ALEX GOLDEN
BENTONVILLE — When David and Casey Watson took their first mission trip to Haiti in 2016, they had never heard of Haitian coffee.
Now, half of the profits the couple makes at the newly-open JoyHouse Coffee go toward organizations that focus on orphanages, job-training, medical clinics and churches in Haiti. The coffee shop is named after one of those organizations — JoyHouse was the name of the place they stayed. The other is called Leve Kanpe, which is French for “rise up.” The philosophy behind JoyHouse Coffee is that anyone can rise up and make a difference and that joy is a choice, David Watson said.
“A cup of coffee here can make a difference there,” he said.
The owners roasted their first batch of coffee in October and started out selling it to churches and other organizations before opening the brick and mortar JoyHouse Coffee at 301 S. Main St., Suite 102, in Bentonville, about a month ago. The freshly-constructed building is the work of Adair Creative and is home to other offices and businesses. The building has a communal balcony on the third floor, so JoyHouse customers have the option of taking their coffee up the elevator and looking over downtown Bentonville.
In addition to coffee, JoyHouse also serves smoothies, breakfast items and some desserts, such as lemon lavender cookies. A lunch menu is in the works. There is also an assortment of merchandise, such as necklaces and mugs handmade in Haiti, for sale.
JoyHouse Coffee’s hours of operation are 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday. JoyHouse Coffee is closed Sunday.
