After moving to Stagecoach in 2008, Tricia and Douglas Potter said they noticed the area was missing the type of drive-thru coffee shops they enjoyed while living in Portland and Seattle.

In October 2012, the couple opened Perks Beanery to create a place residents and commuters could frequent for iced coffee and morning espresso.

“This market is totally unsaturated as far as coffee goes, so we thought we’d give it a shot,” Tricia said. “The drive-thru [trailer] concept is really popular in Washington and Oregon, and we thought we’d try it here because everyone commutes through [Pinehurst].”

The couple opened Perks Beanery after building the shop’s trailer in their backyard and moving it to its location near the Pinehurst post office.

Shortly before opening, Tricia attended Texas Coffee School in Arlington to learn how to make the authentic Italian sodas, milkshakes, smoothies and other coffee concoctions served on the shop’s menu.

“We pride ourselves on having really good coffee,” she said. “If you want to get a plain latte, it’s going to be a really good plain latte.”

The menu at Perks Beanery ranges from a basic cappuccino to more creative drinks like the Zombie Killer, which consists of a blend of six shots of espresso, chocolate, caramel and coconut. Tricia said many of the menu items come from experimenting with flavor combinations to discover the best coffee experience.

“Doug and I are really big food people, so we try a bunch of different things to find which [drink] tastes the best,” she said. “We do everything here based on flavor. We just want to put the best out there.”

With a steady flow of customers in the mornings, Tricia said she hopes to one day expand to offer multiple locations, including a brick-and-mortar cafe. However, she said Perks Beanery is not in a rush to expand anytime soon.

“We really want to grow organically more through word of mouth, Tricia said. “We really rely on people saying, ‘This is really good,’ and then they tell their friends about it. It’s a much slower growth, but I think it’s a much stronger base for the business.”

For now, the employees at Perks Beanery enjoy forging relationships with new and regular local customers, and many of the signature drinks are named after the customers who visit the most. The shop’s plain 16-ounce latte is known as an Awesome Mark, which is named for a customer who has frequented the shop since it opened.

“Once people stop to find out what we do, we get a lot of positive feedback,” Tricia said. “I’ve gotten to meet a lot of people in the community that I wouldn’t have met otherwise.”

Caffeine fix

Mayan Mocha: fresh-brewed coffee mixed with dark chocolate and a blend of spices ($3.75-$4.75)

Bean Freeze: a frozen blend of cold-brew coffee, sugar and milk ($4.25-$4.75)

Zombie Killer: six shots of espresso blended with dark chocolate, coconut flavoring and caramel ($5.75)

Italian Soda: seltzer water mixed with a choice of flavored syrup ($3-$3.50)

Latte: espresso topped with steamed milk ($3.25-$4.25)

Smoothies: dairy-free blend of raspberry, strawberry, peach, blackcurrant or mango ($4.50-$5.50)