Fresh Cup Magazine

22/03/2025

"It took a long time for me to convince myself that running out of product wasn’t a bad thing." — Rich Jambor, Maddie & Bella Coffee Roasters

For small cafes, a limited menu isn’t a limitation—it’s a strategy. Learn how businesses like Maddie & Bella and Naysayer Coffee are making every menu item count.

More and more customers expect prepared food when they go to coffee shops, which poses a challenge for cafes with small kitchens. Here’s how they can still deliver a great food program, despite space constraints.

21/03/2025

Demand for matcha is soaring, but crafting matcha-based drinks can be time-consuming and tricky to perfect, requiring hand-dosing and whisking powdered green tea.

Enter Monin’s Matcha Green Tea Concentrate. Made with organic Japanese matcha and conveniently pre-sweetened, the concentrate allows cafes to make a wide range of hot and cold matcha drinks in seconds rather than minutes.

To learn more about this innovative product—and its potential to transform cafe workflows—we spoke with Michael Moberly, Monin’s beverage innovation manager.

Read this new product profile, sponsored by our partner, Monin Americas.

Demand for matcha is skyrocketing. Enter Monin’s new Matcha Green Tea Concentrate, made with Japanese matcha powder and perfect for cafes looking to speed up service and help diversify their menus.

20/03/2025

A new report alleges that Starbucks used a Swiss subsidiary to avoid taxes on $1.3 billion in profit. It may not be illegal, but does it align with the company’s carefully crafted brand image? Read more in this week's Coffee News Club.

🔗 https://rebrand.ly/CoffeeNewsMarch17

19/03/2025

Today, more customers than ever are expecting prepared food items at their favorite coffee shops.

That might sound like bad news for small cafes—but, as Haley Greene reports in her new story, coffee businesses can turn that constraint to their advantage.

By getting creative with limited square footage, focusing on simple and seasonal ingredients, and avoiding space-hogging cooking equipment, even the smallest shops can build impressive food programs—and prove that you don’t need a vast kitchen or long menu to make a big impact.

More and more customers expect prepared food when they go to coffee shops, which poses a challenge for cafes with small kitchens. Here’s how they can still deliver a great food program, despite space constraints.

18/03/2025

Featured this week in Coffee News Club, coffee has become a target for theft as the commodity prices rise. Coffee bags are being stolen directly from farms or during transportation.

Learn more on this at the link.

Six months ago, we brought you news of coffee cherries being stolen right off the branch in Uganda—now shipments of green coffee are being targeted.

18/03/2025

Featured this week in Coffee News Club, a new report shows how Starbucks is avoiding taxes.

Learn more at the link

A report by a corporate tax research center alleges that Starbucks used a Swiss subsidiary to avoid taxes on more than a billion dollars in profit over the past decade.

18/03/2025

Former cafe, bakery, and commissary kitchen owner Erica Escalante is launching a new cafe accelerator program aimed at helping coffee shop owners thrive.

The Reina Cafe Accelerator is a new, 24-week small group mentorship program started by Escalante, now a coffee consultant based in Southern California. The program provides “real guidance [shop owners] need to have a thriving business.”

Applications for the program are open now through March 23rd. The accelerator program is open to cafe owners who have been open for at least a year. A selection committee will review applications and choose eight participants to be part of the inaugural cohort. The program includes:

* Weekly group sessions covering operational topics like budgeting, branding, and sales.
* One-one-on coaching sessions.
* Guest speakers from around the industry.
* Hands-on resources and tools to support learning objectives.

Fresh Cup is the media sponsor for the Reina Cafe Accelerator program.

The Reina Cafe Accelerator program offers affordable group coaching for independent cafe owners looking to boost profitability, grow, and blossom.

18/03/2025

LA’s best coffee map wasn’t made by Yelp—it was made by a barista.

Jaymie Lao’s Saturate Google Map is changing how people find great coffee in LA, giving a spotlight to under-the-radar specialty cafes. With nearly 400 shops listed, it’s a must-use tool for any coffee lover in the city.
Read how she built it and why it matters.

Longtime Los Angeles–based coffee professional Jaymie Lao—formerly of Go Get Em Tiger and now an independent consultant—t reveals what makes the LA coffee scene so special.

17/03/2025

With the EU buying nearly a third of the world’s coffee, their new deforestation legislation will have a global impact. Learn more about the ripple effects.

The European Union’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) started with good intentions, but may drastically change the way coffee is grown, sold, and consumed.

17/03/2025

Ever wondered why steaming oat milk is so different from dairy? Uncover the science behind the foam.

Milk steaming is a hard-earned skill; alternative milks don't make this task easier. But with a few tips, you can easily toggle from oat to soy to almond.

17/03/2025

Get out your glowsticks and grab a latte at your local coffee rave. Plus, there’s a new U.S. barista champion, Starbucks is allegedly avoiding taxes, and green coffee hijackings are on the rise.

Stay up to date with the latest news in the coffee sector The Pourover!

🔗 https://rebrand.ly/CoffeeNewsMarch17

16/03/2025

You manage your first coffee shop by running to Costco for cups and teaching recipes by word of mouth. But will that still work when you have five locations? Scaling requires systems—here’s how to set them up.

Operating one coffee shop is hard enough, but juggling multiple locations while keeping quality standards high can feel impossible. Here’s how these owners do it.

15/03/2025

Ever wonder what a day in the life of a coffee consultant looks like?

Find out how they juggle travel, client meetings, and industry events.

Part McGyvers, part experts, part confidantes, a coffee consultant can help you take your idea for a new shop or product and bring it to life.

14/03/2025

Jaymie Lao knows better than most that Los Angeles has a special coffee scene.

A longtime LA-based coffee professional and advocate, Lao has worked for Intelligentsia and Go Get Em Tiger. Now, she’s using her platform as an independent coffee consultant to support local coffee businesses and people—and even helped train the current United States Barista Champion, Frank La.

In her new interview with Ashley Rodriguez, Lao covers everything from the importance of barista training and hospitality to the city’s recovery efforts following the January fires.

Longtime Los Angeles–based coffee professional Jaymie Lao—formerly of Go Get Em Tiger and now an independent consultant—t reveals what makes the LA coffee scene so special.

14/03/2025

Thanks to our friends at Texas Coffee Traders!

RoasterLink helps roasters like Peace connect with potential wholesale buyers who are aligned in needs, goals, and geography.

Marc says: "RoasterLink has filled a need that we didn't even know we were missing until we started working with them! The staff has been so helpful and friendly, and the leads are shared efficiently and in a timely manner."

Learn more at the link.

🔗 https://rebrand.ly/RoasterLink

14/03/2025

Coffee soda has been around since 1895—so why do we still think of it as a “new” trend? Learn why this century-old beverage has struggled to find its place, and how it could find its place in the market.

Everything old is new again, as recent innovations in sparkling coffee go to show. Here’s why the carbonated drink presents a unique opportunity for coffee businesses aiming to channel nostalgia with a modern twist.

13/03/2025

Running out of oat milk—or over-ordering cups—can cut into your profits fast. These cafes are tackling inventory with tech and timing.

Effective inventory management can help coffee shops cut costs and increase profits. Read on for insights from three cafe owners to learn what works for them.

13/03/2025

"We never had such low stocks in February, a period that is still distant from the new crop." — Willian Cesar Freiria, Cocapec

Brazil’s coffee reserves are at record lows.

🔗 https://rebrand.ly/CoffeeNewsMarch10