Soon-to-be new owners of R Coffeehouse in Riverside will change name, approach
The Riverside coffee shop best known as The Riverside Perk, which has operated as R Coffeehouse for the past 13 years, is about to get new owners — and a new name.
Longtime local barista James Gates, who for the past 17 years has been the face behind the bar at the Vagabond Cafe, 614 W. Douglas, is teaming up with his fiance, Sarah Jane Sovereign, to buy the neighborhood coffee house at 1144 Bitting. They hope to have the shop ready to start a soft opening period in the first few days of July.
They’ll call the business Riverside Bohemian, a name that reflects not only the look and feel the couple has planned for the space but also their personalities. (Gates and Sovereign also were the people behind the unusual “cat campaign” signs that were posted all over town during election season, urging citizens to vote their cats Mr. Sleeves and 88 into office.)
“We want to try to make it a little cozier but more eclectic,” Gates said. “We are thrifters and antiquers. We are big kitsch collectors and plant people. So we’re very excited to deck the place out in an eclectic and unique way. It’s an important part of a coffeehouse.”
How the longtime coffee shop changed hands
The current owners of the coffeehouse, Angelo and Gerard Rodriguez, approached Gates to see if he’d have interest in buying the shop, which is very close to their Riverside home, Gates said. He’s been a longtime customer of the place and said that he’s had a cup of coffee there during all of the past four decades — the 1990s, the 2000s, the 2010s and the 2020s.
“It’s a neighborhood institution. It’s a Wichita jewel,” he said. “And we just feel honored to be the latest stewards of that tradition.”
One big change the couple plans to make: They’ll reestablish evening hours at the shop, which currently closes at 2 p.m. Gates and Sovereign will keep the business open until 9 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
Though they will continue the tradition of having live music in the space, they don’t plan to serve alcohol.
“I think that’s something currently missing from Wichita: sober social spaces. There aren’t many places to go around and socialize that don’t have alcohol,” Gates said. “We’re excited to fill that space.”
What will be on the menu at Riverside Bohemian
The shop will continue to serve hot and iced coffee plus lots of different espresso drinks, including Americanos, lattes, cappuccinos and mochas. The couple also has invented several of their own specialty drinks, including one called Bohemian that’s made with flavors of English toffee and nutmeg.
Gates and Sovereign have decided to partner with Local Roasters, who will provide their coffee. They’ll use up R Coffeehouse’s remaining coffee supply during July, then debut the new partnership in August.
Riverside Bohemian also will serve iced tea, sodas, Italian sodas, juices, lemonade and kombucha.
Gates, who will soon leave his longtime spot at the Vagabond, will work the front of the house at the new coffee shop. Sovereign will be in the kitchen.
When the coffee shop initially reopens, it’ll continue to serve some menu items customers have come to expect, including a breakfast burrito and some hot pastries. As the couple gets more established, they’ll add more items like soups and sandwiches. They’ll also have plenty of gluten-free and dairy-free options.
The public is welcome to patronize the shop during the soft opening period, which will stretch through July. The couple, who will marry in October, are planning a grand opening for August.
How Riverside Perk got its start
The Riverside Perk first opened at 11th and Bitting in December of 1995, a year after the hit NBC show “Friends” debuted and featured an idyllic coffee shop called Central Perk.
The original owner was Mike McCullough, who had previously worked as a manager at Il Primo and had fallen in love with “Seattle-style coffees.” He decided a coffee shop would be a good fit for the quaint 1904 building that housed a neighborhood grocery store through the 1960s and also was home over the years to antique stores and a frame shop. The building on Bitting was at one time the end of a trolley line that ran from downtown.
In 2008, now-Wichita City Council member Maggie Ballard bought the Riverside Perk. She ran the shop until June 2012, when she closed it. The R Coffeehouse owners took it over the following month.
Riverside Bohemian’s hours will be 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays; and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 9 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. It will be closed on Mondays.
The owners say they’ll consider extending the hours, depending on demand.
This story was originally published June 20, 2025 at 11:35 AM.
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