Since first opening on Black Friday in 2019, Refuel Cafe in the Renton Highlands has made a name for itself as a cozy and welcoming sit-down coffee shop away from the caffeine congestion of the downtown area.

“We service the Highlands, so I think that’s number one. I live in the Highlands so I wanted a coffee shop up here,” said owner Laura LoPresti, who moved from Seattle to Renton in 2017. “I miss the coffee shop culture that I got in Seattle and we didn’t have anything like that in the Highlands and so, to me, it was more of bringing something like that here.”

Situated off of Northeast 4th Street, Refuel has a warm vibe and is always bustling, offering black ceramic mugs, coffee beans sourced from the Seattle-based company Fulcrum, a high-quality tea selection, board games, comfortable seating, compostable cups and utensils and plenty of vining plants.

“The community here is amazing. They all came out and wanted to see us succeed, and we still have the same customers,” said LoPresti. Before opening Refuel, LoPresti was working in the corporate world, doing digital marketing for Microsoft and other big companies. After moving to Renton, LoPresti found that she was missing a sense of community and decided to open the coffee shop.

“I really wanted to connect with the community. I wanted to do something of my own, I was kind of tired of corporate. I didn’t feel super fulfilled with it and I really disliked sitting at a desk all day,” she said.

Fostering an open and friendly culture at Refuel, LoPresti said that customer service is most important when it comes to training her staff, along with making sure everything is as eco-friendly and as locally sourced as possible.

“I like supporting the local economy,” said LoPresti. “Small businesses tend to support more local economies. I spend in Renton, I live in Renton, so I think it’s important to support the local small businesses.”

Refuel Cafe is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Sunday from 8 a.m. 2 p.m. It is located at 401 Olympia Avenue NE, Suite 102, in Renton. To learn more, visit refuel-cafe.com.

For St. Patrick’s Day, Refuel offers a Lucky Charm Cold Brew drink in March. Courtesy photo.

Along with delicious food and quality tea, Refuel makes a mean coffee. Courtesy photo.