Indie Coffee has been open for the last eight years and has lived up to this in sense of the word “independent.” JJ Kilmer and her husband were able to create a warm, inviting community meeting place through their love for a certain caffeinated beverage.
“We wanted to have a community meeting place and we have an extreme love for coffee,” said Kilmer in an interview with The Daily Cardinal. “So we put the two together and have been quite successful.”
Indie Coffee spends much of its time developing quality products and engages in a lot of local sourcing. The café prides itself over its variety of fairly traded coffee and its independent business model. Kilmer claims that by being able to make quick decisions, without relying on a boardroom, sets Indie Coffee apart from the rest of its competition.
Indie Coffee has been able to deliver a much more vibrant experience. The baristas are all latte artists and are expertly trained to make drinks.
Providing creamy and velvety lattes complimented by latte art for their customers, Indie Coffee has also turned it up a notch by hosting a variety of events as well. Indie Coffee usually hosts musical acts but has also had a variety of other events, such as poetry and films.
The café has displayed multiple national touring acts throughout its lifespan, though. Kilmer does not deny that her venue is small but states that the cafe makes up for its size by offering a much more personalized experience for everyone.
“We are obviously not that big,” said Kilmer. “But are shows are a lot more intimate.”
With acts like Jason Anderson, Eef Barzelay and Jason Mraz, Indie Coffee offers multiple menu items, as well as a selection of beers, in order to deliver a laidback and relaxing experience.
The café never has a cover charge, but they do ask for small donations to help support the artist or band in return and to help support the venue for future events.
With a variety of acts coming in, Indie Coffee does have some reoccurring events as well. The café hosts a Bluegrass Jam through the South East Wisconsin Blue Grass Association every second Tuesday of every month.
All in all, Indie Coffee is a unique venue that offers a friendly and close-knit community. With no cover charge, the venue offers entertainment in a relaxed atmosphere.
Head over to Regent Street to check out this small but significant Madison arts venue and let us know about your experience! We’d love to hear your take plus any venues you think we should check out in upcoming local venue columns. Reach out to the Arts desk at arts@dailycardinal.com.
