After two years of the mobile coffee business, Mat decided to create Coffee Connections after realizing a couple different opportunities in the specialty coffee space. First, cafes in Chicago turn over their staff on average three times a year. Training new staff is timely and costly. We are providing a jumpstart for our cafes and creating connections in hopes to create a relationship beneficial for everyone. Second, we think working in elevated cafes builds great life skills and momentum, and this can address unemployment rates for young adults in Chicago. Lastly, there is an opportunity to improve diversity within the specialty coffee space and to help give back to Chicago’s communities.

Cattle Dog Coffee was established in the summer of 2022. Founder Mat Cohen was inspired through travels to create a unique way to serve coffee, which led to the idea to start a coffee truck. After finding the 1974 AM General in Wisconsin, Mat and his team spent time remodeling the interior of the then ice cream mobile, freshening up the paint job and slapping the logo on the doors to create a state-of-the-art cafe on wheels with capabilities of serving specialty coffee at high volumes, just like your favorite local cafe.

The vision and name come from his dog, Zoe, and the active, tough, passionate and loyal lifestyle cattle dogs live.