Chocolate and coffee seem to be made for each other! Whether you are having a simple well made mocha or pairing a bar with a single origin espresso, chocolate can compliment, enhance, and make more accessible the specialty coffee we serve. Yet, as much as we know about coffee, we tend to fall short when it comes to this very important …
This week we get to chat with 2 time Japanese Barista Champion and 2014 World Barista Champion, Hide Izaki! We talk about his path to the WBC, the distinctive traits of the Japanese coffee culture, what has he learned and experienced in his travels , the importance of failure, what is his #1 piece of advice to baristas, and how we can build our …
Kevin Sinnott is the author of the books The Art and Craft of Coffee and Great Coffee, blogger at CoffeeCompanion.com, producer of Web TV series Mission Coffee Can and creator/host of CoffeeCon, the Consumer Coffee Festival. He’s appeared in Oprah Winfrey, ABC-TV’s 20/20 and many other television shows talking about coffee. He’s frequently quoted as an independent coffee expert. Sinnott …
Pour over coffee is often seen as a sign that you take coffee seriously. It implies a level of quality not usually reserved for plain ol’ batch brew. Batch brew is seen as a bit more pedestrian. Customers may even assume that, compared to pour over, batch brew is inferior in quality. The truth? It all depends. Today we take …
KATIE STARTZMAN Click to SUBSCRIBE! Katie Startzman was raised in the northeast but has called Berea, Kentucky home for more than 20 years. Before founding Native Bagel Company, she worked in the nonprofit world, organized a large community garden, and wrote “The Knitted Slipper Book.” She decided to explore the food business because nothing makes her happier than handing people something …
Fear, frustration, stress…we all have experienced one or more of these feelings when we deal with groups in the cafe. Be they a family, friends, or study group we can sometimes have trouble managing the group dynamic and the chaos that can often accompany it. In spite of all this though the group does not represent a hurdle to jump over …
There is more to a business than just our vision and goals. When we create anything we are involved in a conversation. Today we chat about how to approach your goals and creative projects in a way that takes into account the big picture.
SHIFT BREAK #33 : As this year comes to an end and many of us are reflecting on 2018 and planning on what we want to pursue in 2019. As we think and put together goals there is one thing that we tend to miss, and in so doing rob ourselves and others…
SHIFT BREAK #32 : I love drink drills! They are an essential tool in any training I do because they work VERY well for bringing a up baristas practical bar skills and getting all staff on the same page. Today we are going to talk about what drink…
SHIFT BREAK #31 Regular staff meetings are one of the most important tools for energizing, equipping, informing, and affirming. In order to get the most out of these meetings we will be covering several tips that I have seen work wonders in conducting…
