Where We've Been: Coffee Wizardz in Allouez, Wisconsin.

COFFEE WIZARDZ • ALLOUEZ, WI

Where coffee meets adventure.
Founded on the idea that great coffee should be fun, adventurous and available to everyone; we set out to create a coffee experience that involves sourcing quality coffee with meticulously curated ingredients.

The result? A magical, luxury coffee experience with a down-to-earth feel. Crafted with intention, we rotate our menu seasonally with the consumer experience in mind. We seek to h0nor the hard work and dedication of the farmers and mill workers do at origin.
• Chris + Tawn, Sam + Jenna, coffeewizardz.com

A mural of a wizard holding a coffee cup next to a cartoon cat painted on the side of a long, short brick building. The colors are vibrant seafoam green, pink, white, and purple against a black background. — This mural greeted us as we pulled up.

I found Coffee Wizardz by searching for "coffee roasters along the way" on my phone's Google Maps app. Sometimes you get lucky.

Just a few minutes south and west of Green Bay, we found the brick building on a street torn up for the Midwest's road construction season. Most of our other options nearby looked fairly staid and corporate. I figured that even if the coffee wasn't great, the concept would at least make for an interesting visit.

I'm a sucker for a well-maintained brick building. They give me nostalgia for an era I wasn't even alive in. The Coffee Wizardz building doubles as a roastery in the back and a cafe in the front. There is also a swath of large picnic tables out front, but the humidity was sweltering first thing in the morning during our visit in late August.

Behind the coffee bar, Sam was serving up coffee. He is one of the co-owners, and because the day was slower than normal—likely due to the road construction—he was running the bar solo. He seemed to know most of the guests that came in during our visit by face, if not name. There was a casual back and forth and self-deprecation that only comes with regular visits. "The coffee was that bad, so you thought you'd try a different one?" he joked as one regular pushed through the front door.

Gnarled wood adorns the front of an L-shaped coffee bar. A pink La Marzocco espresso machine sits on the far left side of the bar. — A very cool wood accent to the coffee bar.

I ordered a filter coffee and a Tanzania Sambewe natural espresso. I don't see a lot of Tanzania coffees on menus despite visiting roasters throughout the country. The tasting notes were cranberry, nectarine, and molasses. My wife took on the Goldberry's Garden, featuring strawberry, chai, and rosewater mist. Our first round was excellently crafted, unhurried, and served with an appreciation for the craft of coffee.

Even as the morning's business picked up, the pace of drinks remained the same. No latte or black coffee was shortened by the panic sometimes brought on by the fear of customer impatience, not that there was any. Most everyone waited patiently and, dare I say, pleasantly.

I admit I had some preconceived notions of what a wizard-themed cafe might look and feel like, but other than a comfortable nod toward hipster design and a Gandalf-esque staff leaning against the wall, there wasn't any overwhelming themed design. Each aspect of the space seemed well-intentioned and comfortable, with nods towards a humanistic attitude.* A pennant read, "Filter coffee, not people."

A wide shot of a coffee roasting space. From left there are two mid-sized drum coffee roasting machines lined up. Buckets of green coffee are stored under long tables, and on the right wall a painting of Dana Carvy as Garth from Wayne's World is mounted above a handwashing sink.

We sat inside to escape the heat. In the third month of our transitional travels, my wife and I combined our imaginations to imagine a life where we stopped in this cafe on our way to Lambeau Field for a football game. The barista would eventually get to know our names and preferred drinks. Perhaps we'd meet friends for regular check-ins or join in on a game night. It didn't feel like a stretch.

From left: A knobby wizard staff leans in the corner against a purple wall. Bronze lanterns hang down over the pink espresso machine. A close up of an espresso in a rocks glass on a black saucer sits in front of a pen and ink drawing of a wizard. A brass owl figurine is small in front of the pink espresso machine on the coffee bar.

The seasonal menu looked so interesting, we went back for seconds. The Hero's Horchata was sweeter than we expected, a mistake on my part, since the menu specifically referenced the use of sweet cinnamon rice syrup. Mixed with bitters, espresso, and milk, it was an explosion of flavor. We should have added ice because walking outside was basically walking into a wet oven.

We stopped for the coffee, and we stayed for the adventure. Until next time...

Don't get too excited about the summer menu. Per their socials, they recently transitioned to a new fall seasonal menu.

Find them online at: coffeewizardz.com
See more on the socials: @coffeewizardz

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