What made you want to open a cafe?
Our first shop opened in 2011 as a coffee stand with the concept of bringing specialty coffee to a broader audience, and KOFFEE MAMEYA Kakeru opened 10 years later in 2021.
We wanted to create a stage where we could demonstrate our experience, knowledge, and service skills because the specialty coffee culture has grown significantly in the last ten years, and at the same time, our baristas’ experience levels have also increased.
How would you describe the brand of your cafe?
We are always thinking about how we, as baristas, can contribute to the coffee value chain.
So we don’t want to roast but master the role of the barista: extraction technique and service. As a storyteller of coffee beans, we want to be a bridge between producers/roasters and consumers and a trusted brand that is needed by both.
Describe the location/demographics of the area where you opened. Why did you choose this area?
Koto-ku, where KOFFEE MAMEYA Kakeru is located, is the 9th largest city in Tokyo, with a population of 530,000.
The city is rich in cultural color, with the old downtown culture of Tokyo and contemporary museums.
What equipment are you using to make coffee? Why did you choose this equipment?
We use a Modbar for espresso extraction and an SD-1 dripper for filter coffee extraction.
We have chosen these because, first, they produce the taste we want, and second, they fit in well with the space we have in the shop.
Describe your bar or customer flow. Break this down for us. How did the equipment influence the flow or vice versa?
KOFFEE MAMEYA Kakeru mainly offers coffee-tasting courses, where customers can enjoy the seasonal course for over one hour and 30 minutes.
The set-up is similar to an open kitchen in a fine dining establishment. An island barista’s workstation is surrounded by a counter seating area where customers can enjoy their coffee while watching the barista’s beautifully crafted work.
This counter design also makes us baristas more professional, as we are -constantly under pressure to be seen by the customers around us.
Above all, the most significant advantage of this set-up is that the barista can serve the customer face to face, thus maximizing the value of the customer experience.
What’s one thing that makes your cafe unique?
We baristas, especially those participating in competitions, always think about collecting and presenting new information about coffee. Still, we don’t do this for the judges; we do it for the customers, and the main focus of our offer is to increase the value of the customer’s experience. MAMEYAKakeru is what makes it unique.
In the restaurant industry, a range of restaurants, from small-town restaurants to fine dining, allows customers and staff to choose the restaurant and working environment that best suits their situation. The result is a healthier value chain.
By giving the coffee industry such a range of choices, customers and baristas will grow, the value of specialty coffee will increase, and the industry as a whole will be enriched.
That is the mission of baristas.
As told by Eiichi Kunitomo.