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October 6, 2025
RIPON – A new bakery and coffee shop has opened in downtown Ripon, reinforcing the city’s long-standing nickname, “Cookietown USA.”
Ripon Dough Co. officially opened in late July at 223 Watson St., the former home of Knuth Brewing Company before its relocation across the street.
Co-owners Brittany Rehn and Beth Dardis said the vacant space offered the right mix of location and charm for their new venture, which features nitro cold brew, cookies, cinnamon rolls and a variety of coffee drinks.
“We liked the character [of the building], and Knuth Brewing kept it up nicely, so there weren’t many things we had to fix,” Rehn said. “The front windows are beautiful, the bar is beautiful with all the wood and the kitchen was really big, so we could fill it with whatever we wanted to and make it our own.”
And that’s just what they did, the baking duo said, outfitting the space with a commercial mixer and everything needed to start baking.
With a mix of heirloom family recipes and online finds, Rehn and Dardis said they are blending tradition and creativity – tweaking ingredients, testing combinations and crafting their own signature cookie flavors.
Case in point: September’s secret cookie, the Sunshine Bliss cookie, which was a lemon-infused cookie featuring white chocolate topped with colorful sprinkles.
“That one turned out fantastic, and it was fun to get creative,” Dardis said.
Alongside the monthly specials, Rehn and Dardis said the shop offers six staple cookies that have earned a permanent place on the menu:
- The OG, a classic chocolate chip with sea salt
- Cookie Chaos, a monster cookie variation
- ChocoLuxe, made with cocoa dough, dark chocolate chunks, toffee bits and a fudgy center
- Striped Dainties, layered with dark and white chocolate ganache
- Almond Razz, featuring raspberry preserves and almond notes
- Oh Snap, a caramel-tinged twist on the classic gingersnap.
Customers, Rehn said, can also purchase premade cookie dough in The OG and Cookie Chaos varieties, alongside the baked cookies.
“That’s still early, as we figure out how to sell all the dough to-go, because all the others have toppings,” she said. “We have to figure out how to package [those].”
This is a work in progress, Rehn said, fueled by customer requests to enjoy baking Ripon Dough Co.’s dough at home – for family gatherings, birthday celebrations or simply quality time with grandkids.
Complimentary offerings
Recognizing that cookies pair best with a great drink, Rehn and Dardis said they decided on nitro cold brew to differentiate their menu and stand out from other coffee options.
By infusing cold brew coffee with nitrogen gas, the owners said the drink develops a velvety texture and frothy top, while also reducing acidity and highlighting its inherent sweetness.
“I do not like black coffee at all – I like mine pretty sweet,” she said. “A nitro cold brew smooths things out and isn’t bitter like [traditional coffee] – though I still like some sweetness in it.”
Rehn said the store also offers a full accompaniment of traditional coffee drinks, as well as cold glasses of milk for customers who prefer a classic pairing with their cookies.
Complementing the store’s coffee selection, Rehn said they offer flights of fresh, homemade lemonades available in multiple flavors on taps inherited from Knuth Brewing.
“Flights are a good way to try different flavors and mix things up,” she said.
Week-long process
From Tuesday to Thursday, the baking duo said they follow a set schedule of planning, dough mixing and baking – baking 45-48 cookies in each flavor, as they typically sell more than 600 cookies when the store is open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
This preparation, Dardis said, means Friday mornings are spent decorating cookies, ready for sale as soon as the doors open.
Sundays, she said, are reserved for serving warm cinnamon rolls, while Mondays are a day off.
“Throughout the weekend, we may make a batch of this or that as part of rhythm,” she said. “On Saturday afternoons, I make the cinnamon rolls, so they’re ready to bake Sunday morning.”
The partners said they have discovered through experience what does and doesn’t work with a commercial mixer.
Rehn said it isn’t as simple as multiplying quantities of ingredients to create higher yields.
“We’ve had to make changes in the recipes to make them work in the bigger batches, making tweaks to balance things out,” she said.
Estimating how much dough to make and how much dough to bake, Rehn said, is an educated guess each week.
The duo said they were caught off guard by the surge of customers after their late July opening, selling out in the first hour.
“We started off well, but so many people who came in bought 12-packs [of cookies], so they could try all the different cookies,” Rehn said. “We way underestimated, and I cried.”
While family members took shifts behind the counter, Rehn and Dardis said they spent the day in the kitchen, preparing dough nonstop to keep up with demand for the following day.
“It’s hard, because we only have one big mixer, so we can only make one kind of cookie at a time,” she said. “We’d get done with one cookie and sold out while mixing the next one. But we learned, pivoted and Saturday and Sunday [of that weekend] went much better.”
Nowadays, though all the cookie flavors have their own following, the partners said the OG remains the standout favorite, outselling the next best-seller by nearly double in six-pack sales.
In the couple of months the store has been open, Rehn and Dardis said they have welcomed back many familiar customers who know exactly what they want, alongside plenty of new visitors.
Cookies and community
Though most patrons opt for quick takeout, the pair said the store provides seating for those who prefer to stay, work or socialize.
“We love it when people come in and stay,” Rehn said.
Rehn and Dardis said they’re hopeful the opening of Knuth Bookseller – expected later this fall next door – will bring even more foot traffic, as the new shop plans to offer a selection of books, records and more.
“We’ll have an open doorway so people can get a book and sit and read or vice versa,” Rehn said.
By then, the cookie shop owners said they hope the number of people coming into the shop increases so they can hire staff and be open for additional days each week.
“We want to be open more, but it’s a lot right now for just the two of us,” Rehn said.
To boost awareness, Rehn and Dardis said they have extended their hours during downtown events, including music nights and community walks organized by Ripon Main St., Inc., like the recent Ripon Rhythm & Brews Craft Beer Celebration.
Dardis said Ripon Dough Co. is also exploring local collaborations where it fits, such as a planned vanilla ice cream and cookie partnership with Sweet & Salty Ice Cream Parlor.
Another example, Dardis said, is when Ripon College students returned to campus for the fall semester.
Ripon Dough Co., she said, participated in the college’s Taste of Ripon event and shared samples.
“We made a bunch of small versions of our cookies and did a move-in weekend special with a free nitro brew with the purchase of a cookie,” she said. “That [was good] because a lot of people don’t know what that is yet.”
That’s also why, Rehn said, they’re happy to provide samples of the nitro cold brew so people can determine if it’s up their alley.
“I’d rather have them try it and if they like it, get them a cup, and if not, get them something else,” she said.
Rehn and Dardis said they have been pleasantly surprised by the following they’ve quickly garnered on Facebook and Instagram.
“I’m actually shocked by the social media response, as that’s been our primary go-to for getting the word out,” Rehn said. “We’ll put a post out if we’re going to be open later and people will tell us they saw our post when they come in. Getting into a rhythm [of posting regularly] is a bit tricky, but it’s worth it because we definitely see an increase in people coming in when we post.”
Rehn and Dardis said word of mouth is spreading, with guests heading in from Markesan, Oshkosh, Fond du Lac and even Green Lake.
As demand grows, the pair said they plan to expand their hours by opening an additional day each week.
As demand increases, the duo said they aim to expand the shop’s hours, even as Rehn continues occasional nursing shifts and Dardis settles into retirement following a career in speech pathology.
The shop may be a two-woman operation up front, but Rehn and Dardis said it’s a full family effort behind the scenes.
Rehn said she and her husband, Eric, purchased the building and he now keeps things running as the resident handyman.
“Eric had been looking for some kind of business opportunity with real estate, and we really fell in love with Ripon’s downtown,” she said.
Rehn said her sister, Cece, pitches in as barista at the shop and as a coffee and cookie recipe advisor, and Cece’s husband has served as videographer and marketer for the business.
“Pretty much everybody has helped us in some way, and that’s saying a lot as I’m the oldest of six kids,” she said. “I’m grateful, as my husband travels a lot for work and we have two kids. I like being a nurse, but this is something different that [allows me to] get creative.”
