In San Francisco, it sometimesย seems as if oneย could blindlyย hurl a rock and hit the storefront of a specialty coffee shop. And yet, in the ever-expanding world of tech, whereย companiesย offerย nearly everything toย their employees, specialty coffee has found a new placeย to stretch. Major playersย like Twitter and Facebook may pride themselves on the steaming cups of exemplary joe madeย available to their employees at any time of day. But forย those companies that havenโt invested in providing in-office caffeine, a new, relatively sparsely occupied niche has opened: the mobile coffee cart. Simply put, the mobile cart, adorned with an upscale espresso machine and all of the necessary coffee-making accoutrements, wheels the experienceย (and the drinks) of specialty coffee right to your doorstep. And taking the lead isย Hedge Coffee.
Married couple Alex and Olga Sobalโimmigrants from Belarus and Russia, respectivelyโstarted Hedge Coffee in December 2015 (just two scant months ago) to fill the catering-sized hole in the San Francisco coffee market. The goal, as Olga says, is to provide โgreat coffee anywhere.โ The Sobals found that, though there were some mobile carts servingย the needs of San Franciscans, none of them seemed to focus enoughย on quality. Alex Sobal, the quality-control expert at Oaklandโs Mr. Espresso, saw a business opportunity. โWe position ourselves,โ Olga says, โas the first specialty coffee catering company. We always tell people, โDonโt expect skim sugar-free vanilla lattesโitโs not what we do.’ โ
Purchasing a Barista Capsule from Capsule Mfg., the couple used their respective skillsโAlex comes from an architect background, while Olga has a master’s in journalismโto build not only an attractive coffee cart, but one equipped to dole out consistently fantastic beverages using beans sourced and roasted through Mr. Espresso. And the result is something to behold.
I visited the coupleโs Hedge Coffee pop-up at the Ampersand flower shop and event space in the Mission. (Though corporate coffee service is their intended moneymaker, the duo is still working to get the word out.) Alex Sobal, thick blond dreads hanging to his mid-back, stood behind theirย gorgeous reinvention of the coffee cart. Sportingย a glossy off-white veneerย with the simple, elegant Hedge logo in black lettering, theย beautiful cart featuresย a remake of the vintage Faemaย E61 espresso machine and a Mazzer grinder on its flank. Upon close examination it seemedย that everything had been tweaked down to the smallest detailโmatte-black milk pitchers matched matte-black bags of coffee and the matte-black FETCOย brewer tucked away behind the Faema, all of them offset by the cartโs clean surfaces and the splash of bright red espresso cups lining the top of the E61. The Hedge logoโtwo asymmetrical columns of white, embossed letters on aย black backgroundโwas designed by Alex. โWe have saved so much money doing all the creative work ourselves,โ heย says, adding, โCreative thinking in general helps to solve problemsโฆcreatively.โ Everything theyโve done is informed byย the mobile-coffee-cart experience they envisioned.
Aย specialty coffee cart is not justย defined by its appearance, of courseโthe coffee it serves is paramount. And Hedge Coffee does not slump in that regard. In the vein of Mr. Espresso, the coffee turnedย out fromย this beautiful cart is dark and rich,ย whether withย milk and/or sugar, or nothing at all. Somehow, the coffee feels classic, a refined throwback to an espresso that existed before termsย like Third or Fourth Wave coffee came along. Which fits what the Sobals are doing, as their coffee cart, tucked among the sprawlย ofย flowers when I visited, is a reinvented nod to the simplicity of the past.
And though coffee carts are frequentlyย just segues to brick-and-mortar shops, Alex and Olga donโt plan on heading down that path. โWeโve never really thought about [having a cafe],โ Olga says. โWe were thinking about renting a small place for tastings, but we want to be more flexible with our timeโand having a physical location requires all of your time. And, well, we arenโt ready for that yet.โ Inย the meantime, the couple looksย to spread the word of what theyโre doing while also hoping to grow beyond the single unit,ย addingย more carts andย becoming what Alex Sobal refers to as a โmobile coffee company.โ For now, the pairย are doingย what they can to fill this gap in San Francisco’s otherwise crowded coffee market. And they’re doing it with a style and charm all their own.
Noah Sandersย (@sandersnoah) is a Sprudge.com staff writer based in San Francisco, and a contributor to SF Weekly, Side One Track One, andย The Bold Italic. Read moreย Noah Sanders on Sprudge.