A quiet oasis not far from the busy city

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - During a trip to South Sioux City, we meet a couple who turned a hog barn into what’s called The Koffie Knechtion.

We caught up with owner Maureen Knecht about her business. She owns and operates the coffee shop. Her husband Darwin also helps, but he also runs a tree house bed and breakfast on their five-acre property. Along with that, he operates what’s called The Covington House, or what’s referred to as the Hobbit house. That is another bed and breakfast option the couple have. People who stay in the overnight accommodations, are able to then benefit from the great food and coffee at The Koffee Knechtion, which is also on the property.

You could certainly say this business venture is a destination attraction. “We talked about this coffee shop for two years,” Knecht said. “I retired from a long-time employment, and couldn’t find the right job. So, we decided to turn what was a hog shed into a coffee shop.”

When you visit The Koffie Knechtion, you are in the city, but you feel like you are in nature.

“That’s what the customers love,” Knecht said. “People come from a 30-mile radius for the tranquility, and we make them feel like family. Some people tell us you may not succeed because you are not on an exit, you are not on a main road or a shopping mall. There is ‘location’, but there is also ‘destination’. We are that destination.”

The Koffie Knechtion sells all of your favorite coffee drinks. But the business also features a light breakfast, and a light lunch.

“Our biggest items are our breakfast burritos, and our quiches,” Knecht said. “People pre-order those, the whole quiches to go. For lunch, we do salads, sandwiches and soups. All of our homemade items are made here in-house. I get up at 3 a.m. to do it. We have a big garden, and we use everything fresh that we can. We do a lot of canning, so in the winter we can use all of the tomatoes that we grew for soups and things like that.”

The business also often features live music, and evening activities for the community. If you’d like to know more about The Koffie Knechtion, check it out on Facebook.

Copyright 2022 KOLN. All rights reserved.