The smell of freshly ground beans fills the air around a growing Colwood neighbourhood as Royal Bay’s first coffee shop completes an entire week since soft opening on Nov. 4.
On Wednesday afternoon, a lineup of several cars waits to be served a cup of joe from Sequoia Coffee, a drive-thru coffee stand made from shipping containers.
“It’s been a baptism by fire for sure,” said manager Alan Rainey, pointing out that they’ve been busy since opening last Wednesday. “The pandemic gave us the chance to put all the final pieces together and we couldn’t be more grateful that this is a drive-thru and takeaway model instead of a sit-down coffee shop.”
Due to the pandemic, the coffee shop was put on hold for a couple of months, as co-owner Sam Jones was aiming for an early summer opening.
Sequoia Coffee, a partnership of Jones’ 2% Jazz Coffee and Truffles Group, has a temporary-use permit for three years from Colwood council at 365 Latoria Blvd.
“I’ve always wanted to build a coffee shop here since this area was a quarry years ago,” said Sam Jones, co-owner of Sequoia in a previous comment. “We’re really thrilled to be a part of this neighbourhood and now it’s just full steam ahead.”
READ MORE: Colwood approves pop-up coffee shop made of shipping containers
ALSO READ: Colwood coffee shop says one quarter of customers don’t buy coffee
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