Burr Roasters & Cafe

Ray Ford roasts the beans himself, on-site, in a two-story brick building on Delaware Street in historic downtown Leavenworth. The roaster is visible from the seating area, the room smells of beans in process, and Ray is the kind of owner who will help you pick a roast if you ask. Burr Roasters is veteran-owned, and the building has been arranged with more thought than most cafes manage. Wood. Brick. Cozy booths with power outlets. A separate meeting room behind the bar for groups who need privacy.

The move that sets this place apart is the dedicated family room. High chairs, crayons, books. If you have ever tried to drink coffee with a toddler in an open dining room, you understand what that room is worth, and Burr is one of the few cafes in the area that bothers to provide it.

The espresso menu runs the standards plus a London Fog that regulars order without thinking, and a seasonal lineup including a Spiced Girls Iced (pumpkin spice chai) for the customers who lean that direction. The oversized chocolate chip cookies are baked in-house and earn their size. Crepes are on the menu. Whole-bean coffee is on the shelf for home brewing, and Ray is the right person to ask which one suits your setup.

The honest caveat: one regular flagged the roasts as running darker than they would like, which is fair to know if you are a light-roast pour-over drinker. There is also no outdoor seating, so if you want sunshine with your espresso, this is not the move.

For business meetings in booths with the outlets right there, for parents with small kids who need the family room, and for home brewers who want to talk to the person who roasted the beans, this is the right call in Leavenworth. Take a bag home and ask Ray what to do with it.