Situated in the lobby of The Mining Exchange hotel is Colorado Springs’ newest artisanal coffee shop.

Outfitted with vintage furniture, the cozy lounge resembles an antique curiosity shop, boasting local artifacts and historic maps.

The cafe pays homage to the history of the hotel’s building, which opened in 1902 as a stock exchange for local mining companies. With gold accents throughout, the memory of the mining days is ever-present.

Blk Mgk (Black Magic) opened near the start of April. Inspired by the mysticism of the late 19th century, the coffee shop crafts a range of concoctions, from teas to coffees and cocktails.

“What’s really great about The Mining Exchange is it has a lot of depth when it comes to the history of architecture,” said Morgan Hoagland, director of food and beverage at The Mining Exchange. “This building has a very rich history that draws people in.”

The cafe’s coffee (or “black magic”) is made with beans from local roasters Hold Fast Coffee. The “potions” on the menu were designed by the team of baristas, who drew up unique drinks like the Pistachio Ube Latte, which blends the flavors of pistachio and ube with espresso, as well as the Royal Crown, an espresso drink mixed with the unlikely combination of ginger lemon kombucha, house-made honey lemon ginger syrup and hellfire bitters.

So far, the most popular drink (unsurprisingly) is the Banana S’mores Latte, made with espresso, steamed graham cracker, whole milk, banana purée syrup, dark chocolate and a brûlée mallow.

“When you’re talking to the baristas, they kind of sit there and help you decide exactly what you’re looking for,” Hoagland said. “You don’t necessarily have to stick to the script. If there’s something more generic that you’re looking for, or something more creative, these guys are great and we know (how to) put that together.”

The shop also takes on the role of a local apothecary, with wellness “remedies,” like the Tummy Tame with assorted Bittercube bitters to help digestion, or the Happiness Helper with vitamin B12.

“When it comes to what we’re doing here, it’s more of that unique European experience of like freshly made espresso with different remedies, and we have different herbs and powders back there. It’s not so much syrups with the pumps and the sugar and all that stuff. It’s all these different things that can actually be beneficial like vitamins,” Hoagland said.

The cafe will also offer fresh pastries from local bakery Provisions, as well as plated breakfast and lunch options.

The theme was heavily inspired by the concept of a traveling “medicine man” during Western expansion, hence its name, said Gus Krimm, general manager of The Mining Exchange. When stopping in, don’t be surprised if you stumble upon a tarot reader sipping a brew.

“Even harkening back to the gold rush era, late 1800s, to the point of time that this building was erected, you had the westward expansion and the medicine man, which had kind of (a) mystique about him,” Krimm said.