New Glacier Coffee House doubles as a bar

The summer season is in full swing, and the new Glacier Coffee House in West Glacier is seeing visitors stream through its doors. 

Owner Brittany Ratzlaff said the number of visitors this season doubled over the Fourth of July weekend. 

Located in the Crown of the Continent Discovery Center at 12000 U.S. 2 East, invites visitors to “Kickstart Your Adventure” in Glacier National Park. It offers traditional coffee house drinks and treats, with a twist. The shop also features five local beers on tap, as well as spirits and local wines. 

The shop is open seven days a week from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. and features an inviting, rustic decor that welcomes its guests to sit down, relax, and use its free Wi-Fi, a big draw for customers.

“It’s been a huge success,” Ratzlaff said. “People really enjoy the availability of the beer on tap and they also really enjoy the Wi-Fi.”

Glacier Coffee House opened in late May, and Ratzlaff, 22, is a first-time business owner. She’s already building a clientele of regulars from among the various wilderness outfitters and whitewater rafting companies that are in the vicinity. 

“Our customer percentage is about 50 percent new customers, and then we get a lot of the guides and wranglers that are working up here that come in, so we have our regulars,” said Ratzlaff, whose mother, Jane Ratzlaff, is partner in the business. 

Swan Mountain Outfitters is based in the same building, and Brittany said she sees a lot of business stemming from their proximity. 

“Swan Mountain has been pretty well-known for several years, so it’s really nice being able to work with them,” Brittany said. “They’ve helped me a lot in getting started, and I think we get a lot of people in who are looking for Swan Mountain.”

Glacier Coffee House also offers a small breakfast and lunch menu that includes pastries, bagels and sandwiches that cater to hikers. The menu also features gluten-free options. 

“We have the normal, every-day coffee shop stuff: muffins, bagels, scones... the two most popular ones are the huckleberry scone and huckleberry muffins,” Ratzlaff said. “Those come from Spokane. Our gluten-free options come from Whitefish, and we get scones and sticky buns out of Kalispell.”

For breakfast the shop has hot breakfast sandwiches, and its homemade sandwiches come from a neighbor, Wild River Adventures. 

“I’m a really big ‘people person,’ and I’ve always found coffee shops to be exciting places,” she said. People come in and they’re happy and in a good mood and you get to learn about a lot of people from a lot of different places, and it’s just a lot of fun.”

Find Glacier Coffee House online at www.glaciercoffeehouse.com or call (406) 871-0754. 

Brittany Brevik can be reached at 758-4459 or by email at bbrevik@dailyinterlake.com.