New owner expends menu, arts offerings at The Coffee House in Henderson

Even though it has the same name, The Coffee House on Water Street is now under new ownership.

Perry Cirkel purchased the business at 117 S. Water St. in January.

“I figured we should keep it the same,” he said. “People know it.”

Cirkel, who had worked in the airline business, had been looking for a change.

“I had been in the restaurant business and thought I would buy something like a pizza parlor,” he said.

Cirkel found out that the owner of The Coffee House was selling the place and decided to check it out.

“I knew there was a lot of potential when I walked in,” he said.

Since then, he has been making his own changes and adding on to some of the amenities the shop already had.

“The first thing I knew was the red paint on the walls had to go,” he said.

Cirkel has added to the menu to offer more lunch options.

“When I got here, there were only four or five items,” he said. “We have tripled the menu.”

His prices include the sales tax.

“If it says $5, it’s $5,” he said. “I knew if I ever had a place, I wanted it to be that way. We don’t need your nickels or dimes.”

Cirkel has reached out to local artists, offering them wall space to exhibit a few of their pieces.

“We have about five featured right now,” he said. “I want to keep it at that length. I want them to add a small bio to go under their works.”

He also contracted out another artist to paint his storefront window.

It’s not just artists who have a chance to showcase their works at The Coffee House.

Most nights starting at 7 p.m., Cirkel said there are events people can attend.

“Some were already going on when I got the shop; others I’ve added,” he said.

On Tuesday nights there is a poetry reading, and every other Thursday there is reggae.

One day, he met local comedian Little J Gambino.

“I don’t believe in fate,” she said. “Everything happens for a reason.”

Gambino has been singing and performing around town for years.

“She is really funny,” Cirkel said. “She does a lot of parody songs like Weird Al (Yankovic).”

After talking about the vision of the business and its weekly entertainment options, the two discussed her coming down on Wednesday nights.

“I usually use the month of February to give back to the community,” she said. “I decided I would come in each Wednesday in February, do my thing and help him out.”

The first night was packed.

“Out of 63 chairs, we had 62 filled,” Gambino said. “Perry was excited.”

Gambino is slated to return from 7 to 10 p.m. every Wednesday in February.

She said she is open to performing more depending how the month goes.

“If he likes the amount of traffic I’ve brought in, we can talk,” she said. “My hope is to see Water Street revitalized.”

As much as Cirkel has done in the last month, he has a lot more he is working on.

“I am still getting my new menus together,” he said. “Once they are ready, I am going to go around to each business and to City Hall to really introduce myself.”

He already has gained several regulars.

“But if we can double business over the next couple of months, that would be great,” he said. “We are still getting the word out with marketing and social media. I hope to have my website up soon.”

He still thinks Water Street has a lot of promise.

Cirkel hopes there were more nighttime options to help generate an evening crowd.

The Coffee House is open from 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

For more information, call 702-752-3199.

Contact Henderson/Anthem View reporter Michael Lyle at mlyle@viewnews.com or 702-387-5201.