Coffee News

Fort Worth coffee shop with a side of cocktails peps up West Seventh

Fort Worth gets a new java joint.

Photo courtesy of Ampersand

A new coffee shop with a little something extra is coming to Fort Worth. Ampersand, whose menu includes both coffee and cocktails, will open its doors in the West 7th district ever so softly on October 25, with a grand opening in November.

Ampersand will be unique not only in the fact that it has a night-time menu of cocktails with a coffee twist. It will also serve air-roasted coffee, which makes for a smoother flavor than traditional drum-roasted coffee; and cold brew coffee, made via a Kyoto drip tower, an intricate Japanese brewing method.

Ampersand will reside in a vintage building at 3009 Bledsoe St. with an energetic atmosphere that includes Polaroid cameras and a picture wall featuring customers' photos, upbeat music, and a photo booth.

Ampersand will roast its own coffee beans, serving single-origin beans and blends such as the Signature Ampersand Blend. There will be espresso drinks and teas.

Cocktails include a vanilla latte with vanilla vodka and the Ampersand mule made with Ampersand's cold brew. Cappucello will be a coffee-infused-tequila drink with a lemon twist, while the "cold fashioned" will combine cold brew with whiskey.

Some beverages will be available in large format for sharing. Baristas and bartenders will even collaborate to recommend delicious coffee-spirit pairings.

While Ampersand will make as many ingredients as possible in house, it will source locally for other needs, such as pastries and light bites from Stir Crazy Baked Goods.

Customers can doctor their drinks with a selection of unique syrups such as maple spice.

The 3,200 square-foot space will have a modern, industrial interior with modular furniture and concrete walls painted in a geometric design. Garage doors with windows will provide plenty of natural lighting. A 400-square-foot patio will seat approximately 25.

The team behind Ampersand has made becoming a part of the Fort Worth community one of its core values.

"We want to build a genuine connection with our customers and provide them with the best possible experience the moment they step foot through the door," says co-owner Reham Choudhury in a release.

Ampersand will open daily for coffee service at 7 am. The bar will open Thursday-Saturday 9 pm-2 am.

cocktails coffee openings

Doughnut News

Luscious doughnut shop Duck Donuts makes Fort Worth debut

Photo courtesy of Visit Addison

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A decadent new doughnut shop is coming to Fort Worth: Duck Donuts, a North Carolina-based chain known for serving doughnuts made to order, will open a shop at 6387 Camp Bowie Blvd. #A within the Ridglea Plaza Shopping Center in Fort Worth.

According to a release, the shop will open on Saturday December 21 at 7 am.

Duck Donuts opened its first locations in 2007 in the beach resort towns of Duck and Kitty Hawk, North Carolina with the intention to create an oasis for vacationers. They're now headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and began franchising in 2013, with more than 150 locally owned and operated shops across 26 states and international locations. There was previously a DFW location in Addison on Belt Line Road that opened in 2020 but it did not survive the pandemic.

The Fort Worth shop is owned and operated by husband-and-wife Justin and Morgan Thomas.

“We are delighted to be opening in Fort Worth,” Justin says in a statement. “The community has been patiently waiting for us to open our doors, and now we cannot wait to sprinkle happiness to all with our warm, delicious and made-to-order doubhnuts.”

The 1,035-square-foot shop reflects the franchise’s reimagined design which gives a modern twist on their iconic beach theme and family-friendly atmosphere. Upon entering the store, customers are greeted by the aroma of warm, light vanilla cake doughnuts.

Customers can create their own combination by choosing from coatings, toppings, and drizzles, including traditional favorites such as chocolate icing with sprinkles and more adventurous creations such as maple icing with bacon.

Key to their appeal is the viewing area where children and adults alike can watch their doughnuts being made.

Many of their flavors have a beachy theme such as the Beach, a cake doughnut with vanilla icing dusted with cinnamon sugar; the Sunrise with lemon icing and raspberry drizzle; and the Beach Ball with vanilla icing, rainbow sprinkles, and chocolate drizzle.

They rotate in seasonal offerings such as the current lineup of mint-flavored flavors including chocolate icing with mint buttercream. The doughnuts themselves are limited to vanilla and chocolate cake; the flavors come primarily from icing.

In addition to doughnuts, the Fort Worth location will serve coffee, doughnut breakfast sandwiches, doughnut sundaes — in which a doughnut is topped with ice cream and syrup — plus frozen beverages and milkshakes.

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