Located just across 6th Street from Free State High School, J&S Coffee has seen local students and community members stop by not only for their daily caffeine fix but also to spend time and socialize.

In 2003, J&S Coffee was opened by Joe and Sarah Farthing, but in 2017, it was purchased by its current owner, Steven Cramer, who regulars often recognize because he said he likes to spend time in the cafe talking with customers.

“In the last eight years, we’ve more than tripled what the sales were, but more importantly, we have a very vibrant afternoon shift as well that we started working on immediately, and a good portion of that is free state high school students,” Cramer said.

Because the shop has a large range of seating that customers are allowed to use for as long as they like, senior Mars Pierson said they choose J&S Coffee as their regular study spot because it has a cozier vibe compared to other options in West Lawrence.

J&S Coffee is the chosen location for several different social groups that meet regularly, many of which, Cramer said, are between Free State students. Whether it is for studying, meetings, book clubs or just people talking, Cramer said it’s important that customers feel taken care of.

“We love having the high school students there. I’ve gotten to know quite a few of them quite well,” Cramer said. “I’ve had several high school students come back and visit afterwards, some of whom have been out of school for four or five years, and they still come back here when they come into town to just say hello.”

According to J&S Coffee’s website, their coffee beans are roasted in-house four to five days a week to provide as fresh coffee as possible. Barista and Free State alum Mallory Qualseth said she feels proud of the quality of drinks she gets to serve.

“I love it when people ask me to make a drink for them, like just to pick something out, and I’ll maybe even ask them a couple questions about their preferences, and then when I give them the drink, and they love it, and they’ll order it every time they come in from then on,” Qualseth said. “That’s literally my favorite thing in the entire world.”

Cramer said that his goal for J&S coffee has been not just to run a coffee shop, but also a community space. Cramer said J&S Coffee doesn’t advertise, but instead relies on the charity that their business does; he said J&S Coffee gives around 100 donations a year in the form of providing coffee at a variety of different community events.

“All the places people used to go and have contact with people are becoming automated, and they’re taking care of themselves,” Cramer said. “Here you get to mingle with people, and people are here to make it special, not an automated service where you push a button, grab your coffee and go without ever saying hi to somebody. You’re actually talking to real people and other customers.”