Haute Coffee Coming Soon to Walden Street

Construction activity is about ready to start percolating inside Haute Coffee, the soon-to-open business occupying 12 Walden St. in Concord.

They’ll pronounce haute like it’s oat with an “h” in front, but with a wink and a nod to those who mispronounce it as “hot coffee.” Because, of course, that’s how many first-timers are likely to do.

Being grounded is important for first-time business owners Rob and Kimberly Scott – especially since they’ll be asking customers to wait for their coffee to be ground in realtime.

“We want it to be fun and unpretentious,” said Kimberly, “Because anyone can learn about coffee the way I did.”

And that’s the idea driving Haute Coffee: Kimberly and Rob fell in love with coffee and, after relocating the Boston suburbs, they want to share their love of fresh-ground pour over, hand-pulled espressos and lattes with the MetroWest.

All Coffee Is Not Created Equal

Living in Las Vegas, Kimberly and Rob Scott enjoyed spending time in Napa Valley and exploring what California’s wine country had to offer. But it took a bout of sibling rivalry for the couple to begin considering coffee the way they would wine.

It wasn’t a single cup that changed the way they looked at coffee, but rather a challenge from Kimberly’s brother. After successfully identifying an average (cup of) Joe from an Ethiopian blend, he encouraged them to drink their coffee black to truly taste the layers of flavors hidden beneath all the cream and sugar.

They did, and they never looked back.

Now, with Haute Coffee, Kimberly and Rob hope to share that experience with others. They’ll be grinding beans for pour over coffee in front of customers, hand-pulling espresso drinks and making all of their own syrups from scratch.

“We were totally novice coffee drinkers until a few years ago,” Rob said. “We’re doing serous coffee, but that transcends all levels. You won’t have to be able to pick out all of the notes, the fruit or the little bit of chocolate. It’s still going to be a really good cup of coffee.”

In addition to high-quality caffeination, Haute Coffee will serve breakfast and lunch, including many baked goods Kimberly will make herself.

Among the edibles will be muffins, cupcakes, brownies, tartines, baguettes and grilled cheese sandwiches, as well as some healthier options, like a turkey sausage soup and quinoa granola.

“We’re trying to do simple, but with the freshest ingredients,” said Kimberly. “It’s really important to me to use the best quality ingredients, because it’s simple.”

For those things Kimberly and Rob won’t do themselves, they’re looking to folks who they think have done it right. Like going to Iggy’s for croissants and partnering with Counter Culture Coffee for the beans and training to become certified baristas.

Eyeing an August Opening

With permitting close at hand, the Scotts hope to start construction very soon. If all goes according to plan, they’d like to have Haute Coffee open by mid-August.

Located in Comella’s former home back by the municipal lot off Walden Street, Haute Coffee will have seating for 19 and a takeout counter. They’ll look to play off of the exposed brick and wood beams to create a rustic yet elegant dining area, while refinishing floors and other surfaces and brightening up the counter area around the corner.

Haute Coffee plans to be open 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday, and 8 a.m. to noontime on Sundays. They will offer free WiFi.

For more information and to keep up with the latest on Haute Coffee, check out the website or follow @MyHauteCoffee on Twitter.