Of course Arletta VanHoof sells donuts at the coffee house she just opened across from Enumclaw’s cop shop. But also offers so much more.
“This isn’t an espresso stand,” VanHoof said, adding she has seven employees.
It certainly isn’t. With more than 2,200 square feet of space it puts even Starbucks to shame. Even with 15 tables and chairs, about a half-dozen sofa chairs and two fireplaces, there still is plenty of room to kick back and relax without others listening in on your conversation.
“You can’t even sit down at Starbucks,” VanHoof said, adding she keeps her prices lower than the national chain’s.
The café doesn’t just serve all of the standard coffee drinks either. It also offers beer and wine, along with a Monster freeze that is popular with the younger crowd’s energy drink craze.
Cafe Monticello also sells all types of food, including: turkey, ham and pinini-style sandwiches, fruit and salad. Specials include chili and dogs on Mondays, tomato basil soup and grilled cheese on Wednesdays and baked potato with all the trimmings on Fridays.
“There’s nothing else like this in town,” said VanHoof, whose family also owns the commercial construction business Custom Dirt Work Inc. The café, 1240 Myrtle Ave., opens at 6 a.m. weekdays and 9:30 a.m. on Saturdays. It is closed Sundays.
The former wagon shop and bank has been gutted since the VanHoofs' bought the place in 2007. It is one of the few places in town with its own parking lot, and it does offer a drive-through. Music, such as open microphone nights, is in the works.
VanHoof explained that the name of the café, Monticello, means “Little Mountain,” of which there are many in the Enumclaw area. Also, City Hall, which also is right next door, was done in the style of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello architecture.
Café Monticello already is a popular hangout with the town’s police force. So much so that a drink already has been named after Officer Tony Ryan. It consists of white Mocha chocolate and raspberry. It tastes like a jelly donut.
