Former Gahanna coffee truck, Blank Slate Coffee, takes on new purpose in south Columbus

GAHANNA, Ohio (WCMH) -- A coffee truck in Gahanna left its longtime location in mid-March to serve a new caffeinated purpose elsewhere in Columbus.

Owner Matt Roberson said he used to joke that Blank Slate Coffee, run out of a silver van, was the “least-mobile mobile” food truck around -- finding a semi-home in the lot of a former car wash in the Creekside District, where Roberson also hosted events and installed public art.

But its official last day at its former 152 Mill St. location was March 15, according to Facebook.

“The car wash property has been sold, and its future has always been shaky,” Roberson said. “It’s hard to build a business when you don’t know what’s going to happen in the next month.”

About a 20-minute drive away, his van will serve as the new kitchen for Mission Coffee at 2060 S. High St. -- in one of The Fort’s lots. The Fort is a growing hub of businesses on the south side of Columbus at the site of a former ladder and fire truck factory.

Blank Slate has always sourced its beans from Mission, and Roberson took the helm as a head roaster in November, he said. The Columbus-based roastery closed its Short North storefront during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, eventually moving further south on High Street, so the addition of the former Blank Slate van just made sense.

Roberson, who moved to Ohio from the west coast a little more than 10 years ago, said he will miss the regulars he connected with at the Mill Street car wash over the last seven years.

“It’s bittersweet. I have really enjoyed being in Gahanna. I moved around a lot, so Gahanna is the longest I’ve lived anywhere, so it definitely has become my home,” Roberson said.

Mission is scheduled to hold a grand opening event Saturday at 9 a.m., and Roberson said after that, it will start serving coffee at 7 a.m. seven days a week.