Columbia-By most accounts, Mokka Kaffeehaus in Columbia, IL has all of the usual suspects of the quintessential coffee shop. There’s the familiar and overwhelmingly wonderful aroma of freshly ground coffee, the hip music and the cozy nook to curl up with a book. Every morning, an eclectic gathering of locals descends upon their favorite spot for their caffeine fix; the hurried commuter, the soccer-mom, the laptop-fixated student cramming for a test or just a few folks watching, passing the time while enjoying a warm cup.
No matter how serene or relaxing a coffee shop can be there’s always someone deep inside the coffee producing machine working hard to make sure everyone starts their day off the right way; a motor if you will. Shannon Zarek is this machine’s motor, and she’s nearly always at full-throttle.
Since Zarek opened Mokka in the Marketplace Shopping Center in January 2008, nearby residents have been reaping the benefits of having a local café that not only serves a wide variety of tasty drinks and homemade eats but is also a driving force in promoting local businesses and is an active part of the neighborhood.
“I chose this location to be close to home and because I am raising my family here and wanted to be more connected and involved with my community,” says Zarek. “Before opening Mokka, I worked for 20 years as a corporate and tax paralegal at a large law firm in Clayton, MO. My husband and I decided to move to Columbia in 2002. We had friends in the area and really fell in love with it.”
Perhaps Zarek fell in love with caffeinated drinks while crunching numbers. Regardless, she has chosen to share this passion with friends and strangers alike. Open seven days a week, Mokka offers coffee, espresso-based drinks, frappes, smoothies, bakery items including gooey butter cakes, muffins, scones, sandwiches, salads and soups. Putting an interesting twist to the equation, they also have craft beer, wine and mixed drinks. They are open late on Thursdays and Fridays when there’s usually some sort of live music.
“Our most popular menu items (besides our coffee drinks) are the chicken salad and the Buffalo wrap,” says Zarek. “All the chicken we use at Mokka is white meat chicken breast and is baked. We even bake our own bacon. Everything is made from scratch.”
Zarek has teamed up with Kerri White, owner of Zettie’s Confections, to compliment her everyday fare. White is a resident of Columbia and makes luscious gourmet treats like ultimate chip cookies, pecan caramels, carrot cake and some special order cakes and candies.
This is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to local involvement.
“I am the secretary of the Columbia Play Commission, a board member for the Monroe County Economic Development Council and am the secretary for two subcommittees for the Economic Development Council: Think Monroe County First and Business Development,” says Zarek.
As you can see, the high speed motor Zarek possesses comes in handy. It’s this passion for supporting local business that really puts Mokka squarely in the spotlight. According to Zarek, she believes in the power of a shared sense of community to raise the standard of living for everyone involved, which is one of the reasons she is such a big supporter of Think Monroe County First, a shop/spend local program through the Monroe County Economic Development Council. She donated the January Think Monroe County First Super Consumer prize.
“I believe people honestly want to support their community and the businesses in it,” says Zarek. “Given a choice, people would much rather give to a local business then spend their money out of town. The businesses in our area support our schools, charities, sports organizations. They employ local residents and the people who own them actually live here, giving them a vested interest in the continued success of their neighbors.”
Mokka Kaffeehaus is located at 180 Columbia Centre in the Marketplace Shopping Center, across from the Columbia Post Office.
Hours are:
6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Wednesday and Friday (open later on Friday when hosting live music)
6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday
7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday
8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday
You can find them on Facebook, Twitter or visit them at www.mokkakaffeehaus.com. Contact Zarek at 618-281-6655 or mail@mokkakaffeehaus.com.
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