01/25/2026
We truly do not have the words to describe how we are feeling right now.
Yesterday, while we were open, it felt like a completely different world inside The Urban Food Brood. We had a pop-up with a local artist and jeweler who did well in sales. Steven from Spilled Milk Gang was walking around sampling his amazing products and actually sold out. April, our newest tenant, was in the building installing her new boutique, with another tenant preparing to move in mid-February.
At the same time, the place was alive in every direction. We served over 170 coffee drinks. Teri and Bella were in the kitchen making more than 150 dishes. Jack held the room together like the maître d he is, making sure everything ran smoothly. Nicole, one of our newest hires and soon to be coffee roasting partner, kept the line flowing while Jorge and Eddie ran food and washed dishes nonstop.
We were fully stacked as a team. All of us owners were there. Tim, Andrea, Jack, and Teri. Forest Doe Botanicals was selling its goods. Happy Man Freeze Dried was making his. Rumspringa Books were being sold. Corsello Butcheria goods were moving. The space was full all day. It truly felt like a different universe. All of us prospering together while feeding people from every background, belief system, and walk of life.
Together, this is what the Urban Food Brood was built to be. A place that can survive pandemics and recessions. A place where people can coexist, even when the world feels like it is falling apart. We were feeling truly on top of the world. Our hearts were full.
Then our shift ended. We went home. We opened our phones. And we saw what happened in Minneapolis that morning.
We are not going to write a manifesto about why this was atrocious. If you do not understand why, then nothing we say will change that. We are also not going to preach about the collapse of human decency.
What we are going to do is keep the “To HELL with Ice” latte on the menu indefinitely, and we will continue supporting LUCE with the profits. This is our refusal to stay silent.
It feels wrong to pretend everything is normal. To make you laugh with silly skits and drink specials. That has lost its meaning. Because not only is our country and democracy in serious trouble, but we are also a company built by immigrants.
Tim’s family came here escaping the Holocaust. Andrea’s family is first-generation Costa Rican. We believe that all people are created equal, no matter where they were born or the color of their skin.
So this is where we draw the line. If you support ICE and this fascist regime, please find another coffee roaster. You do not deserve to benefit from our labor. You do not deserve to enjoy ethnic food, products, or experiences. Stop listening to our music. Stop wearing our clothes. Stop eating our food.
If you hate us so much, then stick with what you know.
White bread and tap water.
Sincerely,
Two heartbroken immigrants who roast your coffee
