Deep Cuts Coffee is Crafting Drinks with Horror Fans in Mind

“What’s your favorite scary movie?”

Visitors to Deep Cuts Coffee, located in the sky bridge at Pacific Place in downtown Dallas, are greeted by a glowing neon sign asking them the iconic question Ghostface poses to victims in the Scream franchise.

Adam Johnson, who runs Deep Cuts Coffee with his wife, Jami, is happy to talk to customers about his favorite scary movies while crafting drinks. Depending on the day, he says, he is partial to John Carpenter’s The Thing or Ridley Scott’s Alien. Jami is a fan of the 1989 adaptation of Pet Sematary.

Their shop proudly displays its genre influences. In addition to the neon sign, posters for classic horror films line the walls, VHS tapes are arranged around a boxy old television set (playing Sam Raimi’s 1981 horror classic The Evil Dead during our visit), and the specials on the menu carry names like John Carpenter’s London Fog, The Laura Palmer, and The Jennifer Aniston (a reference to Aniston’s first major film role in 1993’s Leprechaun, and Deep Cuts Coffee’s seasonal special for March).

The theme and decor were not hard for the owner to decide on.

“I’ve been in the coffee business a long time, and I’ve been a horror fan even longer… A lot of this stuff is just from the house,” Adam Johnson says.

Adam has over a decade of experience working as a barista for some of Dallas’s most noteworthy coffee destinations. Before Deep Cuts, he spent time at Ascension, Houndstooth and Cultivar (whose beans Deep Cuts uses for all of its coffee). All that experience gleaned an appreciation for good coffee served well.
Jami was a regular at Stupid Good Coffee, which previously occupied the space that houses Deep Cuts. When she learned it was closing, she decided to invest in opening a new coffee shop with her then-fiance, Adam (the pair were, appropriately, married on Halloween last year). They originally opened as Scary Good Coffee in mid-2024, before rebranding to Deep Cuts Coffee at the beginning of 2025.

Adam aims to engage more with the local entertainment scene. The coffee shop's theme not only sets it apart from other coffee shops but also lends itself to niche events. “We have these two great communities that we’re involved in, instead of just one,” he says.

VHS tapes, and a video aesthetic, are as important to Deep Cuts Coffee as horror.

“I’m an ‘80s kid,” Adam explains. “So we grew up in the analog era and then moved into the digital era. We kind of saw how great that was for a while and then what a disaster it eventually became.”

He sees VHS as a throwback to a time people are nostalgic for.
“I also think it’s just a great format to collect because it’s becoming increasingly rare,” he adds. “So it’s really fun when you find a good tape out there. And the VHS collecting community is great.”

While they originally wanted to host screenings, VHS swaps and trivia at Deep Cuts, the building, Pacific Place, locks its doors in the evenings and keeps the entrances closed on weekends, so bringing people in after corporate working hours is difficult. Those plans are on hold for now. Instead, the Johnsons want to focus on collaborating with theaters like the Majestic, the Texas Theatre, and Alamo Drafthouse to co-sponsor events.

They will also be roasting their own beans soon (to be sold in bags with VHS-inspired artwork) and will be able to make the Deep Cuts Coffee brand more mobile.

In the meantime, Deep Cuts Coffee will continue to do what it does best: doubling down on quality. The shop’s theme gets customers in the door, but the coffee keeps them coming back.

“We’re really like a destination spot,” Johnson says. “A lot of people come here because they see us on Instagram, and they come here for the experience and the vibes, but we also make really good coffee.”

To find Deep Cuts, access the sky bridge inside the Elm Street Garage (2012 Main Street) and follow the horror energy down a couple of hallways.

Deep Cuts, 1910 Pacific Ave. Monday - Friday 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.; Closed Saturday and Sunday.