At Undergrounds Coffee House & Roastery our appreciation for the richness of life, even in death, influences every aspect of our business - from the decor to the atmosphere, and of course, our menu items. As a 100% female-owned business,

we are committed to providing inclusive employment, leadership, and partnership opportunities. We believe that

coffee brings people together and we want to share that experience with our community.

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Community

Community has been an important part of the business since the start. Even before opening we knew we wanted to partner locally and with other small businesses whenever possible. Some of these partnerships include products you can enjoy in store or for purchase to take home, retail items and art by local artists. Giving back remains high on our priority list, whether its donating coffee to local events or providing space for the Old First Ward Community Center to hold their annual youth art show, we're proud of the relationships we've formed and are looking forward to continuing to do more in the future.

This year we we partnered with the Massachusetts Ave. Project to bring a weekly fruit and veggie truck to our community and are looking forward to partnering with them again this coming summer.

 

sustainability

Part of our mission upon opening was always working to lessen our impact on the environment. Prior to Covid we accomplished this with a multitude of practices including a discount on reusable mugs, reusable in house dining options and compostable and recyclable paper products. Even though Covid has made this a challenge we are slowly getting

back to all of these practices and adding more whenever possible. Composting is a passion of ours and something

we have been able to do from the start. We currently work with Upcycle Composting and ​keep

128 gallons of food waste from heading to the landfill weekly.

 

 menu

Undergrounds features a full menu of breakfast and lunch options that are named in honor of deceased people connected to Buffalo, the Coffee Industry or are kick*** Ladies that need to be remembered. Our drink menu is full of both traditional and current coffee house favorites, as well as seasonal specialties. We offer a variety of fresh in-house roasted beans and blends available​ for you to enjoy in store or take home. We think our beans are pretty perfect as is but If you feel so inclined you can cream your coffee at the Cream-A-Tion station (one of the many nods to the former funeral home you'll find throughout the store).Our flagships store is proudly located in the historic Old First Ward neighborhood of Buffalo, NY.

and you can find our newly opened second location, a killer little kiosk, in the Seneca One Tower.  We've put our hearts

and souls into creating a quality experience from start to finish in an environment that we hope you will love as much

as we do. With a coffee as strong as the neighborhood it was roasted in.....

it's sure to help you start your day before it ends.

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Meet Bridget, Co-Owner and Head of Catering at Undergrounds

While it took some time and experience for Bridget to find her true calling, her enthusiasm for family, friends, travel,

food, drink, and trying new things put her on the path to Undergrounds a number of years before we opened the

store. Bridget has many years of experience in the coffee industry, and fell in love with the sense of community and

hustle and bustle that can be found within the coffee shop environment. After over a decade of management for a large coffee chain, Bridget was looking to get back to the roots of a true coffeehouse experience. When the opportunity to join Sara in the venture of opening up Undergrounds came about, she couldn’t let it pass her by. Bridget started her ownership journey as the General Manager of the store, and was instrumental in establishing the company mission, operations and systems, as well as the food and drink menus and local partnerships. From the moment our doors opened, Bridget’s

vision was one where customers could embark on a unique and exceptional food and drink experience. From classics,

to current trends and everything in-between, Bridget’s goal was to find delicious ways for Undergrounds to stand out, 

while weaving in the history of our building , coffee, and Buffalo. As a fully female owned business, Bridget and Sara

have enjoyed bringing the history of notable women into the store through menu items, our specialty coffee blends and more. Bridget's love of party planning and hosting made her transition to managing our catering department a natural one.

In 2021, Bridget handed down her General Manager title to Veronica Rongo, whom had been our assistant manager since the store opened, to focus on fine tuning and expanding our catering department.  Nothing makes Bridget happier than hearing a customer in one of our stores say they discovered us from an order we had catered to their work or an event

they had attended, or seeing a returning customer on one of our ordering platforms. Day after day Bridget gets to

deliver our freshly made food and drink, meet new people, form new business relationships, and see happiness on

peoples faces when they learn that Undergrounds is providing their meal. Bridget continues to elevate the catering experience we offer with her exploration and creativity in new recipes. She is  proud to be a co-owner of a business

that prioritizes our employees, our customers and our community. The results of the hard work that she and Sara have done, and continue to do, to create sustainability, reduce impact, partner local and foster a community within our store, have yielded more than she could have ever imagined, and she couldn’t be more grateful.

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​Meet Sara, Co-Owner and Head of Marketing at Undergrounds

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Sara's enchantment with coffee shops traces back to her early years, accompanying her mom to work where lunch

breaks meant visits to a nearby cafe and enjoying cappuccinos. The welcoming atmosphere and the camaraderie among customers and baristas left a lasting impression on her. Years later, when the opportunity arose to open a cafe in her neighborhood, Sara eagerly embraced it, bringing her passion for community to life. Since opening our doors, Sara has

led the charge not only in consistently elevating our brand, but also at the helm of our Roastery and Wholesale Coffee programs. Sara brings years of expertise in many different customer service positions, management, business ownership and photography,  giving her a truly unique perspective on what it means to run a successful and sustainable business.

The importance of forging connections and relationships to enable your business to grow is something that Sara

excels in. Within our Roasting program, Sara is dedicated to ensuring that female farmers are a part of our reach.

She also ensures that the beans we source resonate from both a quality and consistency perspective.

This year, her passion has been directed towards nurturing the expansion of our coffee subscription service

and enabling customers nationwide to enjoy our freshly roasted coffee.