Very proud to have gotten the chance to speak about coffee in Sint Maarten on the morning show of the popular island92 radio station with Dr Soc! There is so much that goes through your head on such an occasion that I’m pretty satisfied with how the interview went, although there are a zillion things that I’d change the next time!
“15 minutes of fame”, baby!
Hope you like it! See also https://nopressure.coffee/
Local newspaper on Sint Maarten, the Daily Herald, writes another nice article about the supermarket Market Garden and how they are attracting new customers and generating new business.
The Double Dutch Café functions to lower the threshold for people to come in and see the fresh fruits and produce and tries to entice them to try and buy from a whole range of ready-to-eat products, starting with excellent coffee.
… although the coffee alone is a reason to stop by in your daily routine…
Article mentions my name, Christian Peper, as a barista for their Double Dutch Café! So proud that was able to switch myself around and start doing what I love. Making the best coffee on the island for people.
Source: https://www.thedailyherald.sx/supplements/weekender/76518-market-garden
Double Dutch Café, inside Market Garden supermarket, has hired barista Christian Peper to bring third wave coffee to the island of St Maarten.
The cafe wants to make the best coffee available on the island of St Maarten and odes so by raising the standards to make coffee. It’s no longer about adding hot water to ground coffee beans but about choosing the right water, using the right water temperature, picking a light to medium roasted bean, setting the best grind level to achieve 25 seconds brew time and serving it instantly.
After two weeks of set-up and soft opening, I’m proud to say that I’ve been busy creating an excellent coffee corner inside the Market Garden supermarket in Simpson bay, Sint Maarten. My mission is to show that excellent coffee is possible, even when you grind beans on-demand.
I have helped them design the shop’s workflow and set-up. I told them where to place the machine for best customer contact and how much room a barista needs to work efficiently and comfortably. They bought an espresso machine in the US but didn’t know how to configure the machine. So I calibrated the amount of water, ground coffee, found a sweet spot and frothed milk from the many different milk or milk-substitutes that the supermarket caters. I asked for a Mazzer Super Jolly grinder but they were impossible to get on time, so I’m making due with what I’ve got. The Baratza Forte AP with ceramic burrs is a great machine though!
I am currently sourcing some espresso beans on the island to try and make a damn good espresso. The cafe will be working with Starbucks beans and they’ve already sourced too many to get rid of, so that’s what it is. However, it’s fine for Cappuccino and other milk coffees, iced coffee and frappuccino. Given the island’s taste, that is what sells the most anyway. But for the few coffee gourmands and espresso fans, it’s trivial to get a couple of kilos of great medium roast natural processed beans and please them too. And who knows… maybe I can convert a few of them 🙂
Christian Peper 