdown, expanded her philosophy of high-quality food to include coffee and energy drinks. After the camper was destroyed in a tornado, She opened a storefront at 1150 Tallgrass Ave.
Deja Brew at The Pines will serve house-made bagel sandwiches, cookies, brownies, coffee drinks and Tiki Breeze energy drinks. When dine-in service begins, the menu will also feature soup flights, banana pudding, homemade breads and a variety of simple, fresh, rotating selections.
Ms. Molle emphasizes using organic and locally sourced ingredients whenever possible for her bakery items. She avoids many artificial flavorings, sourcing real vanilla from beans, making shaken espresso with raw brown sugar, and even making oat milk in-house.
The coffee beans used for drip and specialty drinks are single-origin, 100% organic, and sourced from a four-generation family grower in Guatemala. “You have to be able to drink them all black,” Ms. Molle said of the custom blend she developed with the grower, noting it has no bitterness.
The energy drinks utilize Tiki Breeze, which Molle said provides “clean caffeine” derived from green coffee beans. “The caffeine is derived from green coffee beans, making the drinker less jittery and with no crash,” she said.
The Pines Pizza and Pub will maintain its current schedule, opening at 3 p.m. on weekdays with its existing dine-in menu.
