Take Care by Oleo: A Perfect Blend of Service and Taste
Crossroads’ newest coffee shop, Take Care by Oleo, goes all in on subtle hospitality
Photos by Alex Metcalfe
Being a visitor or resident of Kansas City is to witness the care taken by generations of small business owners. From the shops set up in preserved brick buildings and renovated warehouses, friendly faces and local collaborations, KC brands are rooted in an undeniable sense of admiration and ambition.
Take Care by Oleo is no exception. The Crossroads coffee shop opened late last year and has already served countless cups of locally-roasted beans and more than 3,300 homemade biscuits – about 130 batches, for those counting.
Owners Christopher Oppenhuis and Mark Sappington have a history as rich as Oleo’s Farm roast. Before cultivating local and international relationships and bespoke branding with their wholesale roastery, Marcell, the pair spent time working together in the very building Take Care calls home.
While the shop’s entrance is adorned with bright and bold red gates, hand-lettered signage, and nostalgic farmhouse decór, elements of Kansas City’s iconic coffeehouse, Thou Mayest, remain. The menu board sits in its original frame, now featuring fresh custom chalk paint by local artist, Chris Foxworth. The bartop, shelving, wood-paneled walls and floorboards are the same thousands have encountered over the building’s 114-year existence.
But intentional conservation is noticeable beyond aesthetics. A first-generation espresso machine hums in the background as more modern gadgets and gizmos automatically grind and tamp to perfection, giving baristas more freedom to interact with and take care of guests. A simplified menu makes it easy to navigate and order coffee as one prefers it.
“The fact is that this beautiful beverage is also a very utilitarian thing,” Christopher said. “When you work at the base of a hospital, and you know that there are going to be healthcare workers who want a quad-shot, 20-ounce, iced oat mocha so they can, literally, hang on to it for six hours… we want to be able to give that to them.”
Guilty pleasure, jet fuel, dessert in a cup? It’s yours.
“Telling people no, in a way, sends them back to Starbucks,” he added.
If you’re looking for some coffee culture history or an origination guide to farm families, you can order some of that, too. The celebration of sustainable cultivation is foundational to Take Care’s brand which honors the hands tending lands in far away countries.
“The farm identity clicked for us being from the Midwest,” Christopher said, “When we're in Brazil, Columbia, Nicaragua, Guatemala, we're in the Midwest of those countries.”
While the taste is guaranteed to be of the highest quality, those are table stakes. That Midwestern experience design welcomes guests to have conversations reminiscent of those one might have at their own family tables. There are corners for those looking for space to escape into a good book, writing project, or collaborative work meeting. Those on the patio can soak up the sun looking out over Grinders’ bustling backyard.
The shop also operates on a no-tipping system, ensuring a consistent wage for its staff, which the owners see as more than employees.
“You can’t operate a farm without a damn family,” Mark said, “And we hope our team’s experience here inspires them to continue their coffee journeys like we did, open their own shops, and build their own legacies.”
I found his remark especially on-brand for the family-forward concept. Maintaining accessible pricing, kid-friendly seating and items like $2 hot cocoa, and prominent displays of memorabilia like the hand-stitched 48-star American flag, are all tributes to their own American Dream.
While the duo intends to develop other brick-and-mortar coffee shops serving varieties of Oleo roasts, Take Care will remain one of a kind, with its exclusive homage to Chris’ family farm and Mark’s beloved Chai latte.
In the coming months, you can expect the team to host public tastings and sustainability sessions featuring small-batch beans, collaborations with beloved local brands, and a coffee culture redefined. They also plan to mix things up with limited bakery specialties, like the tart cherry and pistachio scones with a cherry lemon glaze they served up last weekend. What you can always count on is to be taken care of in a fashion worthy of perennial return.
“There’s always a field to be tended to,” Christopher said.
