Makeda & Mingus has been a Greenwood neighborhood staple for 17 years, offering more than just coffee—it’s a place where community thrives. Owner Prashanthi Reddy shares the story behind her journey from pharmaceuticals to owning a beloved coffee shop, the inspiration for the shop’s unique name, and how Makeda and Mingus continues to serve its neighborhood with a personal touch. From whimsical lattes to sustainable practices and a focus on community, this interview highlights why Makeda and Mingus isn’t just a coffee shop. It’s a gathering spot for neighbors to connect, share, and celebrate life together.
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
How long has Makeda and Mingus been open?
We’ve been open since the summer of 2008, so that’s about 17 years.
What inspired you to open up a neighborhood coffee shop?
I spent the 90s hanging out in coffee shops. After a corporate gig and after I moved out to Seattle, I decided I wanted to do it full time. And fortuitously, a coffee shop was for sale, and it all worked out. And here we are, 17 years later. I worked in pharmaceuticals, the research part. There are a number of small business owners who have left the medical industry and become entrepreneurs.
So the name on the door is Makeda and Mingus, and it also says “community table”. Can you talk about the community table aspect of it?
Prior to the pandemic, we used to do monthly potlucks where folks would make food at home and bring it in. We would celebrate whether it was someone’s birthday or if there was no event, we would just celebrate being a community. It wasn’t a paid event, so it was just a time to hang out and gather. And we haven’t brought that back since COVID started, but we’re trying to bring back most of our programming. One of our big focuses is to hang out with our neighbors. It’s a spot to, you know, if you’re out for a walk or you’re walking your dog and you pop in to see what the neighborhood’s up to.
Tell us about the star of the show, Mingus (the dog).
He’s my trusted buddy. He’s named after a jazz musician. So if people don’t know who the musician is, they tend to know the dog. But if they don’t know the dog, it kind of ties us to the arts. We have a craft afternoon on Sundays to just bring in that creative side of the neighborhood.
Okay, so tell me about the coffee that you’re serving and some of the community favorites that you serve at Makeda and Mingus.
Our house espresso is by Seven Roasters. In fact, fun fact, this is the original Seven location.
Sean, the owner of Seven, went to expand his wholesale business. So then I bought the retail portion and changed the name to Makeda Coffee.
Some of our most popular drinks are what people have described as whimsical. We have a selection of syrups that people can mix and match. Some of our house specialties, and one of my personal favorites, is a rose latte with fresh ground cardamom.
We also have a salted caramel latte that is pretty popular. In addition to coffees, we also do a bunch of teas for people who don’t like either milk-based drinks or caffeine-based drinks. And we make a couple of herbal teas in-house and carry a selection of black, green, and herbals as well.
Our focus and features for this month are all around Earth Month. Can you talk a little bit about how you’re thinking about sustainability within your business?
There are a few different ways that we think about sustainability. One is we do allow folks to bring in their own cups, which we have from the beginning.
Prior to the pandemic, we had a very informal little cup library. Some of my own personal mugs I would keep here, and because most of our business is regulars, they would borrow a cup and bring it back. But more recently, there’s a company called Okapi that has formalized this into a program and it’s great because folks don’t have to rent out and return a cup at the same coffee shop, not even in the same city. So I’ve had folks who have driven up from Portland and returned cups here or taken them out here and it’s great because we don’t have to keep track of inventory. It helps reduce throwing out cups if you’re on a road trip. I also don’t have to carry a mug with me when I’m traveling, which is great. Another thing that we offer is if you bring in a jar or a container, we take a dollar off of bagged beans so that way we’re not throwing paper bags and we can reuse the vessel that is brought in.
Intentionalist is all about encouraging people to spend locally in their community. Why is this important to you?
I think it’s important for many different reasons, but one reason is that small businesses make up the character of our neighborhoods, and Seattle is so neighborhood-centric. It’s really great to know that you’re spending your money in the neighborhood so people can afford to then live in the neighborhood and continue to do the things that we love around here.
What are some of the other businesses in this neighborhood or in the greater Seattle area that you like to support?
Just across the way, there’s a bottle shop called Draft Punk. They always have great music playing. You can ask them to put on certain women’s sports, which can sometimes be daunting if you’re walking in alone into a bar.
I’d like to also give a shout out to Intentionalist. I mean, I know I’m a food and beverage place, but if you buy an Intentionalist card, you don’t have to spend it on food and beverage. You can spend it on places that sell goods or clothes or presents, and that’s kind of a really cool feature where not everything is just food and beverage-centric.
What should a first-time customer expect when they walk in the door for the first time?
To definitely be greeted and welcomed not just by a barista, but by anyone who’s sitting here. We generally have open conversations. There are no private conversations that folks can’t feel like they can’t join in on. We have some really fun times here. And it’s also a really good resource if you’re in need of a mechanic or looking for a present for so-and-so. Expect to be a part of a conversation.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Come as you are. Just feel free to come on in, introduce yourself, meet your neighbors, and make new friends.