This profile is in active compilation — some details are awaiting a cited source.

Power & Light** café in downtown Kansas City, an outpost of PT’s Coffee Roasting Co., the award-winning independent specialty roaster founded in 1993 and headquartered in Topeka, Kansas. Tier 2 — an independent, founder-owned roaster operating KC cafés from a non-KC headquarters (disclosure overlay).

Description

PT’s Coffee — Power & Light opened July 5, 2019 on the ground floor of the Power & Light Apartments at 1310 Baltimore Avenue in downtown Kansas City.1 It is one of two PT’s cafés in the KC metro — the other is in the Crossroads at 310 Southwest Blvd — both operated by PT’s Coffee Roasting Co., the specialty roaster founded in Topeka, Kansas in 1993.23

PT’s is an independent, founder-owned company (no private equity, no corporate parent); it is in fact an acquirer itself, having bought Bird Rock Coffee Roasters of San Diego in 2017, which makes it a multi-state independent.24 Its KC presence pairs with a non-KC headquarters in Topeka (~60 miles west, outside the KC metro), which is the basis for the Tier 2 (rather than Tier 1) classification.

Ownership and history

Brand timeline

PeriodOwner / OperatorNotes
1993 → presentFred Polzin & Jeff Taylor (PT’s Coffee Roasting Co.)First coffeehouse 1993; wholesale arm 1999; independent founder ownership ongoing. Acquired Bird Rock Coffee (San Diego) 2017.254
2019 → presentPT’s Coffee Roasting Co. (Power & Light café)KC downtown outpost opened July 5, 2019.1

Recognition

  • Roast Magazine “Roaster of the Year” (2009)2
  • Good Food Awards winner (2021, 2023)2
  • Coffee Review: 50+ ratings of 94+; Yemen Haraaz 97 pts (“#1 coffee of the year,” 2022)2
  • Food & Wine “best coffee roaster in Kansas” (2021); pioneer of Direct Trade sourcing2

Sources

Disputes

(None active.)

Footnotes

  1. PT’s Coffee — Power & Light café page + opening announcement. https://ptscoffee.com/pages/pts-power-light-kansas-city-mo; https://ptscoffee.com/blogs/news/introducing-pts-power-light-our-new-cafe-in-downtown-kansas-city — asserts: 1310 Baltimore Ave; opened July 5, 2019. ↩ ↩2

  2. PT’s Coffee — “Our Story.” https://ptscoffee.com/pages/our-story — asserts: founded 1993; Topeka KS HQ (“Roasted in Kansas”); Roast Magazine Roaster of the Year 2009; Good Food Awards 2021/2023; Coffee Review scores; Direct Trade pioneer. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  3. PT’s Coffee — Crossroads café page + Yelp. https://ptscoffee.com/pages/pts-at-the-crossroads; https://www.yelp.com/biz/pts-coffee-crossroads-kansas-city — asserts: 310 Southwest Blvd KC café; open/active 2026. ↩

  4. Barista Magazine — “PT’s, Bird Rock Owners Open Up About Merger.” https://www.baristamagazine.com/pts-bird-rock-owners-open-merger/ — asserts: PT’s acquired Bird Rock Coffee (San Diego) in 2017; independent. ↩ ↩2

  5. PT’s Coffee — “Our Team.” https://ptscoffee.com/pages/our-team — asserts: founders Fred Polzin & Jeff Taylor; founder-owned. ↩

See also

Categories
  • Kansas City–owned
  • Coffee
  • Power And Light