Girl About O-Town

A few weeks back, this girlaboutOtown stopped in for a sip at Ottawa’s latest cool coffee destination, The Morning Owl Coffeehouse.

Dressed and ready first thing in the morning, I was to meet and greet a new blogging buddy at 9:00 am sharp.  In my usual 5 minutes-late fashion, I managed to arrive more or less on time, and was simply wowed by what I walked into.  The Morning Owl Coffeehouse, at 538 Rochester St., is a fabulously funky new specialty shop featuring carefully brewed caffeinated beverages, homemade sandwiches and baked goodies. 

Open Monday to Friday only, the shop is strategically situated across the street from more than a few civil service employees, and is reputed to host a steady stream of cubicle dwellers through most of the day.   Fortunately for me, the breakfast crowd had dwindled, and the mid-morning “planning meetings” had not yet begun.  So, with the space freed up, I was able to really appreciate more than just the great coffee. 

From the moment I entered, I was impressed.  This place was different.  It was instantly obvious that The Morning Owl Coffeehouse is the product of great care and attention to every detail.  It’s not very often that start ups start as smart as this one, and that new small businesses begin with as strong a brand.  From the killer conversion of an old house to the clever and consistent graphic design, The Morning Owl is an intelligent and authentic expression of a compelling vision and undeniable business acumen – right down to the fresh flowers.

I am a big fan of change, and I think small businesses can make a positive contribution to the life of a community. Ottawa is a city fast becoming cool, and this is a coffee shop that takes one giant step in the right direction.

Curious as as usual, I needed to know more, so I inquired with owners Sarah and Jordan O’Leary.  Their energy, enthusiasm and dedication is so evident, it is just plain contagious…

Where are you originally from?  Sarah: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US.  Jordan: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

How long have you been in Ottawa?  Sarah:  Since I was five years old.  My mother re-married when I was five.  She married a Canadian hockey player she met in Milwaukee while he was playing for the Milwaukee Admirals.  Jordan:  My whole life.

What did you do before the Morning Owl?  We’ve both been bartending in Ottawa for the majority of the last decade of our lives.

Families?  We both have super tight families (we have family dinner three times a week). They’ve helped us so much during this crazy adventure. We would have never been able to open the doors to the Morning Owl without their help.

What got you started in business?  We both grew up knowing we would try our hardest to be entrepreneurs.  It was one of the first conversations we ever had when we met and we were both impressed with each others’ drive.

Why coffee?  Coffee has become a passion of Jordan’s over the years. That, coupled with the world’s dedication to drinking coffee every day made it a simple decision for us.

What motivated you to go to “barista training?”  It was something we decided a very long time ago. What interests us in coffee are the details and the process of making a perfect cup, latte, cappuccino or espresso shot.  It’s a science and we always knew we wanted to provide Ottawa with that perfect cup.  If people love coffee so much wouldn’t they love great coffee even more???

Why an independent coffeehouse vs. a franchise?  We both have enough drive in us to create something from scratch. I  have a lot of creative ideas and Jordan always sees my visions right away. We’re a great team and knew we could do it. The idea of a franchise never crossed our minds. We have too many ideas that a franchise wouldn’t allow us to try.

Why Rochester St.?  We’ve been living on Preston St. (one street over from Rochester) for years and know the area quite well. Rochester has a number of government buildings who are lacking a good breakfast, snack, lunch and coffee place. It was meant to be.

How is it going? Do you love it?  It’s going amazing. Better than we thought it could go.  We love it so much and couldn’t be more grateful for our amazing customers!

How did you manage to finance such an impressive start?  Jordan is great with finances and has been very organized since he was quite young. He can figure out how to do almost anything financially. We also have great families that believe in us.

What has been your most significant challenge so far?  The amount of time we have been putting into this since the start… I never even knew there were so many hours in a day… we’ve put them all to use.

Who have been your biggest supporters?  Our family has been the biggest supporters behind the scenes. Our friends are amazing. You can’t walk into the coffeehouse without there being a friend there. Our customers are so loyal, friendly and give such good feedback.

Describe an average day… Wake up around 5:30, get to the shop and start baking. From then on the day is pretty hectic. We don’t stop for one minute. Jordan’s on one side of the coffeehouse creating breakfast sandwiches and lunch sandwiches and I’m on the other side making a latte a minute!  Three-thirty comes and we close the doors and start cleaning. We clean until about 6pm then do an inventory. Then we head out for groceries. After groceries, we head back to the shop, put everything away and do some prepping, baking and cooking for the next day. Finally we head home, deal with paper work, answer e-mails then go to bed.

How do you integrate/balance work with life? Right now our work is our life. That’s how it has to be at the beginning of any business venture. We still find ways to make time for friends and family regardless of how busy we are.

You must spend a lot of time together. How do the two of you manage to get along?  We’re just a tight team. We really have to depend on one another for this business to work. We take time to do fun things when we can.  Awhile back, we went to New York City… for only forty-eight hours… but it was awesome.

The Morning Owl offers an entire experience, and appears to be a very well executed “brand”.  Your attention to detail is really something. The business cards & logo, the way your food offerings are displayed, the fresh flowers and especially the interior/exterior design are all careful and conscious choices.  Nobody is good at everything, so you must have had some help!

What did you need help with and who did you hire, engage, or barter with to get it?  What are your secrets? Can you make any recommendations for graphic design, marketing, interior design, contractors/construction, flowers, suppliers etc?

We needed help with many things. We needed help building the place.  Many of our friends and family members helped Jordan put it together. The interior design was done by myself and the exterior was done by an amazing architect James Colliza.  I’m not sure that we have any secrets, just a dream.   All of our graphic designing has been done by Jordan’s cousin Corey Timpson.  We explain our visions and he somehow just creates it on the first try.  We didn’t have a contractor, Jordan did that all himself and with suppliers, it’s all trial and error.  As for the flowers, we have a super cool friend Catherine who has brought us in fresh flowers since we opened. 

You are closed on weekends. Do you have a weekend ritual that takes your mind off business?  Yes, we’re closed on weekends. We actual take our mind of business by bartending. You’d think we’d relax but we can’t help but work!

Some people can’t go without coffee.  Is there anything you can’t go
without?   Jordan: Coffee.  Sarah: Juice.

Do you have a favourite coffee? Why?   Jordan: American because it’s fresh and pure.  Sarah: Half sweet sugar free vanilla latte made with lactose free milk, because it’s delish!

What do you crave?  Jordan: Pasta. Sarah: Ribs.

The store has a really unique look.  How would you describe your design
style?  Fresh, bright and clean with retro undertones.

What is your wildest dream?  Jordan: Being able to travel a lot, even more than we used to before we opened the coffeehouse. Sarah: Getting to the point with our business where we can work hard but take long breaks to travel.

What was your first job? Jordan: Busboy at Sala San Marco on Preston street.  Sarah: Working for my parents at their hockey clinics and power skating clinics.

What interests or fascinates you?  Jordan: The complexity of coffee.  Sarah: Fashion.

What are your favourite things? Jordan: My Blackberry, my watch, and good water.  Sarah: Gossip mags, my cat, my Blackberry, and jewellery.

Where do you feel most at home and why?  Jordan: At home, because it’s home.   Sarah: Any big city.

What do you talk about most? Jordan: The Morning Owl. Sarah: Our coffeehouse.

Do you have a dream vacation destination?  Jordan: Going back to Thailand.  Sarah: We’ve gone almost everywhere we’ve wanted to go, but I’d love to go back to Thailand.

What is your favourite form of entertainment?  Jordan: Movies at home. Sarah: The casino.

What are you most proud of? Jordan: Our business.  Sarah: Our close family, my friendships.

Is there anything you want to change?  Jordan: No.  Sarah: I want to find time to do yoga as much as I used to. 

Is there anything you still want to learn? Jordan: More about coffee.  Sarah: A lot of things… geography… I’m not very good with geography and am trying to learn more.

What impresses you?   Jordan: People that pack up and travel for months, years at a time.  Sarah: People that are good at things I’m not good at. Or people that have nothing left on their to-do list.

What inspires you?   Sarah: Old, happily married couples.  Jordan: (Jordan liked my answer too much; he wants to use it as well)

What are your favourite restaurants, shops, and Ottawa outings?  Jordan: Baton Rouge, Future Shop and going for walks with my wife.  Sarah: Baton Rouge, Paper Papier and going for walks with my husband.

Photos courtesy of Jordan and Sarah.  Thanks!!