It's been a big few weeks around Ristretto Roasters, starting with this article in the Tribune. The placement! The photo! The fact that the writer got everything right! We'd also been included the week before in a Willamette Week article, which I think pushed us over a certain tipping point, as the cafe has several times of late felt like a party, with various luminaries--Naomi Hebberoy of clarklewis; Canadian barista champ Chris Olson--stopping in to chat and sip and laud the coffee. It's really fun to watch this play out.
But don't take my word for it. Cuisine Bonne Femme, a local writer and Portland mover-and-shaker (even if she is at this minute on a plane to Paris) left this comment on my personal blog:
What a pleasure it is to watch this small business not only grow, but thrive.
And for good reasons: Ristretto makes a damn fine cup of coffee, certainly, but there is more to this story than that.
I have watched the community evolve around Din and Nancy’s shop, adding a new gathering place for the neighborhood, and watch people make connections there; flirting, chatting, talking shop and talking family. A perfect spot for a quick business meeting, a mid-morning break with a warm mug and the NY Times, a place to sit outside with my dog and a little cookie -just watching the world go by.
It feels like Ristretto is so perfectly woven into the fabric of Portland that it is like they have always been here. Except, yeah, they are only a year old. Remarkable.
Observing the crowds at the Hollywood Farmer’s market last week; they were jonesing and lining up for the Ristretto cups. Watching Nancy’s amazing interactions with the customers (some of them old fans by now, and some of them first timers) – it became apparent that something really special is going on.
Sure, there are other fine roasters in town with more swagger and bravado. There are cafes where the knick-knacks for sale outnumber the coffee beans. And there are places on every corner that are larger, fancier, and have bakery cases the size of Safeway. But why bother?
See, Ristretto’s beauty lies in their simplicity: Good coffee, freshly roasted to perfection and a few simple but heavenly pastries, served by nice folks. Nothing more is needed.
Oh, and the coffee? Perfect.
I told her, when she gets back from France, I've got a job for her.
Recent Comments