Drinking Coffee in Kansas City: Veil Café
We’ve revived the series that helped launch Explore–
we take our coffee seriously, over here!
Photos by Meredith Schneider
Last week, I ended one coworking session with a friend and immediately began planning for the next. This isn’t normally my MO, either. I tend to wait until the day of or the day before until I check out a coffee shop’s social media and start perusing their menu. But, the idea of finding a great spot to cowork with a friend weighed on me – I wanted to impress her. (Why? I don’t know.)
Well, color us both impressed the moment we walked into the newly minted Veil Café at the corner of Bank and 8th Street in Downtown Kansas City. The café is in its soft opening era this week, quietly introducing itself to the neighborhood. But this area has been thirsting for a simplified, beautiful space to work in, apparently, and it is already packed to the brim when we walk in around 10am on a Thursday.
Tucked just up a stairwell next to one of my favorite speakeasy experiences in the city, Something Good, this sun-filled caffeine spot has a really great view of 8th Street below. This will come in clutch as the warm months keep sailing in and the Garment District is humming with energy.
There is a big living space when you walk into Veil Café. By the register, there is a wall that separates the main area from a more quiet cubby area. This space holds three narrow two-person tables, and is where we settled in to work on that frigid day.
The menu is, admittedly, more simple than those at other coffee shops in the area. This makes things exponentially easier for those of us whose brains aren’t always fully functioning before they pop in for coffee. We love sticking to the basics, but if you check their IG, you can see their more unique flavor creations for holidays and other special occasions.
Veil serves beverages courtesy of Marcell coffee, which include cappuccinos, pourovers, lattes, and more with a limited selection of vanilla, lavendar, mocha, ube, blueberry, and agave as their available drink syrups. I ordered an ube latte, and my friend had an oat milk latte and we both remarked excitedly about how smooth and delicious our drinks were. Other tasty beverage options on the menu include tea, chai, hojicha, matcha, and hot chocolate.
Scratch KC provides the pastries for this cute new spot. The bell jar case at the front is the perfect display in the space. I got to peep mouth-watering almond croissants and thick slices of berry breads that I know are insanely delicious, based on personal experience. Cruffins are newly on the menu as well, with delicious fillings like lemon curd.
The barista was incredibly kind. He commanded the space by engaging comfortably with customers, perfecting beverages between taking orders and finessing the space with precision. When he asked me how I was and I asked the same back, he heaved a sigh and smiled. You could tell that he has been overwhelmed with the immediate popularity of the space, but that there probably isn’t anything he would rather be doing. In fact, I verified that this was his mindset on our way out the door.
While there was an ebb and flow to the amount of people in line for beverage orders throughout our hang, seating stayed packed and buzzing. Veil Café is a hot spot already for a reason.
