Purple Door Cafe — Round Two — Is Now Open in Uptown

Five years after Purple Door shuttered its purple-doored cafe in Five Points, the nonprofit coffee shop has opened a new cafe at 1640 Sherman Street in Uptown.

Purple Door is the social enterprise of Dry Bones Denver, a nonprofit organization that ministers to young adults experiencing homelessness. It started serving coffee from its Five Points cafe in 2013 as a job-training program, and the roastery followed in 2016. However, in 2019, the organization made the decision to close its cafe to re-focus on roasting.

Matt Wallace, executive director and founder of both Dry Bones and Purple Door Coffee, says the difficult decision to close the cafe was made with the youth in mind. "[Participants] are behind the bar on day one, but they're coming out of survival mode, right off the streets and not having a job. Forty percent love that environment and thrive, but most are terrified."

On the other hand, he says, "[the roastery] is such a good environment to make mistakes. If you’re late to work because you overslept or missed the bus, it’s not as big of a deal for the warehouse. ... The roastery is designed with a curriculum and has a classroom area. It's a comfortable area to be mentored and learn."
When the cafe closed in 2019, it was always with the hope of reopening when the time was right, though COVID prolonged the process. The new cafe is located in a building owned by the Central Presbyterian Church and sits adjacent to the historic brownstone church, which was built in the early 1890s. Added in the 1950s, the extension that now houses Purple Door has walls of windows that allow for plenty of natural lighting, plus a patio with more seating for warmer weather.

Even the front door is made of glass, which means it couldn't be painted purple. However, the night before the friends and family soft opening, an intoxicated person broke into the shop by shattering the glass door. It was temporarily replaced with plywood, which staff painted purple in an homage to its roots.

With a new cafe came new branding, so while there is some purple throughout, the color scheme inside and on packaging is much more colorful. "We can't use too much purple; it's just too on the nose," says Wallace. "People are saying [the new look] feels so bright and joyful."

House-roasted coffee is used for all of the coffee beverages. Purple Door has also partnered with Steuben's to provide baked goods, Hinman for pies, and Guard and Grace, which is baking its popular chocolate chip cookies for the cafe.
The church shares more than its site with Purple Door. Both organizations are deeply invested in helping the poor and homeless in Denver. Below the sanctuary is the Heartbeat Men's Shelter, and office space above Purple Door is leased to legal services that work with refugees.

Because it's situated next to a church and sandwiched between office buildings, Purple Door's hours are 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, though Wallace says that schedule is subject to change.

Since its inception, Purple Door has mentored 45 youths through its job training and extends services to young adults ages sixteen through thirty via its programming at Dry Bones.

"We have graduates that fall in love with coffee," says Wallace. "When they start with us, some say, 'I don’t like coffee,' but halfway through the program, they’re in love with it — they learn about farmers, process, how it’s roasted. We have graduates that want to come work in the coffee environment, and those that are interested are encouraged to apply to work as baristas in the cafe," which is "a vital extension of job readiness training, and it ultimately helps fund that program."

Wallace concludes: "There are so many unhoused people —  camps are so visible — people are like, 'What do I do?' If you don’t know what else to do, come buy a bag of coffee and a latte from Purple Door. We are truly changing lives."

Purple Door, 1640 Sherman Street, is now open from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.