New Cafe Planned For East Side
Street Coffee Collective will open on Farwell Ave. at former site of Brewing Grounds For Change.
2008 N. Farwell Ave. Photo taken July 9, 2026 by Sophie Bolich.
Veteran baristas Hannah “Fish” Staple and Kamren Starkey have spent years talking shop about coffee. Soon, they’ll go from talking shop to running one.
Backed by a combined two decades of experience, the business partners plan to open Street Coffee Collective at 2008 N. Farwell Ave. later this summer.
Once home to Brewing Grounds For Change, the storefront was most recently occupied by retail business MJ’s Apothecary & Gifts. In its next iteration, the space will function as a neighborhood cafe welcoming coffee novices and aficionados alike.
“We want to have an inclusive menu with coffees, tea selections and specialty drinks, but we really want to also hit the people who are interested in single-origins and coffee processing,” Staple said. “We go to coffee shops and we’re nerds about it … so we want to be able to deliver that kind of experience, too.”
Street Coffee Collective plans to roll out its full menu in phases, beginning with classic coffee and espresso drinks, pour-overs and matcha. The menu will also feature “a long list” of house drinks the partners curated over the last decade, along with seasonal offerings and hōjicha, a low-caffeine roasted green tea.
The partners hope to eventually add an in-house food program, including a small breakfast menu, but will likely start by sourcing pastries and other snacks from local vendors. Patrons can expect gluten-free and vegan options.
Street Coffee Collective gets its name from the founders’ cafe catering service, which keeps them frequently on the go. “We’re always on the street doing events,” Starkey said, adding that both partners’ surnames begin with “st.”
“It was just a fun little nod to that.”
Though their respective careers have spanned cafes from Colorado to Connecticut, the partners first crossed paths at Roast Coffee Company in Indiana, where Starkey is still based. Even so, both saw promise in Milwaukee.
“It felt like a natural fit for me to be here,” said Staple, who is originally from the East Coast. “The community was super embracing.”
The cafe was not yet a firm idea until Staple noticed the Lower East Side space for lease while driving past. “We weren’t even talking about it, but I decided to call and get more information,” she said.
After a tour of the storefront, her mind was made up. “It sparked something and we just went for it, because it felt like the right time for all of the things that we had been talking about to come together.”
Staple and Starkey are now working on renovations that accentuate the space’s existing “architectural beauty.” The cafe’s restrooms have been freshly painted, and a mural is taking shape along one of its walls.
“After working at a bunch of cafes, it can either feel too sterile or maybe too unattended to,” Staple said. “This kind of felt like the right balance of authenticity that we’re trying to have shine through.”
Street Coffee Collective will initially occupy the southern portion of the building, where the service counter is located, before eventually expanding into an adjacent space to the north.
Depending on permitting timelines, the partners hope to welcome their first customers by the end of summer. In the meantime, Staple said passersby are welcome to pop in for introductions or questions if they see her on-site.
“We’re hospitality people first, and coffee is just the way that we are able to express ourselves,” she said. “At the end of the day, it all comes back to not taking ourselves too seriously.”
Updates and catering information can be found on the business’s website.
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