GET YOUR MOTOR RUNNING. Eau Claire Downtown Coffee is taking it to the streets with its new coffee cart.

Everything nowadays seems to be quick, easy, and on-the-go – food is no exception. Fast, in-and-out places make for a convenient way to grab your favorite burritos, pizzas, and lattes, even if you’re working on a time crunch. That’s why takeout, food trucks, and, of course, to-go coffee have been gaining massive popularity in the last few years.

Eau Claire Downtown Coffee – or, as it’s more commonly referred to, ECDC – has taken coffee-on-the-go to a new level with its latest endeavor: a coffee cart.

“The coffee cart was created to meet people where they’re at – fostering an idea of coffee as a connector, a commonality, and ritual we can all share in." – Becca Cooke, ECDC coffee cart project manager

The cart, which made its debut a couple of weeks ago at the Sounds Like Summer Concert Series in Phoenix Park, has popped up around town at special events such as Tuesday Night Blues and International Day of Yoga. Members of the community will be able to rent the cart for meetings, events, or even weddings, coffee cart project manager Becca Cooke said.

Zach Halmstad – co-founder of Jamf and co-owner of The Lismore Hotel (where ECDC is located) – came up with the idea for the coffee cart, which Cooke said is another example of him bringing his creativity to Eau Claire.

With this addition, ECDC hopes to extend its brand into the everyday lives of Eau Claire community members, Cooke said. 

“The coffee cart was created to meet people where they’re at – fostering an idea of coffee as a connector, a commonality, and ritual we can all share in,” Cooke said. 

The cart gives Eau Claire a mobile way of grabbing a bite to eat or a slurping down a latte at events around the city, Cooke said.

For its mobile coffee, ECDC will continue its partnership with a Minneapolis-based coffee roaster, Tiny Footprint Coffee. Through Tiny Footprint, ECDC gets beans grown on small, family-owned coffee farms all over the globe.

Baristas will serve an array of drinks, including kombucha and speciality sodas alongside ECDC’s signature drip coffee and espresso drinks. The cart will also feature bakery items made in-house in the cafe.

“The coffee cart gives the ECDC brick-and-mortar wings,” Cooke said. “You won’t find too much that’s different between the two. The cart will have a little more scaled-down coffee and menu and doesn’t serve anything other than bakery items – just a simpler version of our big sister.”

Those interested can find out more about the ECDC coffee cart at facebook.com/ecdccart or by following it on Instagram @ecdc.cart