By Jeanie Poindexter
HQ 48 | SUMMER 2003
Editor’s Note: Because of a boneheaded error by the editor in the last edition of HQ, Old Village Roaster owner Pete Cooper was mistakenly referred to as Chuck throughout the entire article. As a result, we have decided to rerun the story in its entirety. Sorry Pete. Let’s try this again …
What do you get when you combine the love of history and antiques with the appreciation of a great cup of coffee? You get The Old Village Roaster, located on Fourth Avenue in downtown Huntington, of course.
Established and managed by Pete and Vicky Cooper, The Old Village Roaster is part coffee shop, part museum and part country store, and it is as completely unique as the Coopers themselves. It all started when the Coopers found an antique roasting machine from the 1890s that was in desperate need of repair. That same roaster, now carefully and lovingly restored by Pete himself, is probably the first thing, after the delicious aroma of freshly brewed coffee, that you notice when you walk into the shop. More than a beautiful decoration, the roaster is still an inspiration to the Coopers since they got their start as entrepreneurs roasting peanuts for state fairs and festivals.
Natives of West Virginia, Pete and Vicky have resided in Huntington for more than 30 years. Now retired, Pete spent 33 years employed by USAir in Huntington and then in Pittsburgh. With Vicky still living in Huntington, Pete would return on weekends from Pittsburgh and together they would roast peanuts and sell them at events such as The West Virginia State Fair, The Milton Pumpkin Festival and the Arts and Crafts Festival in Ripley. Pete soon became interested in learning about coffee and with the help of some books on the subject, taught himself how to select, roast and brew the finest gourmet coffee. Tamarack, the popular tourism center in Beckley, became the Cooper’s first customer and still buys its coffee from them.
“That was a job,” says Pete when describing those early days when working all week in Pittsburgh was followed by working all weekend at home roasting coffee. “At the time, we were doing the actual roasting in Heritage Village in a small shop and you could see smoke from the roaster coming out of the side of the building.” Laughing, Vicky adds, “The folks in the high rises used to call the fire department!”
The Old Village Roaster has been located at their current address at 919 Fourth Ave. for the past eight years. Although it is a small space, the shop is filled with antiques and memorabilia from the late 1800s and early 1900s. Every item has been collected by Pete and Vicky and, if needed, restored by Pete. Every roaster and hopper is in good working order and is used on a regular basis.
“By using old roasters it adds something special, and people like to see that. You can imagine what the country used to look like a hundred years ago,” says Pete, whose reverence for that era is apparent in the surroundings. In fact, the Coopers would like to expand their business in the future and fulfill their dream by opening a museum where they could exhibit their extensive collection of over 100 roasters and other pieces of equipment. They want it to be a real working museum where visitors could witness every aspect of coffee production, and then would be able to enjoy the finished result. This would all be accomplished through the use of their refurbished machinery and authentic, time-honored practices.
At The Old Village Roaster it is not only the decor that is old fashioned but the attitudes as well. Quality is king, and the attention to detail can only be accomplished with the dedication of Pete and Vicky. It is a true family owned and run business. The Coopers’ single employee is their nephew. The care they show to their customers is returned by their patrons’ loyalty.
“I’d say 90 percent of our customers come in daily, and many come several times a day,” says Vicky. “In fact,” adds Pete, “we have people say that they no longer make coffee at home!”
The Coopers treat their customers like friends and this sentiment does not go unnoticed. “The place has a real Cheers-like atmosphere,” insists Chap Donovan, a regular customer who works at Fifth Third Bank.
Some customers have been so supportive they have offered to back the Coopers in opening another store in a large city such as New York. Pete and Vicky politely declined such offers because they said they would miss their home. “We are West Virginians,” Vicky asserts.
The pride they show for their home extends to their product as well. Although at The Old Village Roaster you can purchase other items such as freshly roasted nuts, chocolate and tea, coffee is the star attraction. Coffees from more than 25 different countries including Jamaica, Kenya and Hawaii (USA) are sold in the shop.
“We roast the beans fresh daily, and the beans we get are only the best from each country. Some coffees available in the supermarkets claim to be 100 percent Colombian, but that doesn’t mean they are the best Colombian beans. Each country has cheap beans as well as gourmet beans. We only use the best,” says Pete. “We also do all of our own flavoring, so the selections are endless.”
Care is also taken in the roasting of the beans. Self-taught by books and through trial and error, Pete knows from experience when the beans are ready. “We go by feel. I know from the look, smell and sound,” he says.
While all the roasting and flavoring are done in house, the coffee has to be shipped to British Columbia to be decaffeinated.
“On my window it says, ‘Only the best, Roasted Fresh.’ I told my wife when we started the business that I would only roast the best coffee and provide only the best product and service, and if people in Huntington didn’t want that then I’d leave.”
Clearly, the residents of the Huntington community have made their desires known and the fragrance of freshly brewed coffee will be enticing patrons and friends into The Old Village Roaster for many years to come.
