A small coffee stand in Snohomish has found itself at the center of attention after a viral TikTok video led to a remarkable influx of customers over the weekend. Grounds Coffee Co., located on Broadway Avenue, drew hundreds of visitors eager to sample its distinctive seasonal beverages, prompting local police to step in to manage traffic.
“It was insane; people showed up in droves,” said Hailey Kuykendall, co-owner of Grounds Coffee Co. “We sold out of everything.”
The spike in business can be traced back to a TikTok post by Ana Mannlein, a Monroe High School graduate visiting from Idaho. Mannlein documented her visit to the whimsical coffee stand, which quickly gained traction online. “I posted it, and I did not anticipate the reaction it received,” she noted. “People from places as far away as Ohio were reaching out to me, and it blew my mind to see the scale of the response.”
The viral video showcased Mannlein and her family ordering one of Grounds’ signature “spooky” seasonal drinks, adorned with gummy worms, crushed Oreos, and homemade whipped cream. Other popular items include creatively named beverages like “Dracula’s Bride,” “Eyeball Punch,” and “Hocus Pocus,” featuring playful candy decorations such as Pop Rocks and raspberry “bloody drizzle.”
For Kuykendall, who has co-owned the stand with her mother for nearly a decade, the sudden spotlight is both overwhelming and exhilarating. “We’ve been running this stand for eight years, and honestly, I used to be the only employee,” she shared. “When boredom sets in, creativity flourishes.”
The stand’s inventive offerings set it apart in a region filled with coffee kiosks. “The Pacific Northwest is saturated with these little coffee stands, so you need to offer something a bit different,” Kuykendall explained. “We made a conscious decision to avoid boring beverages.”
Over the weekend, customers formed lines reminiscent of ferry queues, some waiting for hours to sample the coffee stand’s creations. One standout item was a chocolate fudge Oreo “dirt cup” extravaganza, complete with a miniature tombstone and shovel. “It was all hands on deck to meet the overwhelming demand,” Kuykendall said. “People had been waiting for literal hours, so we couldn’t turn them away after they’d committed for that long.”
Despite the chaotic weekend, Kuykendall and her team are excited to continue the momentum throughout the season.
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