Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Jonathan Grove’s name.

While residents have had strong, yet varying, opinions regarding the future of Dillon over the past few years, most were on the same page about one thing: the town core could use a good coffee shop. 

Baristas Andrii Iwashko and Jonathan Grove answered that call, ending the wait on March 15 by opening Dillon Coffee Lab & Espresso Bar. 

“We knew people have been craving a good coffee shop in the area for the better part of a decade,” Iwashko.

“A community isn’t really a community without a coffee shop,” Grove added. 

Grove said he had just started his deep dive into the science behind coffee and roasting it when a mutual connection brought the two baristas together. Once they decided to join forces it would be around three years before the perfect spot in Dillon, the town they were set on, opened up. After years of committed searching, it ended up being a walk Grove took his dog on that led to the perfect deal to land them in their current spot on Dillon’s Main Street.

Why were they set on Dillon? Because they also agreed the picturesque town core equipped with a highly regarded amphitheater and other notable amenities needed a simple, reliable coffee shop.  

“My first date with my wife was here walking around the lake … I had to make a latte (at the cafe I worked at then) and bring it all the way over here,” Iwashko said.

“Hopefully, maybe out of this shop, we can inspire a couple more first dates,” he added.

Dillon Coffee Lab & Espresso Bar roasts the coffee itself using beans from Forest Coffee, a family-owned company run by the Bayter brothers in Tolima, Columbia. Iwashko said the quality of the product speaks for itself and it was an obvious choice to go with Forest Coffee. 

“A cool benefit is that we can fund specific projects on their farms, (whether it be) building more facilities to process the coffees in, or investing in new equipment to better their coffees … All of the money that they get, they put right back into their product,” Grove said. 

The two keep tabs on coffee trends in other countries or new developments in coffee “science” which lead to higher quality products. Educational materials can be found on the cafe’s walls that show the processes and intricacies behind coffee. They also put out little sample cups for people to taste test the drip coffee. 

Grove said he’s gearing up for a big matcha summer and is working on setting up a station where he plans to whip up curated and “Instagrammable” matcha lattes.

Alongside drink offerings, Dillon Coffee Lab & Espresso Bar also has pastries from the bakers across the way at Tacos Tequila Bar & Grill. They are currently working on being able to offer outdoor seating in the summertime. The Dillon Coffee Lab & Espresso Bar is located at 124 Main Street, Unit 107. It is open from 6:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. More information can be found at DillonCoffee.com.