A family-run walk-up coffee stand is expanding into a café with seating available for patrons at Lake Tapps.
The Coffee Vault, run by Chelsea Scott, her sister Stephanie Jensen and their mother Gina Stanhope, has been in the area since 2022. They have a drive-thru location at 314 182nd Ave. E. Their walk-up location at 18215 Ninth St. E. is being expanded into a café called The Lake Tapps Society, Scott told The News Tribune Tuesday via phone call this week.
Scott said they took over the larger space next door, which used to be a clothing store called Slate.
She said: “That’s now just going to be kind of a prep space area, and then we’ve converted the entire corner of that building into a café area where there is now seating.”
Scott grew up in the area. Her family would often go to the 182nd coffee stand when it was owned by other people. Scott and her sister would get coffee there when they were in school, and her mother would go there when she was on her way to work.
“So you know we were patrons every single day practically, and so it was important for us to keep that coffee the same, just with kind of some of our improvements,” she said.
The stand itself changed hands many times over the years, but Scott said it has remained a staple in the community.
Scott said they are waiting on final approvals from the health department before the café can open. She hopes to open in early September.
The Lake Tapps Society will have an expanded beverage menu with dirty sodas. They will stay open later to serve beer, wine, and champagne while having a mimosa bar, according to Scott.
“And then we’ll have more additional food as well because we’ll have more of a cafe setting, so there will be kind of grab and go type foods,” she said. “But the things that people currently love from the walk-up, those will still be there. It’s just going to be more.”
There will be TVs on the wall so people can come in to watch different sporting events.
It’s kind of like our love letter to the community
Chelsay Scott
Co-owner of The Lake Tapps Society
Scott said they are trying to keep everything local. The café will sell curated items such as jewelry made by artists from the area, mugs and local art.
“If someone wanted to come in for coffee, they could also shop little gifts … . We’re really trying to keep it local. All of our coffee comes from Dillanos, which is in Sumner,” she said. “It’s kind of like our love letter to the community.”
The combination roast the shop gets is their special blend from Dillanos, she said
Scott is excited to open The Lake Tapps Society and have it as a gathering space at Lake Tapps for students after school, workers meeting with clients, and other residents.
“We don’t have really any kind of community gathering spaces in Lake Tapps. … We’re really excited to be able to kind of offer this community gathering space,” she said.
