Ross and Ernest Koh had a vision: to create a unique combination of a coffee shop and an indoor-plant emporium where members of the LGBTQ+ community and other community members would feel at home.
“We’re going for a dreamy plant shop meets a cozy cafe,” says Ross. He handles the plants, marketing, retail management, accounting, menu development, and other back-end details; Ernest is the cafe’s chef and chief foodie.
“It’s a stressful time,” Ross notes. The cafe’s goal, he says, is for people to come in and stay awhile, have nice conversations, and enjoy the ambience. Think pleasant but vibrant: pinks, purples, acid greens.
The shop, located at 5027 NE 42nd Ave., opened its doors Nov. 7, taking on a spot long occupied by the popular Miss Zumstein Bakery & Cafe.
Ross and Ernest loved its east-facing windows, fireplace, and vintage espresso machine — and that its nearby Concordia neighborhood doesn’t boast a similar establishment.
Building on the couple’s somewhat eclectic resumes, their cafe features an eclectic array of food choices: a handful of breakfast options, including the popular Brekkie breakfast sandwich, several bagel options, and a Gaia bowl with egg, sweet and russet potatoes, roasted vegetables, and arugula; many drink choices, including Coava specialty coffee, latte, and espresso options as well as tea and cold drinks; and a curated lunch menu featuring a Rainbow Roots salad, Nightshade stew, and a selection of chic sandwiches.
Partners on the food side include Bakeshop (pastries), Bowery Bagels, and Dos Hermanos Bakery (sandwich breads). Coming soon: vegan and gluten-free pastries.
As for plants, “We don’t have a lot of space,” Ross admits, so he focuses on smaller, more unique choices. “Hence the name Queer Plants,” he says. That includes carnivorous plants, air plants, and hydroponics, at least some of which get their own individual names. My personal favorite: Pickle.
This is your cup of tea if you dream of sipping an espresso surrounded by “a lush backdrop of fantastical plants,” Ernest and Ross say.
When I visited after hours, at the end of a rainy Monday in late January, the place was dark. But on nicer days, Ross says, the sun’s rays stream through those street-front windows.
It’s still early times — Queer Plants is just beginning to catch on. But its entrepreneurial owners, who so far do all the work themselves, say they’re just getting started.
Both have significant experience: Ross in the restaurant/food service and nursery arenas and Ernest as former general manager and sushi chef at Gresham’s Yami Sushi & Teriyaki restaurant and, most recently, Origami Catering.
Ernest did his culinary training at the Art Institute in Tampa, specializing in French cuisine, and has also worked in agriculture, forestry, and landscape design.
Chris Rauber and his wife, Kim Williams, moved to Portland and B-W in the summer of 2022 after many years in the San Francisco Bay Area. He worked as a journalist at the S.F. Business Times and other publications. He was born in Oregon.