Coffee in Whitefish
Whitefish coffee roasters begin with Montana Coffee Traders, which has roasted in an old farmhouse just south of town since 1981. That makes it the oldest roaster we write up anywhere in Montana. It runs a cafe at the roastery and another on Central Avenue, and it opens the roastery for a tasting on Tuesday mornings. Whitefish had 9,358 residents in the Census estimate for July 1, 2025. Last Best Coffee Club sends a bag from a different independent Montana roaster in every box.
Whitefish's coffee story
Montana Coffee Traders was founded in 1981 at a farmhouse on US 93 just south of Whitefish, the one with the chuck wagon out front. (Source: the Montana Coffee Traders profile.)
Founder R.C. Beall started on a single Sivetz air bed roaster. The company now roasts on two Lorings, and it marked 40 years in 2021 with a coffee called the '81 blend. In 1993 Beall moved to Texas and started Texas Coffee Traders there. (Source: the Daily Inter Lake.)
The company says it has watched Whitefish grow from a quiet mountain town into a resort town, and that it has tied itself more closely to the town and to coffee farmers along the way. Its managers commit to training their staff and helping them grow. (Source: the Montana Coffee Traders profile.)
Forty-plus years of payroll in one small town is what buying local looks like over time. Every bag bought there helped keep it roasting while Whitefish changed around it. More on that: why local roasters matter.
Roasters in and near Whitefish
- Montana Coffee Traders, 5810 Hwy 93 South. The Roastery and Cafe is open weekdays, and the Tuesday morning roast tour and tasting is by reservation. The downtown cafe is at 110 Central Ave. Besides its blends and single origins, it sells flavored coffees, single serve formats, subscriptions and corporate gifts.
- Colter Coffee Roasting, Kalispell. A Kalispell roaster that Roast Local files under Billings. See Kalispell.
- The Bird and Billy, Kalispell. A family-run coffee house downtown that roasts its own coffee. See Kalispell.
Florence Coffee Company also has a Whitefish shop, but it roasts in Butte. The Roast Local directory lists another Whitefish roaster beside Montana Coffee Traders.
Getting Montana coffee delivered in Whitefish
If you live in Whitefish, you can drive to the farmhouse. If you want coffee from the rest of the state too, Last Best Coffee Club brings it. Choose a roast, a style and a grind, and every 2 or 4 weeks a different independent Montana roaster roasts a 12 oz bag for you and ships it in their own bag. It is $16.99 a bag, any roast, and your first bag is free; you pay the shipping. Skip, pause or cancel online. Set up your box.
- Roasted and shipped within 3 days.
- Free replacement if a bag disappoints.
- A reminder email 3 days before each box.
- Your ratings steer the next bag.
Nearby
- Kalispell.
- The Flathead Valley and northwest Montana, including the Columbia Falls cafe.
- Missoula.
- Great Falls and north central Montana.
Whitefish coffee questions
Can you tour a coffee roastery in Whitefish?
Yes. Montana Coffee Traders runs a roast tour and tasting on Tuesday mornings at its roastery south of town, by reservation.
Who founded Montana Coffee Traders?
R.C. Beall founded it in 1981 on a single Sivetz air bed roaster. He moved to Texas in 1993 and started Texas Coffee Traders.
What is the '81 blend?
It is the Montana Coffee Traders coffee named for the year the company started, released when it marked 40 years in 2021.
Where is the Montana Coffee Traders cafe in downtown Whitefish?
At 110 Central Ave. Its coffee is roasted at the company's roastery on Highway 93 South.
Does Montana Coffee Traders sell organic coffee?
Yes. On September 27, 2026 its list included Organic Montana Morning, Organic Trailblazer, Organic Treasure Blend, an organic Bolivia Alijiri and an organic Guatemala decaf.
Sources
- Daily Inter Lake: Local coffee company celebrates 40 years (May 2, 2021)
- Roast Local: Montana roasters by town
- US Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 subcounty population estimates, July 1, 2025
- Roaster details: our profile of Montana Coffee Traders, written from its public pages, read September 27, 2026.
Updated September 27, 2026.