In the state of Idaho, US Highway 95 stretches over 538 miles from Oregon to Canada. It is a road with many twists and turns and stories. In downtown Cambridge, Highway 95 makes a 90 degree turn at a small building with a big “Raindrop Coffee Shop” sign. I recently dropped in and was impressed with the fresh decor and the new owner, Jessie Noah. It was a joy to hear her stories and what she hopes for the future. In 1980, her grandfather, “Wild Bill” Noah, who was known for never meeting a stranger, bought the hulking building known as The Branding Iron. The Branding Iron was a bar/restaurant/hotel infamous for a fatal gunfight between the bartender and sheriff. After Bill demolished that building, Harold Soules rented the ground and had a mechanic shop on the corner. In 2002, Sandy Nudo placed a permanent building for a drive through coffee shop on the property. After Bill passed in 2021, Jessie inherited the land and building and then in 2024 bought the inventory from Nudos. When Jessie was looking for a new name for the coffee shop, she was inspired by a photograph of a raindrop reflecting a daisy that always reminded her of her sister, Holly Noah, who lost her life in a tragic car accident on US-95 in 1998. Jessie felt that the shop could be a memorial and an opportunity to contribute to the community by providing a space for people to come together. The photograph hangs in the shop.
When speaking with Jessie she has a long list of people she has gratitude for. She beams about the five hard working, authentic and caring lady baristas that have over 80 years of combined coffee experience. (Delaney Van Arsdall, Jeris and Manon Tyler, Julie Onthank, and Lynda Yoder.) She is grateful for also having cousins with experience in the coffee business who helped with the selection of a new espresso machine and partner to offer Seven Coffee Roasters beans. Jessie appreciates services that have been provided by Upper Country Electric, Diamond G Electric, Cody Rollins Plumbing, Kim Braun Construction Co, Braun-Jensen Construction Co, Loveland’s Grocery Store, Deidre B Marketing, Windy Acres Design, Banerjee Bros Design, and Cambridge Lumber Store. She is excited to be offering new products, services, and partnerships to the community this spring. She is already testing out local food vendors including The Salty Heifer Cattle Company, Crust & Co Sourdough, and Fabric and Flour. She is looking forward to having the shop painted, working on the landscaping, seeing the mural planned for the clinic building come to life, and hosting classes offered by University of Idaho Extensions. Her goal is to transform this corner of US-95 that already forces people to slow down into a place where people are inspired to pull over, take a breath, have a drink, and share a story.
