I am doubling down on espressos. All my coffee heroes are espresso fanatics. 91% of the coffees are milk coffees.
My coffee heroes are David Schomer of Espresso Vivace, Jamie McCormick of Cafe Abraco, Tanaka of Bearpond Espresso and Tony Konecny of Yesplz Coffee. Unlike their counterparts, they are not just talking about the coffee notes and uniqueness of the single origins. Their universe has their guests in the middle.
David was the first to realise specialty coffee’s potential. He introduced scientific methods to making better coffee. He is famous for popularising latte art and co-inventing PID, a smart thermostat for espresso machines. People queue up to taste his legendary ristrettos. Shack’s Flavour Bomb espressos are ode to David.
Jamie McCormick started a hole in the wall cafe in NYC. It served the tastiest espresso in town. Again, he focused on the customers, without burdening them with the jargon. One could visit the cafe, order for the espressos, coffees and the tastiest olive oil cakes and biscotti. I plan to serve olive oil cake this winter.
Perhaps Tanaka is world’s best barista. People travel from all over to taste his thick and pillowy espressos. He also made ‘Dirty Coffee’ famous. I tried serving the same, but my existing machine doesn’t allow to pull. But, I will put it in the secret menu, and offer to those who ask for it.
Tony is one of the finest thinkers in the coffee world. He, along with the third wave pioneer cohort, has set the template for every third wave coffee business in the world. Also, he zags, when the rest zigs. In the past he sold the highest quality coffee for one dollar a cup. These days he runs YesPlz coffee, which crafts a new blend or coffee each week. He has been a life long publisher. I draw a lot of inspiration from him.
Giulietta Carrelli is the bravest coffee business owner. She set up Trouble Coffee Co. against all the odds. She is also responsible for the phenomenon of toasts, which took over the world. Shack’s cinnamon toasts uses her recipe.
I am choosing the middlepath. Old school’s philosophy of putting customer preferences first, followed by the focus for the specialty beans. I can serve customers with the best coffee beans, without the jargon.
Shack’s menu is small, and will remain small. I only want to press the tastiest panini, two for now. My toasts will keep getting better, as we learn to make more things in-house. Try the in-house pesto.
As I bootstrap Shack in the second year, I will double down on espressos, delicious panini, toasts and building the space for fellow bootstrappers.
Thanks for being part of the journey.