New In Town

Las Vegas has seen what some would call a coffee renaissance in the past few years. We've gone from boom to bust in the real estate market in just 5 short years. Our economy has really changed. Some would say for the worse but many would say for the better. In a way, the best of the best have made it through the tough times and now, what the every day Las Vegan has to choose from are pretty stable businesses and especially coffee shops.

Gone are the companies that didn't have deep roots in the community or in the industry itself. Today, what you have are companies that by and large were created either just before the crash of 2008-2009 or right in the midst of it.

Can you imagine, opening a business right at the height of the depression. Well, several of the companies on our LIST (see our Jan. 31 Blog post) did just that. Among them is Colorado River Coffee Roasters out in Boulder City. This micro roasting company not only opened in the midst of The Great Recession but they have made a name for themselves among a handful of other coffee shop owners in Las Vegas and other commercial accounts.

I spoke with Don Anderson, the owner of CRCR, about his business. He said the reason why he believes his company is so successful is because of the quality of the beans that they are able find. Without quality beans, it is impossible to produce a great cup of coffee.

CRCR has grown from a small batch production coffee roasting machine, one that most small shops would love to have in their locations, to a full fledged capacity machine. On a recent visit out to their plant in Boulder City, I met their head roaster and sampled some of the best varieties of espresso and regular roasted beans. In the warehouse there were plenty of green beans just waiting to be roasted to order.

Don says that for CRCR, business has been steadily growing, even through the down turn in the economy. We can only surmise that this uptick in growth is as a result of a quality product.

Here is a quote from their company page. "Showing everyone that there are options available for those that truly want a decent cup of coffee instead of just accepting what is readily available. We only sell whole bean coffee, to ensure that the product you drink is as fresh as possible."

Sherman Ray
Writer