Charlottesville-based Mudhouse Specialty Coffee Roasters is planning to open a cafe at 418 W. Broad St. next month. (Jack Jacobs photo)
More than four years in the making, a Charlottesville-based coffee company’s long-planned downtown Richmond location has set its opening date.
Mudhouse Specialty Coffee Roasters is aiming to open its new cafe at 418 W. Broad St. in August.
The company has been working on the new spot since purchasing the building just before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which James Hutchins, Mudhouse operations director, blamed for the delay.
“I went down with the owners and we were looking at the space in January 2020 and then the pandemic came along, which really slowed everything down. Not just our ability to move forward but also the ability of the city to move forward (with permitting),” Hutchins said.
He said Mudhouse is underway on hiring employees for the Richmond shop and taking care of a late bit of city approval needed to open.
“We have permitting, aside from the final health inspection. We’re rolling stuff in right now as far as supplies. All our equipment is there and ready and it’s really all about stocking it up and setting it up,” Hutchins said in an interview this week.
The Richmond location is expected to have indoor seating for 20 to 30 people. Hutchins said there are plans to open a patio space in the back of the building at some point. The Arts District building near the intersection of Broad and Belvidere was previously home to Studio 418.
An entity tied to the company bought the 3,800-square-foot Broad Street building in December 2019 for $1.15 million.
Mudhouse serves coffee that the company roasts itself in Charlottesville. The new cafe also will sell baked goods as well as bagel sandwiches.
Owners Lynelle and John Lawrence started Mudhouse as a coffee cart in the early 1990s. The company has three locations in Charlottesville and one in nearby Crozet. The Richmond location is part of the company’s push to expand beyond its home city. Last year, it opened a location in Charleston, South Carolina. It also is planning an outpost in Alexandria.
In other local coffee moves, the Daily Coffee Co. truck recently began to operate, and franchised chain of drive-thru cafes 7 Brew is working on opening locations in Chesterfield.
Charlottesville-based Mudhouse Specialty Coffee Roasters is planning to open a cafe at 418 W. Broad St. next month. (Jack Jacobs photo)
More than four years in the making, a Charlottesville-based coffee company’s long-planned downtown Richmond location has set its opening date.
Mudhouse Specialty Coffee Roasters is aiming to open its new cafe at 418 W. Broad St. in August.
The company has been working on the new spot since purchasing the building just before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which James Hutchins, Mudhouse operations director, blamed for the delay.
“I went down with the owners and we were looking at the space in January 2020 and then the pandemic came along, which really slowed everything down. Not just our ability to move forward but also the ability of the city to move forward (with permitting),” Hutchins said.
He said Mudhouse is underway on hiring employees for the Richmond shop and taking care of a late bit of city approval needed to open.
“We have permitting, aside from the final health inspection. We’re rolling stuff in right now as far as supplies. All our equipment is there and ready and it’s really all about stocking it up and setting it up,” Hutchins said in an interview this week.
The Richmond location is expected to have indoor seating for 20 to 30 people. Hutchins said there are plans to open a patio space in the back of the building at some point. The Arts District building near the intersection of Broad and Belvidere was previously home to Studio 418.
An entity tied to the company bought the 3,800-square-foot Broad Street building in December 2019 for $1.15 million.
Mudhouse serves coffee that the company roasts itself in Charlottesville. The new cafe also will sell baked goods as well as bagel sandwiches.
Owners Lynelle and John Lawrence started Mudhouse as a coffee cart in the early 1990s. The company has three locations in Charlottesville and one in nearby Crozet. The Richmond location is part of the company’s push to expand beyond its home city. Last year, it opened a location in Charleston, South Carolina. It also is planning an outpost in Alexandria.
In other local coffee moves, the Daily Coffee Co. truck recently began to operate, and franchised chain of drive-thru cafes 7 Brew is working on opening locations in Chesterfield.
I’m fairly certain that these businesses pick locations by the attractiveness of the buildings/space, the street charm, the main street character, etc., and not the availability of customers. Otherwise, this outpost would be located where a dependable source of people in need of coffee are steady. One can count on this portion of Broad Street being blocked off by crime scene tape a few days a quarter.
Hmm I wonder how Lift Coffee has survived for so long then. They are just a block away.
I’m not sure what compels me put my two cents in. But just seeing down votes on this comment is irritating., I enjoy a bit of cynicism, particularly when it’s coupled with hyperbole. I just wonder if those voting negatively don’t feel that crime is an issue in downtown Richmond. I don’t really believe there are going to be weekly chalk outlines in front of the shop but there are many reasons that I’m not going to hustle down to that neighborhood. However, rather than just hitting a down arrow, I’d appreciate some positive feedback that might encourage me to… Read more »
There are already people living in this and surrounding neighborhoods, so coffee shops don’t need to appeal to everyone’s geography or perception of crime. Healthy businesses can help transform streets and we should cheer for them to succeed.
Yes. Coffee shops help neighborhoods more than most businesses — caffeine has special powers that help with affinity emotions — not being sarcastic, ACTUAL science.
Where will they ever find customers?… hmmm. Well, there is a college with 30,000 students two blocks away. And Broad Street has an average daily traffic of 17,000. They are close to downtown and the convention center. I think they should do ok. In fact, there are at least three other coffee shops within a half mile… Lift, Alchemy, Urban Hang Suite… probably others.
Your faulty premise here is in thinking this business will be dependent upon or (is designed to entice) fearful suburbanites driving their cars down into the city center to get coffee. That demographic has Starbucks drive-thru’s. As noted above, with 30K students and residential density within a short walk/bike, this spot should hopefully do fine.
I also think that downvotes should be accompanied with a rebuttal, and I agree with you that I don’t think crime is likely a big issue there — he makes a good point that you should put these where people want coffee — but maybe people there DO want coffee?
I am always in awe of your ability to collect net downvotes!! I Disagree with your surety that this a bad location, but I do agree that some people are a bit too romantic about where they site their traffic-dependent businesses!!
remember me in 12 months when they go out of bizniz
Okay, I’ll take the other side and you can humiliate me!!
this is a networking echo-chamber lest you forget
Partially. It’s several things…
Great news! Mudhouse is terrific and will be a really nice addition to an already great coffee city that Richmond is.
It looks like there’s a coffee shop several blocks east and several blocks west. I suppose there is a enough demand among VCU students for one at this location.
VPM is building their new HQ downtown, on Broad Street. Hey, 1.3 million is cheap – Five more years and the price will double once the coliseum is razed and Gilpin Court is evacuated and Developers take over.
It has long been my belief that Broad St will again be the heart of the entire area — though I have been wrong so far….