New exterior signage has gone up at 61 Monroe Center St. NW in downtown Grand Rapids, marking visible progress on Wildroast Coffee Co.’s second city cafe. The Grandville-based roaster is transforming the storefront once occupied by Elegance Wigs, a shop that served local customers for more than 50 years before closing.
The sign installation was first reported by Mix 95.7, which noted that fresh exterior signage is officially up at the Monroe Center address. According to rivergrandrapids.com, the coffee shop is taking over the historic storefront previously occupied by Elegance Wigs, which served local customers for over 50 years before closing up shop.
A Second Grand Rapids Address for the Grandville Roaster
The Monroe Center location is Wildroast’s second push into Grand Rapids. The first shop opened in May at 637 Stocking Ave. NW on the city’s west side, according to the same report. Wildroast Coffee Co. co-founder Andrew Richter acquired the Monroe Center storefront as part of the company’s downtown expansion, Crain's Grand Rapids reported.
The broader expansion was outlined in a separate Crain's Grand Rapids report, which described Wildroast’s move into Grand Rapids with a pair of new shops. Wildroast is based in Grandville, where its original location sits in the heart of downtown, according to the company's own locations page. The company also operates a shop on Grand Rapids’ west side inside a historic building near downtown, per the same source.
What’s On the Menu
Wildroast roasts its own coffee beans and builds its menu around specialty lattes made with house-made syrups, along with cold brew, matcha and teas, the rivergrandrapids.com report states. Beyond coffee, the shop carries sandwiches, wraps and a lineup of baked goods including cookies, muffins and croissants.
The company’s food-forward approach traces back to a shift it made at its Grandville roots. In 2024, Wildroast closed its drive-thru location at 4398 Chicago Drive, which had opened in June 2022, saying at the time it needed to expand roasting facilities and focus on the in-person experience, according to MLive. The outlet reported that the main downtown Grandville location was expected to remain open with added food options after that closure. Wildroast was founded by Grand Rapids resident Zach Haugen, per the same MLive report.
No Opening Date Yet
Despite the visible progress on signage, Wildroast has not posted an official grand-opening date for the Monroe Center cafe, rivergrandrapids.com reports. The company has been documenting its build-out on social media; in a post on X, the Wildroast account wrote, “Hard to believe it’s already been 3 months since we started our build out. Things are moving fast and we will be open before you know it.” Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. also shared a photo of the new sign, helping spread word of the project’s progress among locals watching the Monroe Center corridor evolve.
