Earlier this year we brought you news about an impending expansion for our friends & partners at Olympia Coffee Roasting Company, and today we’re excited to bring you an update on that news in the form of this here Build-Out. If you think visiting the Pacific Northwest for coffee means just Portland and Seattle, think again. Pretty little Olympia, Washington should be a major destination on your coffee travel map, and never more than now with this major new cafe expansion from what the locals lovingly call Oly Coffee.
As told to Sprudge by Oliver Stormshak.
For those who aren’t familiar, will you tell us about your company?
Olympia Coffee Roasting Co. is a small, quality focused coffee roaster from the Pacific Northwest. We source, roast, and brew delicious coffees. In 2013, we were named Micro Roaster of Year. We have done well in Brewers Cup and Barista Competitions for the last few years including First and Second Place in the Northwest Regional Barista Competition, 3rd Place in the United States Barista Competition. Our mission is to “improve the quality of life”; our focus is on achieving this through our work with coffee farmers, our staff, and our customers. We have one of the most progressive green coffee sourcing programs in the world, especially dynamic for how small we are. We work in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Colombia, Rwanda, Kenya, and Burundi. We have a unique roasting approach with a technique we invented called “Caramelization Roast”; our coffees tend to be sweeter and more origin flavor forward than others due to this roasting technique.
Can you tell us a bit about the new space?
We are expanding our business in our current building, annexing 4000 more square feet, giving us a total 6000 square feet. We are reimagining our flagship café and doing a new build-out on one of best corners in town. The café will be twice as big our current café at about 2000 sq. ft. In the middle of the café will sit a fully exposed bar creating an island work space where our customers can engage with world-class baristas hand crafting their beverage. The café will also tell the story of company with windows into our cupping lab, where sample roasting, quality control, and public cuppings will take place. Along the back wall of the café will be full windows into the roasting room with our Diedrich IR 12 and Gothot 23 will be placed in front of the windows. The expansion also gives us access to more office space and warehouse space. Our current café on Cherry St—beloved by our company and baristas around the world—will be transformed into a Barista Training Center and Event Center.
What’s your approach to coffee?
We obsessively focus on the three core functions of our company: sourcing, roasting, and brewing.
Any machines, coffees, special equipment lined up?
Late last year, we came across a 23-kilo Ideal Rapid Gothot roaster that we are having restored and customized for us. We will also be installing a Poursteady automated pour-over coffee machine allowing for more precision, speed, and consistency to our 100% ground and brewed to order concept. We are continuing our strong relationship with La Marzocco with a customized Strada EE. On the grinder side, we utilize Nuova Simonelli Mythos Clima Pro, Mahlkönig EK 43, and Baratza Forte grinders.
What’s your hopeful target opening date/month?
We are hoping and planning for a mid-September 2015 opening.
Are you working with craftspeople, architects, and/or creatives that you’d like to mention?
Our architectural designer is Roussa Cassel. Our construction team is Bicycle Homebuilding. Furniture and cabinets are constructed by Michael Hedges. We source sustainable wood for construction, materials, table tops, custom seating areas and counter tops from Windfall Lumber. We also brought in some elements from the teams at Garza Marfa and work by Moonish.
What’s the address?
