New mobile café serves array of coffee drinks

FARMINGTON — Local coffee lovers have a new option for getting their java fix: a mobile café.

Husband-and-wife team Mitch and Coty Sewell own the Fox Hill Coffee Co., which they operate out of a food trailer.

"I had the idea of upgrading the coffee service in our area, especially catering-wise," Mitch Sewell said. "I was going to meetings and thought I could offer better coffee than regular old office coffee."

While he is not trained as a barista, he worked 12 years ago repairing coffee machines, which led to an interest in learning how to brew good coffee. So he started researching coffee-making techniques and asked local baristas to show him how it’s done.

Last month, he bought a maroon-colored trailer and opened Fox Hill Coffee Co.

The mobile coffee shop offers drinks such as chai lattes, cafe mochas and cappuccinos. Non-coffee drinks, including hot cider, pot-brewed teas and flavored Italian sodas, are also on the menu. The café occasionally also sells pre-made pastries, but usually only offers drinks.

"We have any Italian soda flavor you could dream up, and we make the best hot chocolate you’ve ever tasted," Mitch Sewell said.

His wife said the idea behind the business was entirely her husband's, but she supported the plan.

"He’s wanted to start a business for a while, so once he had everything in place, I said, 'Let’s go for it,'" she said, adding she knew even less about making coffee than her husband. "I’m basically starting from scratch, but it’s exciting, and I learn something new every day."

The couple both have full-time jobs; Mitch works in the oilfield for ConocoPhillips and Coty is a nurse at San Juan Regional Medical Center.

Mitch Sewell said he loves his day job but he also enjoys meeting new people while making and selling coffee.

"The business has really snowballed, and I’m getting some good feedback," he said. "People appreciate the mobile aspect, and most just appreciate having really good coffee."

He said he partially credits the rich taste of his beverages to the coffee beans, which he purchases from Desert Sun Coffee Roasters in Durango, Colo.

"It is an amazing coffee (bean). They grow the beans throughout the world, and blend them to get the different flavors," he said.

Fox Hill Coffee Co. charges prices that are comparable to larger chain coffee shops. For example, a regular 16-ounce cup of coffee is $3, and it's $4.75 for a caramel macchiato.

Still, Sewell said he's not worried about competition from other coffee shops.

"You come into a field like this and you think you’ll be competing, but when we share what a good drink is with each other, we’re all working together and everybody does better," he said.

Currently, Fox Hill Coffee Co. is not parked at a specific location but instead sells drinks at office conferences, craft fairs and city events, such as the Farmington Christmas Parade. Beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday, the trailer will be parked on Main Avenue in Aztec for Aztec Sparkles.

Fox Hill Coffee Company | Facebook

Sewell hopes to eventually hire a manager so the café can be open at specific sites for regular hours. But for now, he's relying on the company's Facebook page to inform customers of the trailer's whereabouts.

"We want people to know that we’ll make everyone a coffee with gratitude and care," he said.

Leigh Black Irvin is the business editor for The Daily Times. She can be reached at 505-564-4621.