Table of Contents
Updated Aug. 17 at 5 p.m. with an additional comment from Hypergoat Coffee Roasters co-founder Rodrigo Ramos.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Hypergoat Coffee Roasters is building out a cafe and roastery in the former First Agape Baptist Community of Faith building in Del Ray, according to city permits posted in the storefront window at 2423 Mount Vernon Ave.
The commercial building permit, BLDC2025-01269, was issued May 26 and puts the estimated construction cost at $350,000. It describes a tenant build-out that includes a barista counter with coffee equipment, a seating area, a coffee lab and roasters area, and a small commercial kitchen with a hood and wash area. The tenant space is listed at 3,051 square feet and classified under the A-2 use group covering restaurants and night clubs.
Three trade permits followed in July, adding $82,500 in work: mechanical on July 9, valued at $28,000; electrical on July 12, at $35,000; and plumbing on July 13, at $19,500. The Russell Gage Corporation of Alexandria is listed as the general contractor.
The building permit carries a 2025 application number but was not issued until this May, and expires Nov. 22. The property owner is 2423 Del Ray Holdings LLC, which lists the building as its mailing address.
Rodrigo Ramos, who co-founded the business and serves as head roaster, confirmed the project in an email Monday afternoon, days after declining to discuss it on the grounds that it was too early. He wrote that the company had been cautious at that point but had since concluded there were things it was comfortable sharing. "Yes, we're working on a second Hypergoat location in Del Ray," he wrote, adding that the buildout remains early and that much is still being defined.
Ramos said the avenue has a personal pull for the family. He and Deborah Joos have walked Mount Vernon Avenue with their children for years, he wrote, and Hypergoat has run a stand at vintage markets in Del Ray, making a space there feel like a natural fit. He did not give an opening date and said he would share more as the project progresses.
Hypergoat's website lists two locations, its cafe at 215 N. Payne St. in Old Town and a stand at the Burke Farmers Market in Fairfax County, and the company has not announced the Del Ray project publicly. It has continued promoting the Old Town cafe, announcing a second-anniversary celebration there Aug. 22.
Ramos and Joos founded the business in 2023. The husband-and-wife team began roasting in a Southern California garage in 2015 before moving east, and Ramos said they have lived in Alexandria since 2018, selling online and at farmers markets before opening the Old Town cafe in August 2024. Trade publication Daily Coffee News reported that year that Hypergoat roasts on a seven-kilogram Loring Nighthawk at a roastery on the owners' property, with Ramos roasting two nights a week alongside a full-time job in information technology. The roasters area described in the permits would change that arrangement.
First Agape Baptist Community of Faith, founded in 1999 by the Rev. Dr. Daniel L. Brown with 94 members, bought the Mount Vernon Avenue property in March 2003 for $1,825,000. The congregation sold it Aug. 10, 2023, to 2423 Del Ray Holdings LLC for $3.1 million, city property records show. The church's website lists a new home at 2300 Burke Ave., with services beginning March 2, 2025.
A case study published by Tartan Properties, which represented the church in the sale, says the congregation struggled to maintain the building amid gentrification and an aging membership, and sought a buyer who would consider keeping affordable housing units it had operated on the second level for more than 20 years.
The parcel's assessed value has nearly tripled since the sale, rising from $1,160,373 as of January 2024 to $3,365,120 this January, city records show.
The build-out comes amid broader ownership changes on the avenue. Alexandria-based Bonaventure Realty sold 2525 Mount Vernon Ave. and the 2401-2419 retail stretch in May to an affiliate of Ganges Property Group of Sterling, the Washington Business Journal reported. Ganges holds a special use permit and has a site plan under review to convert the vacant former human services office at 2525 into 25 short-term residential units above a daycare, a private swim school and a restaurant. Those properties are separately owned from 2423 Mount Vernon Ave.
Ryan Belmore is the founder and publisher of The Alexandria Brief. Send questions, news tips, and feedback to ryan@alexandriabrief.com.
The Alexandria Brief runs solely on reader support — no ads, no corporate owner. Become a monthly or annual supporter or make a one-time contribution.
6,200+ Alexandria neighbors get The Alexandria Brief free in their inbox every weekday morning. Subscribe here.
