The next chapter of the 2024 US Coffee Championships kicked off last week in Houston, Texas for the first of the Qualifying Events. The last hurtle before the national stage of competition, coffee professionals earned their spots at the Qualifying Event via the Preliminary Rounds that took place in the latter part of 2023. And now, after three days of barista battling, we know the first half of the field at the 2024 US Barista Championship.
24 competitors punched their tickets. Many of the names will be familiar to those who have been following along with barista competitions over the years, including 2022 USBC Champion Morgan Eckroth as well as Finalists Kay Cheon, Reef Bessette, Meg Skop, Dakota Graff, Frank La, and the must-watch Anthony Ragler. There are return USBC competitors Gray Kauffman, Hugo Cano, Jinwoo Ahn, Seidy Selvanow, and Reyna Callejo. But reputation alone won’t carry you, and there are a host of individuals looking to make a name for themselves at the national level.
Along with a spot at the USBC, he top six finishers from the Houston Qualifying Event also earned a bye into the Semi-Final round. But without any further ado, here is everyone moving on to the 2024 US Barista Championship from the Houston Qualifying Event.
Morgan Eckroth – Onyx Coffee Lab – Portland, OR
Kay Cheon – Dune Coffee – Santa Barbara, CA
Reyna Callejo – Olympia Coffee – Seattle, WA
Reef Bessette – The Coffee Movement – San Francisco, CA
David Ellis – Oh Oh Coffee – Aurora, CO
Jake McFarland – Black & White Coffee Roasters – Raleigh, NC
Jason Yeo – Saint Frank Coffee – San Francisco, CA
Arturo Mandujano Jr. – MoonGoat Coffee Roasters – Costa Mesa, CA
Rafael Levy Diner – Onyx Coffee Lab – Rogers, AR
Jamie Patel – Counter Culture Coffee – Durham, NC
Noel Goodwin – Hagen Coffee Roasters – Seattle, WA
Seidy Selvanow – Cafiex Roasters – Vancouver, WA
Gavy Oesmoto – Eyes Peeled Coffee – Los Angeles, CA
Frank La – Be Bright Coffee – Los Angeles, CA
Meg Skop – The Coffee Movement – San Francisco, CA
Dakota Graff – Onyx Coffee Lab – Rogers, AR
Jeremy Bennet – Bennett’s Coffee Co – Rockville, MD
Hugo Cano – Amberson Coffee – Indianapolis, IN
Jinwoo Ahn – Cafe Grumpy – Brooklyn, NY
Anthony Ragler – Black and White Coffee Roasters – Raleigh, NC
Lynn Hrabovsky – Cosmic Bloom Coffee – Vista, CA
Phillip White – Los Angeles, CA
Gray Kaufman – Seattle, WA
Miranda Haney – Barista Friend – Austin, TX
Congratulations to everyone moving on! We’ll be back tomorrow with the winners for the Cup Tasters and Roaster Championship Qualifying Events.
Zac Cadwalader is the managing editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.
