Elizabeth Orosco
Northeast News

Splitlog Coffee Co. continues to make progress on their second location in Pendleton Heights with an anticipated opening date in the first week of December.

Located at 546 Olive, the space is directly north of the Pendleton Arts block, and will be a little different than their original location on Central Avenue in Kansas City, Kansas.

With no drive-thru, the new location will be more of a destination experience, said founder Caleb Wittmer.

“Our hope is that it will become more of a neighborhood spot where locals can walk to and access,” he said. “Being off the main thoroughfare, you’ll most likely be seeking it out instead of just driving by and seeing it. It’s more spacious, so it’s a place for meetings, studying, and hanging out.”

Adam and Caleb Wittmer, brothers and founders of Splitlog Coffee Co., opened their first location in Strawberry Hill in 2017.

The two have been working in real estate for fifteen years and have acquired a few properties in the Pendleton Heights neighborhood.

In getting to know the area and the people, Wittmer said they saw a need for a place for locals to gather.

“At the time, we thought it was an underserved area in terms of restaurants or coffee shops,” he said. “Once the Arts Block started being developed, [a coffee shop] started becoming more of a viable option. We saw some potential in this building and that’s when we decided to open at this location.”

Wittmer said if everything remains on schedule, the shop should open the first week of December.

The goal, he said, is to coordinate their opening with the grand opening of the Pendleton Arts Block.

Simeon Bricker, general manager of both locations, said the shop will have a full coffee menu as well as a kitchen to serve hot meals for breakfast and lunch.

“Offering that alongside coffee kind of makes it that one stop that you can go to for meeting someone in the morning, for lunch, or if you’re studying, you don’t have to leave and go elsewhere,” he said. “We love the idea of being able to meet more than just the coffee need but food as well.”

Bricker said the inside of the space was well thought-out and offers guests multiple seating options.

Guests can enter the catty-corner entrance and be immediately greeted at the front bar to place their order, which will be served at the other end of the counter.

Bricker said they will work to offer various table sizes, seating styles, bar stool seating that looks out of the east-facing window, lounge chairs, wifi, and outlets accessible at nearly every table along the walls.

They will still offer lots of grab-and-go food options, but Bricker said they want the feel of this space to be different than their original spot.

“We were mainly focused on creating a space that people come and sit and stay, so the multipurpose tables help with that. If you want to read, study, hold a meeting, or sit in a comfortable chair and chat with a friend, we have all of that.”

The Wittmer brothers have hired CoBuild and Emerging Builders to complete the coffee shop renovations.

Wittmer said they have previously partnered with Tate Williams, founder of CoBuild, on a single-family home in the Northeast and wanted to expand that partnership to include their new coffee shop location.

“What he is doing, training of these young men and women in the construction trade, that speaks right to us and our desire to create jobs, help people, and do things the right way,” he said.
The relationship they’ve built, Wittmer said, has been incredibly positive.

“It’s been great. We love Tate. His personality and demeanor are great to work with. It’s been a great relationship and hopefully it continues to more projects.”

Bricker said they hope to become a member of the Pendleton Heights and Northeast community.

“We want to be part of the community as a whole in Pendleton Heights. In the same way that we want to partner with the Arts Block, we want to partner with other businesses in the area and the people in the community and provide events and a great experience for them.”

They will be getting all major equipment in this week and will be putting up finishing touches to meet their December opening goal.

Simeon said he hopes the customer base that they have established in their original location brings more people into the Northeast community.

“It’s exciting to highlight the area and show someone a new side of Kansas City that maybe they’ve never discovered.”

To learn more about Splitlog Coffee Co., visit www.splitlog.coffee.