Pioneering espresso stand still brewing strong in Othello

OTHELLO — Kelly Carvo said her husband Kevin was skeptical when she told him she wanted to open a drive-thru espresso stand. After all, espresso stands weren’t as popular and widespread in 2001.

“We went back and forth for five years. And he kept telling me, ‘It’s a fad, it’s going to go away,’” she said. “I wanted to do it for so long.”

She had a good job, she said, one she liked, but one that was getting more challenging. She thought it was time to do something else - and besides, she likes coffee.

“I love coffee, everything about it,” she said. “And I just thought, ‘You know, that would be a really fun job.’”

Eventually, she opened Kix Stand Espresso, located at 1305 E. Main St. in Othello. More than 20 years later they’re still in business, and Kix Stand was named the 2023 Business of the Year by the Othello Chamber of Commerce in February. The espresso stand turned out to be a good call.

“We don’t regret it all. It was a great decision,” she said.

Carvo is a graduate of Othello High School, and Othello seemed like a good place to start a new business. A longtime family friend, Rodney Deleon, owned property along Othello’s Main Street and Carvo asked him about suitable property.

“When I want to talk to him, he said, ‘Take your pick.’ So we just chose that one, it’s right at the beginning of town. And honestly, I don’t think we could’ve chosen a better spot,” Carvo said.

The name prompted some discussion too.

“We went back and forth,” Carvo said. “And my husband is the one that came up with it - you know, ‘get your kicks.’ And I said, ‘It sounds more like a bike shop. Anyway, we stuck with it, and it’s been good.”

The Kix Stand has a staggering array of syrups for its lattes, breves (a latte with half-and-half instead of milk), Italian sodas and smoothies, displayed on shelves over the espresso machine. It’s still the same espresso machine the Kix Stand started with in 2001, she said.

The Kix Stand also sells pastries along with the drinks.

While she likes coffee, Carvo said, she had no experience actually making a latte.

“I had never done it before,” she said.

A trip to a convention in Las Vegas yielded some helpful business advice, but not necessarily anything about making coffee.

“They gave us some tips, like - location, your location is so important, and things like that, but I still had never made a cup of coffee,” she said.

The Carvos purchased an espresso machine but were having trouble installing it when some strangers came to their rescue, she said.

“We had a problem with the water. We couldn’t get it hooked up and hooked into the machine. So we were standing there, not knowing what to do, and two guys stopped by,” she said. “They were just coming through town. And they stopped and they asked, ‘How are things going?’ And we said, ‘well, we don’t really know what we’re doing.’”

The strangers were from 4 Seasons Coffee Roasters, based in Spokane.

“They took us to lunch, came back and showed us how to make coffee, and we have stayed with them. They have been awesome. And great coffee,” she said.

The Kix Stand features one of the company’s signature blends. Along with quality coffee, there are ways to brew a cup of coffee that improve it, she said.

“You’ve got to make sure your grind is set right, because if it’s packed too tight it’s going to run too slow and you get a bitter taste,” she said. “And if it’s too loose, you don’t get all of your coffee taste. So as you’re grinding, you need to make sure when it’s pouring, it’s pouring a certain amount of time.”

It’s also important to ensure the coffee beans are fresh, she said.

She credited her husband, her employees and her customers with the Kix Stand’s success.

“We’ve got a great clientele,” she said.

Some of the Kix Stand customers have been buying coffee since the beginning, and some who were children and teens when she started the stand now have children and families of their own.

Kevin Carvo has been the handyman, plumber, and general repairman over the years, she said.

“He’s done all of my repairs,” she said. “He’s busy too, but he’s been really good about it.”

She doesn’t work at the espresso stand every day any more, she said, but she has confidence in her staff.

“They’re a great group,” Carvo said. “They’ve done us a great job.”

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached at cschweizer@columbiabasinherald.com.

If You Go

Kix Stand Espresso

1305 E. Main St., Othello

Hours:

6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday

7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday

7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday

Lattes, smoothies, breves, Italian sodas