Coffeezaun Espresso

Coffeezaun does not look like a coffee stand. It is a small lavender shack on North Pearl Street with a neon sign in the window, clipped hedges and white garden chairs out front, and enough seasonal lighting strung across the roofline to be visible from down the block. It has held that corner in Westgate since June 2012, which is fourteen years in a format where turnover is normal, and 459 ratings at a 4.6 average is a volume most stands never accumulate. Two windows and two lanes keep the queue moving.

The drink to know about is the Blackberry Basil Enchanter, which the shop has promoted itself around Taste of Tacoma weekend. Past that the record thins out fast. No roaster is named anywhere, there is no independent website, and the Facebook page that serves as its web presence cannot be read by anything automated, so this entry does not name beans it cannot verify. The pastry case runs to fruit tarts, and breakfast sandwiches and a vegan option come up in reviews without a named item behind them.

The business runs two stands, this one and a second on East Main in Edgewood, and has been a sole proprietorship since it opened. North Pearl is the main north south artery on this side of town, which is what puts the volume through the lanes: it is the stop on the way to Point Defiance rather than a destination in itself.

Posted hours are 5:30am to 6pm on weekdays and 6am to 6pm at weekends. One thing to plan around: at least one listing carries a different schedule, opening at 6am on weekdays and closing at 5pm at weekends, so if you are arriving at either edge of the day it is worth a call first.