For the love of coffee and animals
By Deb Risden
Alisha and Zack Riley moved to Colorado eight years ago, started a pet-sitting business and dreamed of doing something more. Why not a coffee shop connected to their love of animals?
Alisha Riley said over a year ago, a small space in Falcon became available. “We can finally do this thing that we had talked about for years,” Riley said. They soon discovered the property could not be used for a café due to regulations and codes. “But the idea was churning and once you get the ball rolling, you want to keep going. We were going to make it happen,” she said. The couple continued to look for a different space and found it on Maltese Point in Peyton.
AffoGatto opened Sept. 7. Zack Riley’s love of puns was the impetus behind the name. It combines Affogato, an Italian dessert made of coffee poured over ice cream, and the couple’s love of cats. The Italian name for a male cat is gatto.
Although a good cup of coffee sourced from quality local roasters is their primary focus, the café offers more. It has a fully stocked pastry case. Alisha Riley said, “Everything is made by us and not a third-party distributor. We use a co-op kitchen and bake fresh chocolate croissants, cheese Danish, caramel apple Danish, breakfast sandwiches, chocolate chip cookies and more. We try to have a vegan and/or gluten free option available every day. Every week we try new things so the menu changes.”
The Rileys see AffoGatto as a gathering place for the community. “We wanted to have a place where you could catch up with a friend, bring kids to hang out or enjoy some quiet while your kids are in extracurricular activities nearby, Riley said. “There was a big hole in the market, no place here where you could hang out for an hour or two and you weren’t being kicked out. We’re not worried about turnover times. And we didn’t want a drive-thru. We wanted a gathering space.”
Alisha and Zack were high school sweethearts in Wisconsin, where Zack grew up. Eventually they moved to Florida, where Alisha was from. Alisha gained experience in the coffee business while working at Disney World, helping to open Starbucks locations in Epcot. Zack is an electrical engineer and works for a Colorado Springs firm. They have nine years of experience running a pet-sitting business. Riley said they both wanted to leave Florida for “something completely different.” They felt Colorado provided the sunshine and snow, something for each of them. In their spare time, the couple enjoys hiking. They have three dogs and three cats, all rescues.
The Rileys continue to operate their pet-sitting business with a staff of 10. They also work with Wild Bluecats! in Black Forest and donate a percentage of their monthly earnings to the nonprofit.
AffoGatto is located at 10634 Maltese Point, Suite 120. It is open weekdays from 6:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and again from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. They are open Saturday and Sunday from 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
