Neshwa Rajeh and Atik Altahif hope that AteaCo can give all of their customers exactly what they need.

The couple spent two years at McHenry’s Riverwalk Shoppes retail incubator figuring those needs out: what specialty teas and single-origin coffees their clientele wanted, and what would work when the business found a permanent location of its own.

That dream comes to fruition on Saturday. AteaCo is hosting its grand opening at 1323 Riverside Drive, the former McHenry Flying Dragons martial arts school.

The Giles family – owners of Reeses Barkery and Pawtique – purchased the building in 2025. Rajeh and Altahif toured it the next day and quickly signed a lease. Renovation work in the 100-plus-year-old structure started in September, getting it ready for the coffee and tea shop.

In addition to small-batch tea mixes and single-origin, fresh-roasted coffee, Rajeh and Altahif will sell a mix of pastries and baked goods, hot drink accessories and hope to offer a day-long spot for McHenry residents to gather, the couple said.

“It is not just a breakfast or a morning spot,” Altahif said. “It is a midday spot, and an after-dinner, grab-a-dessert spot.”

Rajeh wants to see friends getting together for a coffee klatsch, book club, or for high tea, too. High school students are welcome to get their coffee there – and so are their grandparents.

“This is the dream. We want this to be a community space. We want people who want to come here to work, to hear live music, for trivia nights and game nights,” Rajeh said.

A thing they’ve noticed about McHenry since moving to town in 2023 “is there is not much to do for people who don’t drink, on Friday and Saturday night,” Altahif said.

“There is not a lot of sober fun,” Rajeh added. “For us, we want a space that is curated for all ages ... small kids, older kids, seniors. There is something for everybody. A 10-year-old who can’t go into a bar, and a 75-year-old who might not want to.”

Since 2022, they’ve worked to perfect their 30 specialty tea mixes and the 12 single-origin coffees that Altahif roasts himself.

When asked what kinds of baked goods they plan to offer, their answer is “yes.”

When they picked the location, two doors down from the Riverside Bake Shop, the thought was that synergy between a coffeeshop and the bakery just made sense. But a January fire gutted the McHenry institution, and reconstruction of the bakery could take a year.

Instead, Atea plans to work with a rotation of kitchen-licensed bakers.

“We are doing something a little different because we are a small business and want to give other small business owners help,” Rajeh said. “We are going to have local bakers who will be working with us.”

So, yes, they will have muffins, scones and cookies, cakes, cupcakes, and cheesecakes, she said. And, likely, everything in between.

“They can have hundreds of ideas, and if it doesn’t sell, they will change it to something else,” Altahif said.

To start, they will limit their hours of operation to Saturday through Tuesday. Once more staff are hired and trained, the hope is for at least six days a week.

Shelves have also been set aside to allow local small businesses and crafters a place to display their wares.

Both Rajeh and Altahif are still working their day jobs. Altahif works in logistics, which has helped him as he sources coffee beans and teas. Rajeh works in research education, recently finished her second master’s degree and is working on her doctorate in psychology.

They also had their first child, a boy, four months ago, as both worked on getting the shop remodel finished.

“We are trying to do all of the things that we need and want, for us, and making that space in your community a safe space for everyone,” Rajeh said. “It was important for us to bring that to the community of McHenry.”