Fresh ink with a side of caffeine: Cherry Bomb Tattoo Co. opens a coffee bar
Photo by Maisie VanSlander
Whether you want a coffee before a tattoo for courage, or as a reward after for being so brave, there’s a market for good coffee and good tattoos. Lee Summit might have the best coffee-tattoo symbiotic relationship with the recent opening of Cherry Bomb Coffee Bar.
The coffee bar attached to the tattoo shop opened in September. With quality brews, unique seasonal menu items, and a business philosophy carried over from the tattoo world, Cherry Bomb has become something larger than the sum of its parts.
Long-time artist and owner of The Cherry Bomb Tattoo Co., Wendy Scott, set her sights on a way to grow the tattoo shop’s reach and make the art form of traditional tattoos unintimidating to a younger audience.
“We do so many events and pop-ups in the parking lot; customers always wanted beverages, so I opened Cherry Bomb Coffee. Not everybody wants a tattoo, but so many people want coffee that it brings a whole new life to our shop,” says Scott.
The coffee bar sits right next to the tattoo side, joined by a single door. Much smaller than the inked counterpart, the cafe is bisected by a giant truck bed, converted to a bench.
“The coffee shop had no design plan when we started. The tattoo side I designed every detail and thought of everything. The coffee shop was very much spontaneous.”
One thing that stayed consistent between the coffee side and tattoo side is the 18+ policy to enter.
“We have a lot of boobies and adult themes in each shop, so it’s not really a place for kids,” says Scott.
The coffee side does have an ordering window that is open to all ages, however.
Almost every square foot is accompanied by a prayer candle of various pop-culture figures. At the same time, custom shapes adorned with disco ball tiles also take up the visual budget of the bar. On the menu itself, tattoo inspiration is seen in traditional tattoo graphics and names nodding to the art form. And yes, there were a lot of boobies.
Photo by Maisie VanSlander
With the grand opening came the first seasonal menu, themed to Halloween.
“Before we even opened, I took all the staff on field trips to workshop the menu. Everyone had a hand in developing the final product.”
The standout drink was the Campfire S’more latte, a sweet, unincorporated drink with light cream that gives the drink a softer texture and masks a lot of the bitter notes that come with espresso. The drink is garnished with two roasted marshmallows on top for a sweet prologue or epilogue to the drink.
Photo by Maisie VanSlander
A lot of the staff’s personality comes through, either with the decor or the menu items. Randy’s Ashtray is a dessert cheesecake made to look like the ashtray, overused and full of cigarettes. The cigarettes are pretzels, dipped in white chocolate, the ends kept raw to represent the filter. The ash is an Oreo crumble atop a rich cheesecake. The entire dessert sits in a real ashtray.
Photo by Maisie VanSlander
The origin of the dessert comes from Scott’s old chain-smoking shop manager, who inspired her to leave an exploitative work environment.
For some other bites, Cherry Bomb relies on Bloom Bakery and Scratch Bakery to bring specialized fresh goods every day.
Business styles between tattoo and coffee rarely overlap, but the idiosyncratic relationship between Cherry Bomb Coffee and Tattoo work in its favor.
“It’s an immersive experience; I want younger people to know that traditional tattoo shops can be welcoming. The coffee helps with that image,” Scott explains. “You can be traditional but still be creative. Too cool for school is over.”
Many tattoo shops are leaning into events as a way to bring artists together and drive a community-focused philosophy to the tattoo world. Pop-ups, collaborations, and flash events have become a tattoo shop’s bread and butter.
“We really try to live by the concept of community-driven,” Scott explains.
With plans to expand to an outdoor patio, the appeal of coming to a tattoo shop for coffee, goods, and ink begins to make even more sense.
“The store is full of local artists. We buy from artists like they are a supplier, no consignment. It shows we have faith in them and want to support them.”
After meeting with Scott, I was informed that some people on social media are labeling the shop as MAGA and warning to steer clear. When asked directly for a response, she said, “Our shop has a mix of all political views, and we are LGBTQ+ friendly. Every person that walks through our door is welcome. I love my trans friends, my lesbian and gay friends, but I also love my country, veterans, and all religions. We all manage to get along even with some differences. I prefer to judge people on character.”
Speaking only for myself, as a trans person, I never got the impression that I was unwelcome, let alone unsafe. The shop was full of people from different walks of life, and allowing those personalities to coexist with respect is something Scott says she encourages.
Cherry Bomb Tattoo and Coffee Bar is located at 1100 SE Blue Pkwy, Lee’s Summit, MO 64063.
