Castle Coffee, which opened its doors for business in July, finally got a chance to celebrate Tuesday morning with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Owner Joshua Castleberry was joined by several community leaders, including Mayor Gregg Hull and County Commissioner Michael Meek, as he cut the ribbon to officially open Castle Coffee.

“We’re so thankful for the city of Rio Rancho. As a coffee shop, my big thing of why I started this business was to build community,” Castleberry said. “We don’t have a business without people, without building relationships and my big thing is loving on people, giving them the best experience I can and hopefully bring that to Rio Rancho and make this a gathering place for people. That’s what a coffee shop is and that’s what it should be used for. So hopefully everyone that comes in feels welcome and hopefully getting the best cup of coffee they possibly can. So we’re very thankful to be here and excited.”

Castle Coffee is Castleberry’s second location and first in Rio Rancho, where he grew up.  The new shop is at 1330 Rio Rancho Blvd. in the same building that housed The Bagel for decades.

“I know that Rio Rancho is very fond of its small businesses. We love supporting small business,” Hull said. “We love seeing small business grow, and we look forward to your success here in Rio Rancho. We are so grateful for your investment in Rio Rancho.”

Castle Coffee is much more than a business to Castleberry; it’s his passion. He wants his shop to be a place where neighbors, friends and even strangers can sit down and chat.

“Coffee for me is much more than just coffee. It’s community,” Castleberry said. “I think that the coffee shop atmosphere is one of the only places that anyone in any walk of life, no matter where you come from, can come together for a cup of coffee. And I feel like there’s very few places that can offer that for people. So for me, starting the shop was trying to be a community hub for people.”

Castle Coffee is open 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.