Hana Chu always dreamed of owning a cafe.
“It was always my dream to open a cafe someday,” she told LINK nky. “I didn’t know it’d be quite so soon. I kind of thought of it as like some sort of like retirement plan.”
As a tea enthusiast, Hana envisioned a space where she could bring a community together through her favorite drink. Unfortunately, she had no storefront available to make her dream a reality. That changed when Bean Haus Coffee shuttered in June 2023.
Located at 640 Main Street in Covington’s MainStrasse Village district, the historic storefront provided Chu with an opportunity to not only open her treasured tea cafe but also provide the neighborhood with a coffee shop — something it lacked since Bean Haus closed.
“I really wanted this to be a coffee and tea shop,” Hana said. “That’s for the community.”
Hana is married to restaurateur Johnny Chu of KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia – a Taiwanese-style eatery along Madison Avenue in Covington. It just so happened that the real estate agent for the cafe building was also a regular customer of KungFood, she said. He recommended they check out the space. After a walkthrough, the Chu’s decided to purchase the building for $390,000, according to Kenton County property records.
“We wanted to provide something for the community — something that’s not Starbucks, that’s not a big chain cafe that you see everywhere,” Johnny said.
Constructed in 1909, the 2,520-square-foot red brick building is two and a half stories tall. Before Bean Haus opened in 2019, the building was home to Groove Coffee House & World Headquarters.
KungBrew’s menu will consist of espresso-based coffee drinks, specialty teas sourced from various local vendors and bubble tea.
“We’ll have specialty teas that we’re getting from different vendors pretty much across the world – from Japan, from Taiwan, from China, and then some local companies as well,” Hana said.
Initially, Hana wanted the cafe to only offer tea. However, after speaking with residents in the MainStrasse community, she ultimately decided to expand the menu to include coffee. KungBrew is collaborating with Urbana Cafe in Cincinnati for their coffee beans.
Inside the building, the walls are adorned with murals painted by Covington artist Adam Lusso. The interior decor features traditional classic pieces from Hana’s tea collection, including tea kettles and cups from the 1950s, and sculptures of dragons, panda bears and birds.
The cafe’s furniture will be antiques purchased from sellers around the region. On the second floor, the seating layout includes Japanese-style low-floor tables with cushions.
“I think people are excited to see what kind of quirkiness we are doing here at this location,” Johnny said. “We have a quirkiness to it. We have a lot of things that you really don’t see at many cafes, especially cafes in Kentucky. We’re trying to do something that no one’s doing.”
Hana said the response from the MainStrasse community has been overwhelmingly positive, with residents reaching out to her personally to share their excitement.
“I have spoken with so many community members in MainStrasse who are so excited to finally have a tea shop, and good tea within walking distance of them,” Hana said. “I’m so excited to serve them.”
As far as an opening date, Hana said it would be “five to eight” weeks. Currently, the Chu’s are fixing the building’s plumbing, finishing the interior and training new staff members. Hana hopes to open in mid to late March, but that is contingent on how quickly the renovations are finished.
“There are already so many good coffee shops (in Covington), but we kind of want to add to that,” Hana said.
