Sara Meadows
Editor-in-Chief
Kirby Keomysay and Tyler Sutter, partners in life and in business, are the owners of West Omaha’s newest coffee shop The Grind Coffee House.
The Grind Coffee House is truly one of a kind. One of the many unique aspects of the coffee house is the studio salon connected to it. Ko & Co. Studios, also owned by Kirby.
The studio provides entrepreneurs the freedom to build their own client base but with access to salon industry experts.
“I think for both of us this is so different from our primary careers,” said Tyler. “You can make everyone happy and they start their day off with you.”
Kirby has worked in cosmetology and entrepreneurship for over fifteen years, and Tyler works as a physician’s assistant at a local emergency room, so neither of them previously had experience with coffee shops.
“I felt like there was a need for me personally and professionally to do something different, but yet still serve the community,” said Kirby.
The Grind Coffee House stands out among other coffee shops because of the atmosphere and their high quality and consistent beverages and food.
The coffee shop is innovative as well, with a self-ordering approach customers can order at a kiosk, through a QR code, or even online.
“We’re also known for an elevated vibe,” said Kirby. “We put a lot of emphasis into the way the coffee shop looks and how it feels.”
The inside of the coffeehouse has a modern look with ambient lighting, high-end fixtures and decor, making it a unique experience in the West Omaha area.
“We wanted a coffeehouse that felt warm, welcoming and inviting,” said Kirby.
When designing the coffee shop they intentionally added warm ambient lighting so that people would feel comfortable and cozy. In addition, they choose the perfect music to play inside, making it an enjoyable experience all around.
They also incorporate Kirby’s deep-rooted Asian heritage into the menu and decor, which is not something that you see a lot of in the metro.
The Mekong Mist is their take on a London Fog, but with a name that honors Kirby’s parents’ birthplace in Laos, specifically the Mekong River and the misty tropical monsoon climate in the spring and summer months.
“I just wanted to be a coffee house that was different and unique,” said Kirby. “Growing up my family used to own a Thai restaurant and I really loved and enjoyed the ambiance, the decor and the work ethic that my family had.”
Both Tyler and Kirby love traveling to Asia, so they wanted to bring some of that influence into their decor and menu.
The coffee house officially opened in December of 2022, however, the pandemic delayed the opening for at least six months.
“In retro speck that actually worked out great because we needed time to learn the ins and outs of coffee,” said Tyler.
Kirby mentioned that even though the opening was delayed, it gave them time to fine-tune their brand and what the needs of the community were. It also gave them time to find the right employees and leaders to help operate the business.
“In a way, yes it slowed us down, but I think we opened late enough where the community felt fairly comfortable coming into a coffee shop,” said Kirby.
For them, the most rewarding part of owning a coffee shop is seeing the community come out to support a local business.
“Local coffee shops are a little bit different and unique in their own way,” said Tyler. “To be part of that now is really exciting, it’s uniquely our own.”
The typical demographic that they see is a mixture of students, businessmen, stay-at-home moms, medical professionals and families.
“We cater to everyone,” said Kirby. “We feel like our menu caters to the masses, we have kid-friendly items and items that fit dietary restriction needs.”
The coffee shop doesn’t just serve espresso and coffee, they also serve sweet blenders and refreshers as well.
“A fair number of people that come in actually want to sit down and enjoy the space instead of just grab and go,” said Tyler.
The menu has a wide variety of different beverages including cold brews, lattes, pressed juices, blenders, iced teas and hot teas.
For food, they have bakery items, specialty toast and a hot food item called The Childhood Favorite, which was a dish that Kirby’s mom would make him as a kid.
The Childhood Favorite has now become a local favorite within the coffee shop and includes a piece of toasted wheat bread with over medium oven-baked eggs, mashi seasoning and black pepper.
“People appreciate the different types of flavors that we’re bringing in for a breakfast item,” said Kirby.
For drin-wise, right now they see the honey lavender matcha as a fan favorite. It’s a little different from other coffee shops, mainly because they’re using a couple of different types of matcha instead of just one.
“We’ve had a couple of people say this is the best matcha they have ever had,” said Tyler.
Their signature drink is called The Grinder which is a combination of different coffee mixes, shots of espresso and they even put a couple espresso beans in the drink, creating a bit of texture.
Kirby says right now they’re not so focused on the numbers, but the systems, the structures and the service.
“It’s been surreal but also rewarding to come to work and know that we’ve had this vision and it’s all come to life,” said Kirby.
*** The views and opinions expressed in this social media post by our student organization are solely those of the individual members and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nebraska at Omaha or other student organization.
