By
BAY VILLAGE, Ohio — Trust Coffee Co. is bringing European vibes to the suburbs with its new cafe in Bay Village that almost always has a line out the door.
Trust, 27225 Wolf Road, opened on Feb. 10 from owners Tess and Mike Smith, who also own Thyme Table in town. The locals, who previously lived in Ohio City, moved to Bay Village with their five kids, despite their friends claiming it was “uncool” to move to the suburbs.
“We’ve kind of tried to make it our mission to make the suburbs cool,” Tess explained.
The Smiths have aimed to open a coffee shop for six years. Tess’s first job was working at the old Caribou Coffee in Lakewood.
“I fell in love with the whole atmosphere of a coffee shop,” she explained.
They had a few struggles in landing on a space for their dream cafe. They nearly struck a deal to take over the old PNC Bank space in town. They decided to brand the idea Trust Coffee to tie into the bank theme. The deal fell through, but the Smiths stuck with the branding when they bought the old Java Bay coffee shop in the plaza.
Trust Coffee Co. occupies the former Java Bay and Andy’s Shoe Repair spaces in the shopping center. It took them about a year to renovate the space to its now adorable vintage aesthetic.
“It was down to brick studs,” Tess said.
Aside from fulfilling their coffee shop dreams, Trust was also a way for the couple to expand their capabilities as a hospitality company. Thyme’s pastry chef Laura Jerina is in charge of the fresh pastries at Trust daily while the restaurant’s bar manager Eric Scott is in charge of the cocktail program.
“This was naturally the next step,” Tess said.
Trust is an all-day cafe that takes after European third spaces. Customers can purchase coffee, wine, food and cocktails at any time of the day. The cafe uses duck-rabbit coffee from Ohio City, similar to Thyme Table. Not only were they fans of the coffee roaster, but Tess also went to high school with the owner.
Mike described Trust Coffee’s menu as “very limited, but it’s really thoughtful.” They didn’t want dozens of syrups to accommodate a massive cafe menu. Trust makes fresh syrups from real ingredients in-house, including seasonal options, to deliver high-quality coffee creations. The winter syrup is a salted maple cardamom, which Trust utilizes in both coffee drinks and cocktails.
Additionally, the bar stocks a basic menu of alcohol, not top-shelf but still high quality, to accomplish its small but mighty cocktail needs.
Its wine menu is equally as intentional. You won’t find major names like Kim Crawford on the shelves. Small vineyards, particularly family-owned or women-owned operations, are prioritized.
“We’re able to provide really amazing things within a very limited space,” Mike said.
Its pastries and sandwich menu are just as thoughtful, with food available all day. A rotating selection of pastries is available until they’re gone for the day. Everything is baked in-house, including focaccia bread for sandwiches.
“We have a focaccia recipe that I’ve been working on for about 18 years,” Mike said.
Trust has only been open for less than a month but it has already established itself as a community space. The couple has seen a variety of groups – mom meet-ups, high school first dates, teacher happy hours and beyond in the cafe. Even night shift nurses have come in at 7 a.m. for a quitting-time cocktail.
“This is like the happiest place in the world,” Mike said.
The couple also recognizes that Bay Village has other coffee options, including the “incredible” Mojo’s in Dover Commons, which also often has a line out the door.
“It’s been amazing, more than we could have ever hoped for,” Tess said. “There’s so much demand for coffee.”
Trust Coffee Co. is open from 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sundays.
Alex Darus writes about food, dining and drinking for Cleveland.com, check out her latest posts here. You can reach her with story ideas at [email protected]. Follow her on Instagram @alex_darus.
Be one of the cool kids and follow all Cleveland.com’s food, dining and drinking coverage in the weekly “DineDrinkCLE” newsletter. It curates the latest on openings, closings, tastings and other events, plus recommendations, features and guides from our team of writers and critics. SUBSCRIBE Follow us on Instagram @dinedrinkcle
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.