VICTORIA
Evan Lewis/elewis@vicad.com
The Box Coffee Bar on South Main Street is the original location. The building was once a free-standing ATM.
THE BOX COFFEE BAR OFFERS COMMUNITY A JOLT OF ESPRESSO BY CIARA MCCARTHY cmccarthy@vicad.com
Evan Lewis/elewis@vicad.com
A latte at The Box Coffee Bar on North Laurent Street. 22
DISCOVER 2018
Amanda Cantu knows most of her customers at The Box Coffee Bar by name and by order. But when someone new comes in, she’s always ready to greet that person with a smile — no matter how crazy their coffee order might be. The craziest? A sleep deprived paramedic who ordered a latte — with nine shots of espresso in it. “We’re willing to try new things. So if someone comes in here and they want something different, or they have a flavor combination in their mind but nobody really offers that, we’re willing to try it,” said Cantu, 28, the manager at The Box Coffee Bar. “If we have what it takes, the
flavors and milks, we will try our best to put whatever it is you have in mind together.” And that includes lattes made with nine shots of espresso. The Box Coffee Bar is a locally owned coffee shop with two locations in Victoria. Community and good coffee are at the heart of Box Coffee, which opened its first location downtown in 2015, Cantu said. The Box Coffee Bar’s origin is almost as unique as its first shop. John Valdivia, the owner of The Box Coffee Bar, started working in the coffee business when he founded the Victoria Roasting Company. In 2014, Valdivia was driving through Victoria when he saw a vacant ATM kiosk and was inspired to open a coffee shop in the unused space.
