by Maddie Parise
Roasted Espresso and Subs, located in downtown Grand Junction, is a 7-year-old soulful, locally owned and ideal destination for the beatniks of the western slope. The inside of the restaurant is bustling and crowded, the outside is serene and their music playlist fits their environment perfectly. Roasted is a safe haven for the hippies, living in such a conservative area, to thrive.
The menu, which is (admittedly) confusingly located on paper brochures in the front, consists of sandwiches, wraps and a variety of drinks.
“The coffee is good and the people are awesome,” Maggie Aneloski, one of their regular customers, said when asked about why she regularly dines at Roasted.
Many of the ingredients used in Roasted’s recipes are also products from surrounding areas, including the locally roasted coffee.
One customer, Bradford Wilkerson, put it best when he said, “It’s a great place to people-watch.”
The entire restaurant looked like an Urban Outfitter’s advertisement, which I found fascinating. Even the man strumming his guitar outside in the middle of the city didn’t seem out of place.
Roasted is like the trapdoor between the conservative western slope and the underground GJ scene. They even had the trash can covered in colorful and aesthetic stickers.
Roasted is a different kind of coffee shop, just check out their music video on their website (roastedespresso.com) featuring the death of a Starbuck’s barista by whipped topping.
Another aspect of Roasted that really stood out was the employees. There have never been people happier to be at work.
“It’s definitely the only job I’ve had that I enjoy going to,” barista Sally Boyd said. “It’s really fun.”
Staff danced while they rang up customers and exchanged in witty banter while they prepared drinks.
“It always makes people happy to come in,” Assistant General Manager Cordero Marez said. “I also love that everybody who works here, and a lot of the regulars that come in, are very close family to me…. We’re all very close to each other as well. It’s more of a family aspect than it is just a job for me.”
You can feel the chemistry between employees; their bond seems to go beyond knowing titles and doesn’t end when they clock out. They know their business is a part of people’s routine and enjoy every moment.
“I love that we see so many people in a day, we get to help them wake up and then we get help them all the way through the day,” Marez said.
Roasted has modest roots stemming from Grand Junction, which adds to the homey feel.
“It kind of started from a really low little deal,” Marez said. “[Now] it’s one of the most successful local businesses in Grand Junction.”
Roasted began as a coffee cart downtown; the cart blossomed into a temporary shop at Summit Canyon Mountaineering until it developed into what it is today- noted by many as a staple of the Grand Valley.
“We have a unique atmosphere. It’s not your typical coffee shop feel,” Marez said. “It’s a little louder and a little more rowdy, but we also have some great product.”
