Odyssey may be Susannah Seipel’s first cafe, but she and her husband Travis Seipel have been looking for it, as she put it, “forever.”
Travis has worked in various jobs in the coffee industry since 2005, when he started at a shop in San Francisco. After moving to the Kansas City area in 2010, he continued to serve espresso on and off.
Starting in mid-July, the couple plans to offer lattes and other caffeinated drinks in their own shop.
“We finally found the right place,” Travis said. “It just fell into our laps. It was almost too good to be true.”
Odyssey will open in a former hair salon at 5247 W. 95th St. in Overland Park.
They offer all the traditional coffee specialties, plus pastries and breakfast burritos from Clara’s Kitchen, a West Coast grocer. They serve coffee blends from Onyx of Arkansas and Peet’s Coffee of California, as well as energy drinks, smoothies and other beverage options.
Your espresso drinks are flavored with purely natural syrups.
“A lot of people say, ‘I just want to go somewhere and have a good cup of coffee,'” Susannah said. “A lot of coffee models are built for speed, and we’re going to be fast… but we want to offer good basic coffee that people can enjoy.”
When some people hear “Odyssey,” many think of Homer, the author of the ancient Greek epics. The store’s decor will feature some subtle water motifs, but nothing too obvious.
Travis said he and Susannah came up with the name after thinking about how to take coffee drinkers on a trip. That was certainly the case for these two.
“Coffee is not just a destination, it’s a journey…” he said. “Whether it’s your first cup or your millionth cup, it’s always something different.”
Odyssey is in the middle of a remodel — “chaos mode,” Travis said — but when it’s all done, it will have plush seats, blue tiles and exposed brick walls.
“It’s a mix of … modern and cozy,” Travis said. “We wanted a place where you could spend the day, sit on the couch and get cozy.”
He said he’s most looking forward to getting to know his customers, and the community that coffee can create is one of the reasons he’s still in the industry.
“I loved talking to customers every morning,” he said. “…just building a connection with them.”
