Tiffani Kocsis, owner of East Dallas Middle Ground and Texas Coffee School Coffepreneur®, is no stranger to the coffee shop world. She says she grew up studying, spending time with friends and finding a second home at coffee shops. So it’s no surprise that after 20 years in education, writing a book, and raising a family, Tiffani set out to create her own vision of what a coffee shop would be.
We asked her a few questions about starting a successful coffee business in East Dallas and for her best tips for aspiring coffee shop owners. Prepare to be inspired!
Q&A With the Owner of East Dallas Middle Ground
Q: What led you to opening East Dallas Middle Ground?
Tiffani: I made the jump into this after spending 20 years in education, completing a doctorate degree, writing a book, and having a family. I just wanted to do something that inspired me again and brought some life back into my work. So, with the encouragement of family, I went for it.
Idea was always there but we went from plan to open in less than a year (June 2023-April 2024) which just solidified us being completely insane.
Source: East Dallas Middle Ground Facebook
Q: What makes your coffee shop unique?
Tiffani: Middle Ground is all about the neighborhood. We aren’t trying to compete with the big guys, but rather be a place where our neighbors come and share their day with us. We have two working rooms that have screens, white boards, and are rented by the hour as we have a lot of work-from-homers in the area.
Also, we have a really large kid friendly space with a tv, bean bags, toys, books, and couches as the area is full of young families. The room is almost never empty and the East Dallas moms regularly meet up or come over to get some work done while getting their littles out and entertained. Because of the location of the room, it doesn’t take away from the wide open space of the main cafe that is full of natural light and couches to visit with friends or tables to work. We’ve got a wrap-around patio and regularly see it full of the runners, cyclists, and pups visiting the lake just two blocks away.
“[We] really prioritized making sure East Dallas infuses everything we do.”
Source: East Dallas Middle Ground Facebook
Working With Local Vendors and Schools
We also use primarily local vendors (only non-local for things we can’t find locally) for everything from coffee and tea to food to merch and dairy.We have started “Local Sundays” where we block off one of our work rooms and host a local artisan/vendor in the room where they can sell their goods. We’ve had a great response to this that we’re now hosting our first ever local market on Dec 15 for the holiday shoppers with 14 vendors signed up so far.
We’ve also tried to intertwine with the schools by having hosted multiple “spirit mornings” where we give money back to the schools based on sales, have become a sponsor for the local drill team, and regularly do teacher appreciation pop-ups with our mobile cart. And we’ve run a successful food drive and are currently running a sock drive. Our commitment to the neighborhood and community is real, authentic, and what makes us a lot different than other shops nearby.
Q: Can you tell us about your customers?
Tiffani: Given we have all local vendors, we regularly have folks coming in for one stop mornings. Lubbies Bagels, for instance, is just a few minutes away, but they are widely known in the area. We’ve had a number of customers coming in telling us they are so happy they can avoid the lines and wait of getting both food and coffee
Additionally, we have recently added lunch items from Baller Mom Kitchen which is another local who has been doing meal prep and delivery in the area for a while. She is well known and folks are so excited to have her items in the shop. We’re working out the logistics of putting a refrigerator in the store to be a pickup site for her meal service as well.
Source: East Dallas Middle Ground Facebook
Q: What are you most proud of as a business owner?
Tiffani: That we did it. Simple as that—I got through each step of the process so far in (mostly) one piece and we keep developing into the store we want to be. And [others recognize us] as really wanting to get into the community as a partner instead of just a retailer.
“When someone in the community knows the store and compliments it—especially when they don’t know I’m a part of it—is such a prideful moment.”
Q: What business strategies from Texas Coffee School have been most helpful?
Tiffani: There is no way I could have set and priced a menu without Texas Coffee School. The spreadsheets and strategies were invaluable. Also, just hearing them talk about equipment and counter setup and all the tiny things I wouldn’t have ever considered was so helpful.
Q: What’s next for you and your business?
Tiffani: We’ve toyed with the idea of a second location, but we’re still so new and want to get some stability in place before jumping into that. Until then, it’s just focusing on the people, the coffee, and the neighborhood.
Q: What else?
Tiffani: Our “coffee shop” sign is original to old Dallas. It was salvaged from a sign dealer who had it in a backyard. It was on top of the Continental Coffee Shop at Ross/Hall in 1948. We had it restored and neon (real neon, not LED!) replaced. Such a fun part of Dallas that we were lucky enough to bring back to life!
Source: East Dallas Middle Ground Facebook
