ASE Coffee Shop and Bar enhances coffee experience in Grandview

By Pete Dulin

Entering ASE Coffee Shop and Bar in Grandview, the ambiance of the café-bar looks and feels different than any other coffee house in Greater Kansas City. Owners Nate and Kara Thomas officially opened the 3,500 square-foot business in early January 2025. Nate intends to make ASE (pronounced “ace”) into a citywide coffee destination.

“The goal was to create a Brooklyn speakeasy vibe. Swanky,” said Nate, who designed the interior.

Painted billiard green, the shop’s high-end appearance features brass decor, refined light fixtures, a sky-high ceiling, and ample natural light. The space conveys a feeling of elegance and sophistication without seeming snooty.

As his first hospitality-based business, Nate sought guidance on the layout and service operations from experienced mentors. His friends operate high-end cocktail establishments The Monarch Bar and Verdigris in the Kansas City area.

The Thomases acquired the building, formerly a Masonic lodge and then a Christian school, in January of 2023. The entrepreneurs took full advantage of the roomy interior’s potential. The open floor plan of the spacious 85-seat café features distinct seating areas, such as a luxe lounge, tables and couches in the main section, and a wraparound coffee bar built to serve guests.

Seating at the coffee bar offers a view of the other sections, the barista station, and plenty of elbow room to work on a laptop while sipping espresso. ASE secured a liquor license in early March and plans to serve alcohol at the bar later in the month.

“We’ll begin with four cocktails on tap, beer on draft, seltzer, and other drinks. A full bar will come later,” said Nate.

The Thomases, both chiropractors, also own and operate Precision Health. The doctors moved their office from Waldo to the building that houses ASE. A barbershop will also open in the building later this year. Meanwhile, the Thomas’s professional focus on health, wellness, and quality living extends to the food and drink served at the café.

ASE uses single-origin coffee beans, specialty beans, and blends from a Colorado roasterie with local ties.

Stephen Holmes is the owner and head roaster of Peregrine Coffee Roasters in Westcliffe, Colorado, located in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Holmes began learning about and preparing specialty coffee in 2006 in Kansas City, Missouri. He relocated to Nepal in 2015, where he managed a small coffee roasterie and worked with local coffee farmers to learn about bean production. Two years later, he launched the family-run coffee company that became Peregrine.

“Peregine’s coffee is top-notch and fair trade. We sourced beans from a roaster that you won’t find anywhere else in Kansas City,” said Nate, who befriended Holmes years ago. “We want ASE to be a destination for coffee snobs.”

Peregrine’s selection includes single-origin beans from Guatemala with a fruit profile that hints of blueberry. Brazilian beans conjure notes of milk chocolate, almond biscotti, and dried apricot. The bar serves drip coffee and familiar options from cappuccino to latte. Matcha latte is a popular order, Nate noted. Seasonal spring drinks range from honey lavender latte to Peregrine Thunder, a sassy sparkling lemonade topped with single-origin espresso.

Malted Maramyva, a rye barrel-aged coffee with beans imported from Burundi in the East African region of Ngozi, delivers the silky flavors of chocolate malt, whiskey, and a trace of merlot. A bottle of these spirited beans is available to bring home, grind, brew, sip, and savor.

This fall ASE will offer a rotation of pour over coffee featuring beans from other roasters.

For those favoring sweeter caffeinated concoctions, ASE prepares housemade syrups to please the palate. Hungry? House-made breakfast burritos loaded with sausage, chorizo, or vegetables are available. ASE uses Sonoran-style tortillas from Caramelo based in Lawrence, Kansas.

Pastries are sourced from Grandview-based Fox & Bull Baking Co. which uses organic flour with no additives and prepares pastries with no corn syrup or dyes.

Nate, general manager Ali Chamander and the ASE team provide gracious hospitality and attention to first-time guests and a growing clientele of regulars.

“We want to provide the same quality and level of service you’ll find at a cocktail bar, and bring that to coffee,” said Nate.

By the way, the café-bar’s name ASE was inspired by “-ase,” the suffix used to name enzymes. Enzymes are proteins in the body that drive chemical reactions and “are a catalyst for action in the body,” explained Nate. “We want to be a catalyst for action in our community.”

ASE is also a homonym for “ace,” a reference to someone who excels in sport. As chiropractors, the Thomases specialize in treating patients who are active as golfers and in other recreational sports. From caffeine to healthcare, they aim to provide service that enables everyone to live an active life and do well.

ASE Coffee Shop is located at 1800 Highgrove Road in Grandview. Learn more at www.asecoffee.com.