ghost note coffee seattle washington

It was only a matter of time before Christos Andrews opened Ghost Note Coffee. The Capital Hill cafe that bills itself as a โ€œmodern, progressive coffee shopโ€ is positioned to offer Seattleites a gastronomic coffee experience. Take itโ€™s signature coffee cocktail, called The Sun Ship, for example. The drink, served in a martini glass, is a mixture of espresso, in-house smoked grapefruit rosemary syrup, coconut water, sparkling water, and lime.

โ€œAny professional in any sort of field, art or otherwise, comes to a place where you feel like youโ€™ve hit a wall,โ€ Andrews says. โ€œI felt somewhat limited until now.โ€

At Ghost Note, heโ€™s the type of owner who pulls a towel from behind the bar 30 seconds after walking in to wipe up a smudged bit of creamer on the counter. His eyes flash around the cafe as he speaks, making peace signs at customers breezing through the entrance.

The prevalence of cocktails on cafe menus is on the rise. Ghost Noteโ€™s includes a concoction of African espresso, tonic water, juniper sage concentrate, and cucumber. And still another, dubbed the Firefly Tonic, that features tonic water, Burundi espresso, Lemon Lavender shrub, lemon bitters, and of course, in-house rose lavender syrup.

ghost note coffee seattle washington

Andrews made his entrance into the food world while working at Whole Foods in Nashville, where he was living attempting to make a go at drumming in the cityโ€™s music scene. Ghost Noteโ€™s name refers to a musical note that at once carries rhythmic value and no discernible pitch. For a drummer, a ghost note is what lends personality and feel to an average piece of music.

โ€œBut after I got my first barista job, it was game over,โ€ Andrews says with a grin.

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Instead of a drum kit, his instrument of choice at Ghost Note is a La Marzocco Linea. Andrews and his friends jokingly refer to the shopโ€™s signature method of pulling shots as a Blast Brew.

โ€œWe put a flow restrictor on the pump,โ€ Andrews says, โ€œturning the pressure down to five-and-a-half bars, and the temperature up to 203, with a 14-and-a-half brew ratio.โ€

Other members of the Seattle coffee community, like Alex Johnstone and David Rothstein ofย Convoy Coffee, appreciate the way Ghost Note brings a culinary passion to coffee.

โ€œWeโ€™re big fans of Christos,โ€ Johnstone says. Of the Blast Brew, he adds: โ€œItโ€™s like pulling an espresso-esque shot at the volume of twelve ounces.โ€

ghost note coffee seattle washington

Ghost Note regularly stocks Seattleโ€™sย Broadcast Coffee, and sources food items from other local outfits likeย Salmonberry Goods and Columbia City Bakery, where Andrews expanded the coffee program. The shopโ€™s mugs come from nearbyย Yu Tang Ceramics, and it adds a bit of imported flare from a guest roaster program, which has featured more far-afield roasters like Coloradoโ€™s Sweet Bloom Coffee Roasters.

It should be noted that Andrewsโ€™ price point is higher than that of other area shops. He and his partner, a software engineer named Lee Hampton from New York, surveyed the pricing of other cafes in Capital Hill and set theirs in the high end. Then they added 10 percent.

Thatโ€™s because Ghost Note doesnโ€™t accept tips. Andrews uses the added income of higher-priced menu items to pay baristas competitive wages as well as for holidays and two weeks of paid vacation.

โ€œGhost Note is different because theyโ€™re quietly doing things better than they need to be done,โ€ Convoyโ€™s Rothstein says.

ghost note coffee seattle washington

Andrews won Americaโ€™s Best Espresso contest in 2013 while working forย Tonyโ€™s Coffeeย out of Bellingham. Before that, he was directing coffee atย Neptune Coffee, thenย Tougo Coffeeย for two years. Last year, his Sun Ship garnered a semi-finals nod at theย Coffee Masters NYCย competition.

โ€œThere were times when I had like three jobs,โ€ Andrews says of his dedication to his work. โ€œAnd Iโ€™m technically still a trainer and consultant at theย Seattle Barista Academy.โ€ When Ghost Note opened, Andrews ran the cafe by himself.

โ€œI donโ€™t recommend it,โ€ Andrews says with a laugh.

Andrews says he has no idea where Ghost Note will be in the future. But he hopes to open another shopโ€”he knows that much. And he also knows he doesnโ€™t want to hit a ceiling. Today, Ghost Note is good. In five years?

โ€œIโ€™m hoping weโ€™ll be significantly better,โ€ he says.

Ghost Note Coffee is located atย 1623 Bellevue Avenue, Seattle. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Paolo Bicchieri is a freelance journalist based in Seattle. This is Paolo Bicchieriโ€™s first feature for Sprudge.

Photos by John Clem.

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