From iced brews to specialty lattés and on-the-go service, Fargo has been graced with a unique spot for coffee-lovers of all sorts. This past summer, Dexter Dutton moved to Fargo from Oklahoma to open up a pop-up coffee shop with his older brother Skyler and his future sister-in-law. Given the name Thunder Coffee, this new hot-spot is a mobile coffee service that does pop-ups, catering and special events anywhere in the area that people need good coffee.
Photo by Erica Rapp“My brother was a cop in West Fargo for a while–that’s part of why I think he enjoys coffee so much. He went from being the worst part of someone’s day to being able to positively impact them instead,” said Dutton.
As for Dutton, he’s done his fair share of studying and educating in the wide world of coffee. A self-proclaimed coffee nerd, he was a member of the Oklahoma City Barista Guild and managed a shop for about two years in Oklahoma. He’s trained plenty of staff on topics from espresso basics to latté art, and he’s only 21 years old. Dutton spends much of his time operating Thunder Coffee, and continues to better himself as a barista in order to offer the best possible product to the community.
“It started out from a need for specialty coffee in Fargo. There are some people doing really great things and we just wanted to join their movement,” said Dutton. “We wanted to be a part of that community and bring it to people who wouldn’t normally have that opportunity to taste really good coffee.”
Dexter Dutton. Photo by Erica Rapp.Thunder Coffee had their first pop-up event at local kitchen and home boutique MINT + BASIL in July, and Dutton said it’s been going strong ever since. They became a recurring vendor at the Red River Market every Saturday in Downtown Fargo and now has even more equipment that they’d like to put to good use.
“We recently got a new espresso machine that we’d love to show off at a wedding. It’s totally portable and we can take it anywhere. The same goes with our pour-over setup. We also offer cold-brew and are working to get nitro brew portable as well,” said Dutton.
But in addition to supplying thirsty coffee-goers with their daily fix, Thunder Coffee is also passionate when it comes to educating the community about coffee. And they supply products from local vendors as well as all over the country, to show that great coffee can come from anywhere.
“We’ve been doing some educational classes just to try and get people to take ownership in their coffee. Things like group cupping classes, as well as a few brewing classes and partnering with other local businesses to make that stuff happen,” said Dutton.
Although the company doesn’t technically have a “permanent” home yet, you can easily find them at the pop-up location at 218 Broadway North in Downtown Fargo. It’s a welcoming, warm space for shopping, getting work done or hanging around sipping coffee in the core of downtown. No matter the type of day you’re having, Dutton and his team at Thunder Coffee can make your time a little bit better with a great cup o’ joe and a contagious smile. Not to mention that it’s a great way to beat the winter blues this time of year.
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For more information and booking:
218 Broadway N
Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday noon-6pm
thundercoffeefargo.com
facebook.com/thundercoffeefargo
