Origins: The Blissful Whisk

November 14, 2019
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File this under the category, “Might Be More Than a Hobby.” The home kitchen mixer Tiffany Cable used to make treats for family and friends measured 5 feet tall and nearly 1,000 pounds. Vaguely resembling a cross between a Star Wars robot and an offensive lineman, the Hobart 60-quart model is known in highbrow baking circles as a “planetary floor mixer” – because, you know, just try setting that bad boy up on the counter.

Today, the mixer is no longer encroaching on Tiffany’s dining room but resides in a more natural habitat: The Blissful Whisk, a 3,500-square-foot bakery that opened in May.

Tiffany Cable opened The Blissful Whisk in May 2019

Hindsight may have seen this day coming. Like an adrenaline-junky staring down a mountain cliff, Tiffany has always sought excuses for her next big baking rush. During the years she helped run the family’s technology company, she brought in treats for the entire staff once a week. (“We found, after a while, that no one would take Fridays off,” she laughed.) When her two daughters invited their friends over, she would host baking challenges. (“Best chocolate chip cookie wins, and take home all the leftovers.”) When the kids moved on to college, she regularly mailed delectable care packages to them. (And to several of their friends located all over the country.)

Baking is what Tiffany Cable loved to do. And so she spent a fortune doing it.

“Mom,” daughter Haley essentially told her, intervention style. “You’re crazy. Start a business.”

Haley Cable even drafted a business plan revolving around a care package subscription service. Coming as it did around the same time as a divorce and the sale of the family business, this “imaginary business plan” struck a chord.

So she enrolled in the Inland Northwest Culinary Academy’s baking program at Spokane Community College and began dreaming about — in the vernacular of her shop – taking a whisk.

A few months into her Blissful Whisk journey, “it has gone way better than I ever expected that it could,” Tiffany said, citing a supportive community, excellent staff, and local, fresh ingredients.

“I don’t buy frozen things,” Tiffany said. “I bake from scratch — everything, every day.”

A certain well-used, half-ton appliance can vouch for that.

  • Lead Barista Tasha Branning
  • A spacious room that includes the teaching kitchen can be closed off for classes or events

THE NAME

Tiffany Cable was walking down the street in Astoria, Ore., on a celebration vacation — she had just graduated from culinary school and signed the lease for her bakery — when she noticed a giant whisk in the window of a reclaimed furniture store. Inquiring within, she learned it was from an 80-quart, 1920s-era Hobart mixer used by a local bakery that opened in Astoria in 1902. It was freshly donated to the furniture store by the wife of the third generation baker-owner. He had recently passed away.

“I’m hoping he followed me to the bakery, and I have a baker looking over my shoulder making sure I’m not screwing up, because he did this so long and was really loved in that community,” Tiffany said.

The whisk that inspired the name of Tiffany Cable’s bakery

The Blissful Whisk was born, and that whisk is now part of the decor. In fact, so much of the identity of the business revolves around the “whisk” theme, that one has to wonder what might have been if not for that fateful stroll through Astoria. Tiffany’s name for her new bakery before that day? “The Cracked Mug.”

THE VIBE

This bakery is whisk-y business, from the decorative wallpaper to the whisk-shaped light fixtures over each table. (Fun fact: These “lights” are actual whisk attachments to a 20-quart Hobart mixer.) The owner’s personal touches are everywhere, from the “Tiffany” blue color scheme to the teapots (her drink of choice) that line the walls. The bakery includes ample seating, particularly when you factor in the adjoining teaching kitchen that can be closed off for meetings or classes.

THE TOP PICK

Lead Barista Tasha Branning and Manager Gena Ceresero both recommend an Iced Americano (Tasha adds chocolate powder and caramel sauce; Gena keeps it simple with heavy whipping cream). On the bakery side, the Huckleberry Blueberry White Chocolate Chip Scone has been the best-seller from day one.

THE CULT FAVORITE

The Bacon Jalapeno Pepperjack Scone, which has been known to be purchased as a joke only to turn into an obsession.

The Bacon Jalapeno Pepperjack Scone

THE TIME WHEN …

A local TV station scheduled a story on The Blissful Whisk shortly after it opened, and so Tiffany went above and beyond to make sure the case was filled with eye-catching, delectable treats. But when the camera crew arrived, they honed in on a patio customer who bought a from-scratch, Blissful Whisk dog biscuit for her canine companion.

“They literally did not film any of the case of stuff I worked so hard to make; the only thing they talked about was the dog biscuits,” Tiffany said. “We got a ton of business from it, but literally I spend hours every morning making everything in that case, and they focused on the dog biscuits.”

She joked to being “only a little bit insulted,” especially since something she initially thought to be a fair-weather business has expanded instead.

People will literally pay more for a dog biscuit than they will for a pastry.

Tiffany Cable, The Blissful Whisk

“We do dog cakes now,” Tiffany said. “It’s all natural. It has carrots and apples and peanut butter in it, and then we split it and put banana in the center and frost it with mashed potatoes, dyed with huckleberries so it’s purple. Then we decorate with dog bones on top, and you have a dog birthday cake.”

Though a dog lover herself, Tiffany admits surprise at the extent people pamper their pooches.

“I think it’s hilarious, honestly, that people will literally pay more for a dog biscuit than they will for a pastry,” she said. “They will complain about the price of the pastry, but they will pay anything for a dog biscuit.”

THE TEAM

The Blissful Whisk employs 13 staff members. Spokane’s Ionic Coffee roasts a special “Blissful Blend.” Other local partners include Mandala Chai, the Kitchen Engine (loose tea), Twenty Seventh Heaven (loaf bread) and Spokandy (truffles), among others.

  • Ionic Coffee’s ‘Blissful Blend’

THE INFO

1612 N. Barker Road, Spokane Valley
509-242-3189
@theblissfulwhiskspokane on Facebook and Instagram

  • Thanks to Blissful Whisk owner Tiffany Cable for sharing her story with me.
    — Josh Johnson (soccer jersey: Orlando City SC)

What would Tiffany select off her own menu?

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Origins: Crush Coffee Bar

June 22, 2020
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At Crush Coffee Bar, the lid chooses the customer. That’s the honest truth as experienced by mother-daughter ownership team, Nichole Decker and Jazlyn Breesnee. There’s just too much evidence that the brief, handwritten messages penned on each individual coffee cup lid exit through the window into the very hands they were intended for.

Take the daily devotee who pulled up recently to Jazlyn’s window and reported a particularly long day.

“We just joke with one another all the time, and I said, “Oh, maybe your lid will say, like, ‘Keep pushing through,’” Jazlyn said.

What it actually said: “You are enough.”

Jazlyn regularly enjoys light-hearted interactions with the customer, but this time the woman drove away with tears in her eyes.

“I needed to hear that today,” she said.

The relational nature of coffee is why Jazlyn and Nichole do what they do.

“We want to make sure there is a really clear message that is going to uplift people — right now more than ever,” Nichole said. “We’re really careful with our words, and we get a lot of messages from people saying, ‘You just have no idea how this made my day.’ … We have some that will drive from the north side — it blows my mind — just for the conversation and the encouragement.”

Nichole said she and Jazlyn pray over the lids, and the team is regularly trained to watch for ways to be an encouragement. Some members of the Crush crew are people of faith and some aren’t, but Nichole loves how the entire team is purposefully relational and uplifting.

Nichole said she is often surprised by the reactions of customers. For one thing, she said men tend to look at their lid immediately — even moreso than women, although the messages even get to her from time to time.

“We write them, and I can still get mine and say, ‘Wow, I needed that today,’” she said.

And the reactions from young people consistently inspire Nichole to pen more messages of hope.  

“Sometimes they literally just need a couple of words just to feel like, ‘OK, I can make it through this day,’” Nichole said. “I’m shocked by the number of young kids coming through looking for that. We’re clearly missing that in this generation, because so many of them will just stop and take a look at those lids.”

Nichole and Jazlyn took over ownership of the business last fall from founders John and Stephanie Blanton. Both were attracted to the relational nature of the business and the team already in place — which included Jazlyn, who worked at Crush while a student at University High School before her graduation in 2019. The familiarity made the decision an easy one, coupled with Jazlyn’s desire to pursue real-life experience over going the college route.

“We always wanted a coffee stand, and we always talked about how it would be fun to do that,” Jazlyn said. “Then I ended up working at Crush, and it just went from there.”

A Realtor with John L. Scott, Nichole also brings a wealth of coffee experience from bygone days when she managed the Spokane Valley Rocket Bakery location.  

Both love coffee and coffee culture, but the fit had to be right. Nichole said the relational culture already in place at Crush as well as the team they inherited made the decision an easy one.

“The original baristas like Angela, Kayla, Riley and Traci were so positive with the sudden change of hands,” Nichole said. “They delivered the same incredible service they had for years and were amazing mentors to the handful of new baristas, as we quickly increased traffic at both locations.”

  • Tess and Anabel
  • Chloe
  • Jazlyn, Riley and Sierra
  • Kayla and Angela
  • Jazlyn and Traci

THE NAME

Nichole said among the many things that didn’t need tinkering when inheriting a new business: the Crush Coffee Bar name itself.

“We were super blessed to inherit a name that we loved and liked the logo and face behind it,” she said. “(We also) love the idea of ‘#crushinit’ for our hashtag, as we could use that to inspire people to Crush their day, going along with our positive, inspirational message and vibe.”

THE PRODUCT

Crush partners with a familiar name in the local coffee industry, Brian Ellsworth of longtime Spokane roaster, Waverly’s Coffee. Jazlyn said working with Waverly’s to dial in an original blend — one that has been refined by the discerning taste buds of Jazlyn and Nichole — is a fun talking point customers appreciate.

The Crush menu includes an array of specialty drinks such as the popular Caramel Crush mixed in with all of the standards.

Moving through the menu offerings, Nichole emphasized, “We do local everything.” De Leon Foods provides the breakfast burritos. Desserts by Sara provides treats, including hundreds of specialty cookies for fundraisers like Hugs for Jade. Feel Good Fuel provides healthy options.

“We chose all Valley businesses because we are in the Valley,” Nichole said. “One of our big missions is the giveback factor we can have in supporting local businesses.”

THE TIME WHEN …

Nichole and Jazlyn took over the Crush location on Sprague in October and the one on 32nd in December. The traditionally slower winter months would help them ramp up to when business typically blasts off in March.

Then COVID-19 happened. While Crush was allowed to take precautions and remain open, there were many who assumed it was closed.

That’s when the owners of a Spokane Valley promotional item business, Hill Billy Bling, surprised Crush with a complimentary sign that said, “Yes, Crush is open.”

Known for her big personality, barista Traci Russell hopped in a dinosaur costume, grabbed the sign and began dancing down the East Sprague Avenue sidewalk. From passing traffic to social media video, let’s just say it didn’t take long for people to realize Crush was, indeed, still open.

Nichole said that is just one example of how local businesses have helped one another out during COVID. Crush and Waverly’s partnered to bless the Valley Hospital night shift with coffee. Even so-called competitors in the Spokane Valley coffee network are really more of a community, and now more than ever.

A friend of Nichole’s owns the Shotzy’s location on Pines.

“We called each other when all of this fun stuff started and said, ‘OK, are you low on this? Do you need sugar? OK, I have an excess of that.’” Nichole said. “They are right in between my two stands. We could compete against each other or be like, ‘Well, I hope you run out of that.’ Instead, we both reached out to each other. She went to my stand to support us. …

“I just think there are some really amazing small business owners in this town, and even though we are in the same industry and are technically competitors, we get to work together and just have a different vision for everyone and not just selfishly for ourselves.”

THE INFO



13411 E. 32nd Ave. and
16923 E. Sprague Ave., Spokane Valley
www.facebook.com/CrushCoffeeBar
@crushcoffeespokane on Instagram

  • Thanks to Jazlyn and Nichole for sharing their inspiring daughter-mother adventure with me. #crushinit
    — Josh Johnson (soccer jersey: Huddersfield Town AFC)

Would you do me a favor?

If you enjoy articles like this one, join the CoffeeJosh mailing list. It’s hurry-free, spam-free and also free … free. As a thanks, I’ll send you a PDF — you guessed it, free — that has 10 of the best coffee shop orders in the Spokane area. (All 10 are drinks and treats local coffee shop owners make for themselves. In this case, expect to pay for your order and feel like it was totally worth it.)

Origins: Cozy Coffee

February 20, 2020
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Lisa and Ryan Olson live on a Greenacres farm with their four kids, chickens, goats, sheep and alpacas. The acreage reflected the Olsons’ priority for keeping two daughters and two sons (ages 10, 8, 6 and 5) outside and busy.

Outside the house and busy also happen to be priorities for Mom and Dad. As owner of Viking Homes, Ryan has no problem keeping items on his itinerary, but Lisa knew there would be a major void when the youngest started school.

“What I found was when my 5-year-old went into school all day, I was really lonely, and animals don’t talk back,” she laughed. “It took about 5 minutes a day to feed all the animals. And then it was like, ‘Man, what am I going to do?’ There are really only so many classes at the gym you can go to.”

Lisa found the answer in a longtime ambition. She bought a local coffee shop.

  • Lisa Olson in the “cozy corner” of Cozy Coffee

At 514 N. Barker Road, Cozy Coffee was located just blocks from home, allowing her to put in a full shift and still be out the door by 2:30 to pick up the kids after school. A Realtor friend inquired with Raymond Siegel, the founding owner of Cozy Coffee who developed the property in 2011 and opened to customers in early 2012. He was open to the sale, and the transaction was made in 2019.

Lisa couldn’t be more thrilled. While she has training and appreciation for great coffee, it was never about the product but about the people. She knows the vast majority of the customers by name.

“I absolutely love that,” she said. “It’s super fun for me, and that’s exactly why I bought (the business). When I leave here, I don’t want to leave. I could be here from the minute it opens to the minute it closes.”

Lisa said she strives for a Cheers-like environment. Her cast of regulars provide not only camaraderie but a sounding board for feedback and fresh ideas — whether it’s suggestions and insight from Alex and Gordon or taste-testing a new ginger latte with Keri and Diana, who play cribbage at Cozy every Wednesday and host a book club on Thursdays.

“I love everyone’s sense of humor,” Lisa said. “I love that everyone is able to josh around and have a good time. It’s so fun.”

The conversations, vibe and environment typical of coffee shops were her pull into the business, even if the coffee wasn’t. A tea drinker, Lisa said she actually loves coffee but is aware of its addictive qualities, something she is sensitive to after “a bit of an alcohol issue” many years ago. As a mother of two girls and two boys ages 10, 8, 6 and 5, she said she is extremely careful about anything that could create dependencies.

“Knowing myself and that habit – that addiction habit – I don’t want to suffer from coffee withdrawals or migraines or just wanting to have to have it,” she said. “I drink (coffee) for quality control, but when I drink it, I love it, so I know that I just can’t at this time. I don’t want to turn one addiction into another, even if it is just coffee.”

That’s not to say she doesn’t know her coffee. Lisa attended a week-long training for coffee shop owners at the Seattle Barista Academy, and she and her entire team have been through the local training provided by Cozy Coffee’s wholesale supplier, Thomas Hammer.

THE NAME

Lisa anticipated her coffee dreams long before they had four walls and a street address. Two years ago, she registered a business, Cream & Sugar LLC, with the Washington Secretary of State.

It was to be the name of her future coffee shop, “but when I bought Cozy, it really was the right name for it,” Lisa said. “It’s just cozy.”

As she talks, she is sitting in a nook immediately to the left when you enter her shop. She catches herself with a “no pun intended” laugh as she describes the “cozy corner” she redecorated and purchased new “cozy furniture” for.

THE VIBE

While the word “cozy” fits the overall vibe, Lisa has found herself adding flourishes that accentuate the feel of the business as opposed to making large-scale shifts.

“I didn’t change much when I first took ownership, because Ray did a nice job,” she said.

Other than updates to the aforementioned “cozy corner,” she painted a wall, updated the logo and menus and added shelving and an eating bar using natural wood from a craftsman she admires from the Liberty Lake Farmers Market. She also plans to add a firepit among upgrades to the patio. Unlike many coffee establishments, Cozy Coffee is open till 7 p.m. and serves beer, wine and evening appetizers like nachos and quesadillas.

  • Pesto Turkey Flatbread
  • BBQ Pork Ranch Salad
  • Keto Turkey Rolls
  • Nachos
  • Local Honey

THE TOP PICK

Among a robust morning menu of muffins, bagels, burritos, wraps, biscuits and scones, the breakfast sandwiches are the most popular.

“We send a lot of sandwiches out the window, lots of sausage, egg and cheese on croissants,” Lisa said.

The meat of choice is grilled – not microwaved – in Cozy’s small kitchen.

“I’m very specific in the ways those are created,” she said.

While Lisa said she is still working on a signature drink, the daily special is a clear best seller, typically a 16-ounce latte with a rotating cast of flavors.

THE CULT FAVORITE

On her way back from the Seattle Barista Academy, Lisa scheduled a girls weekend with her sister in Winthrop, chosen in part because of a tip from a friend about a great organic roaster: Lariat Coffee.

She liked it so much, she now keeps a Lariat dark roast drip and, for fans of an organic cold alternative, “I just have a nice, smooth, dark cold brew on tap” that has a devoted following.

With the popularity of Lotus as a healthier energy drink alternative, Lisa has also developed a special partnership with Bob Burgess from the Seattle Barista Academy, who has his own energy drink similar to Lotus that she has branded as the Cozy Kicker Energy Spritzer.

On the food side, Cozy’s Bento Boxes have been embraced by the soccer mom crowd. The healthy snack features four containers featuring boiled eggs, cheese, almonds and grapes.

  • Egg Bites
  • Fiesta Crispy Salad
  • Beet and Turmeric Lattes with Biscotti
  • Plentiful options from The Republic of Tea

THE TEAM

True to her people-focused theme, Lisa emphasizes not just the product, but the great relationships provided by partners like the aforementioned Thomas Hammer, Lariat and Burgess. She finds a similar connection to everyone she does business with, from the staff at URM (“like a second family”) to bread provider Franz (“it’s like a friendship”) to the Scone Ranger, where she admits a personal weakness for the cherry almond.

As her drink of choice, the ample tea lineup she offers from The Republic of Tea was selected with purpose.

Her favorite business relationships, though, are the ones forged with her staff, all of whom stayed on from the previous owner.

“I couldn’t do it without them,” Lisa said. “Even though they could all be my daughters, their input and suggestions (are so valuable). … And we have a good time. We have fun.”

  • The ‘El Gordo’ Burrito

THE TIME WHEN …

If you’re a regular with excellent input, you just might inspire your own menu item – or two, in the case of Gordon.

“Gordy comes in every day,” Lisa said.

He inspired “Biscuits and Gravy Supreme” when he suggested adding some of Cozy Coffee’s burrito mixture to the biscuits before topping with gravy. But a certain 2.5-pound burrito stuffed with hashbrowns, crumbled sausage and gravy has literally become his namesake.

“The El Gordo is huge,” Lisa said. “If someone is going to pay $8.50, I want it to be a burrito!”

A burrito forged from input from a not-so-anonymous customer.

“I do like to have everybody taste and I love the input, so it’s great when I can attribute something to him, because he was a big part of it,” Lisa said.

THE INFO



514 N. Barker Road, Spokane Valley
509-891-7334
@cozycoffeegirls on Instagram and Facebook

  • Thanks to Lisa for sharing her Cozy Coffee story with me … and a delicious latte … and that Lariat organic cold brew … and … just check this place out.
    — Josh Johnson (soccer jersey: Sydney FC)

While you’re here, would you do me a favor?

If you enjoy articles like this one, join the CoffeeJosh mailing list. It’s hurry-free, spam-free and also free … free. As a thanks, I’ll send you a PDF — you guessed it, free — that has 10 of the best coffee shop orders in the Spokane area. (All 10 are drinks and treats local coffee shop owners make for themselves. In this case, expect to pay for your order and feel like it was totally worth it.)

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