Our industry is blessed to have so many wonderful women contributing their greatness and inspiring us all. Laura Gonzales knows this to be true and founded the Strong Women of Coffee project to help them tell their story and give them a voice. Today we chat with Laura about her experience in running this project and what she has learned …
If we want healthy businesses that produce amazing coffee experiences then becoming better at training and teaching coffee needs to be a constant pursuit. There are hardly any books out there that speak directly to the situations coffee trainers find themselves in…until now! Anne F. Nylander has written the book “Training Principles for Specialty Coffee Professionals” and it acts as …
The Mud House stands as a am amazing representation of where passion, genuine love of people, and a consistent pursuit of quality can take you. For 10 years now Casey and Jeremy Miller have been operating one of St. Louis’ best coffee shops that gives their customers a taste of excellent coffee, food, and hospitality all under one roof. In …
Your espresso machine is probably the most expensive thing you have in the shop. It is also the heart of your cafe’s operation. Taking care of it should not be left to chance unless you want a pretty big repair bill or to have your ability to do business come to a complete stand still. To help us in …
No matter where we are in specialty coffee, we have all benefited in some way from the influence of Starbucks and their immense impact on the world stage. Today we get to learn from someone who has not only been in specialty coffee since it first came on the scene in the 70’s but has been at the forefront of …
Kids! When you open a shop you are bound to be serving these little hot chocolate drinking future baristas right along side their single-origin cortado drinking parents. The question is, are they welcome?How do we view them? How do you serve them and still serve your older clientele well? What if we want to focus more on the grown ups? …
Negotiations…No matter what you do in coffee, you negotiate all the time. Whether it is for a raise, a better price from a supplier, or a lease for a new location. The question is not whether or not you negotiate, but do you do it well? Do you get taken advantage of? Do you put others on edge? The fact …
It’s a very special Founder Friday. I am thrilled to welcome to the show the new World Brewers Cup Campion (and first female WBrC Champ!), Emi Fukahori!!! Not only is Emi the WBrC campion but she also runs the world-class cafe MAME Coffee in Zurich? Switzerland w/ her partner (and 2x Swiss Barista Champ Mathieu Theis. This conversation covers so …
The Barista Manual, The Book of Knowledge, That Binder That Never Gets Updated…whatever you call it there is usually some assortment of documents lurking in the cafe that is meant to be a resource but is more a source of frustration. Writing a high quality manual for the shop is absolutely critical to establishing a baseline of expectations nd equipping …
Working the cash register is not often seen as legit barista work. We’d rather be on the machine because we are closer to the actual product. Fact is, the register is perhaps more important than the machine as it sets up the entire experience for the guest. Either they will get a great first impression or they will have a …
