New Coffee House Opens In Heart Of Hulmeville

Johnson Hall Coffee House has been able to carve out a successful path in its first two months of operation by appealing to locals who want to drink and eat something separate from chain offerings in a newly-renovated space in historic Hulmeville Borough.

The shop, which opened in March, serves lavender lattes, cold-brew coffee, crepes, small bites, and many other items.

Most of the attention towards Johnson Hall has come from the building itself. Constructed in 1871 and used throughout the following century-and-a-half as a post office, general store, Masonic lodge, and a theater, it was refurbished by its new owners before its opening, which they say attracted many locals who were pleased to see the end of a building once designated as an unsafe eyesore. The Johnson Hall building also features an event and wedding planner, a fitness studio, and local tech company Inverse Paradox.

After a year’s worth of restoration efforts, Johnson Hall Coffee House has a polished wood floor, new tables, stone motifs and chalkboards displaying drink choices. Alex Covrljan, the owner of the shop, said that his goal was to make Johnson Hall seem like a big-city coffee shop, drawing inspiration from Square One in Philadelphia as well as some stores he visited in Brooklyn.

“We always wanted to have a cafe coffee shop and this was a prime opportunity, we thought this would be a great fit for the neighborhood,” he said.

This urban inspiration continues with the items offered: “We use a specialty roaster called Square One. They’re big in the city, and we get fresh deliveries from them weekly. We also offer specialty lattes, we test out different recipes.”

Since opening with items consisting entirely of coffee and pastries, Johnson Hall has seen its menu bolstered with the addition of paninis, French-style crepes and Belgian Liege waffles.

“It’s definitely growing,” said Covrljan. “We’ve seen growth week over week, we’ve expanded our menu.”

Open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., Johnson Hall has been able to attract many customers before work, for breakfast and lunch, but according to Covrljan, many people wish the store was open later in the day.

The store steeps its coffee for 24 hours.

“Everything has been the greatest challenge. We’ve never done this before. The cooking part hasn’t been an issue but running out of items was at first,” he said.

Covrljan said feedback has been positive: “We have five stars and 16 reviews. The biggest thing is the community connection. It’s not a standard kind of coffee shop. Everything is scratch-made and fresh daily.”

Thus far, Johnson Hall has done no advertising, but the store’s distance from potential competitors means that it hasn’t mattered.

“There’s not many. There’s Dunkin’ and Starbucks, but those are big chains,” Covrljan observed. “We’re making a space for the community, not just to sell.”

The type of customers who visit Johnson Hall are sharply divided based on the day of the week: on Mondays through Fridays, they consist mainly of businesspeople and retirees, along with students, whereas on the weekends, families predominate.

“We do get people who stay here for a long period of time, start with a coffee and stay for a while,” said Eriola Covrljan, who co-operates the shop with Alex.

“We have a lot of dreams,” said Covrljan. “Expansion is definitely in the cards, but it’s really about how this one does.”