New and would like some direction.

Luc

I have all ready posted this in "Have your say". Wasn't sure which one to post it in..............



Okay, this is exactly the site I've been after, great!!
I will be opening a cafe in the future but first plan to gather as much info/advice/ideas as possible.

1. Could someone recommend other cafe/barista websites both in Australia and Europe?

2. I'm currently in London where I'll be till March next year then spend 3 months travelling around Europe. Can anyone recommend some must see cafes in the UK/Europe that you've ever been to or heard about?

3. I want to arm myself with as much knowledge as possible about coffees & cafes. Is there courses in Europe that you can't do in Oz?

4. Could I try and find some work with coffee growers or roasters?

Okay enough questions for now. So if anyone could help I'd really appreciate it.

Thanks!!!

BeanCounter

Hello Luc, 1. A few sites worth visiting: CoffeeGeek, Home-Barista, SCAA (Specialty Coffee Assoc of America), ASCA (Australasian Specialty Coffee Assoc), alt.coffee (through Google Groups or a news reader). 2. I've never been to Europe (and not likely to, either) but if Paul Bassett's 'Coffee Crazy' DVD is anything to go by, two places you'd need to visit are Luigi Lupi's cafe in Italy (Naples?) and Le Procope in Paris (http://www.procope.com/en/index.htm). I'd search usenet's archives of alt.coffee through Google Groups for recommendations. There's bound to be heaps of posts there. I can't provide any particularly useful suggestions for your third or fourth questions. Regards, Gary

Luc

Thanks Gary for the leads. Have been doing heaps of surfing lately, so much to read! Cheers

admin

Actually Luc, i spent a number of years in Europe, and i would have to say my research revealed very few places where you would learn more about coffee there, than here in Australia. Obviously you could spend a couple of years in an Italian espresso bar and learn a lot, but in terms of coffee courses, to my knowledge they don't offer anything better than we have here. The only other place is Scandinavia - especially Denmark - where there is a thriving coffee scene. Certainly not in the UK, nor much of the rest of Europe, where the standard of espresso coffee is not high. Admin

Luc

Thanks Admin. Yes that's what I'm slowly working out. It's just that I'm itching to get started and won't be back to Oz till the end of next year. Don't think I'll be travelling up to Denmark so it looks like I'll get stuck into it when I get home. Am currently looking into travelling to South America(Want to backpack there anyway) and trying to find some volunteer work with a plantation somewhere in exchange for knowledge of all things coffee, if such a thing exists. There's an article in an Aussie/Kiwi mag(TNT)here about volunteering at a plantation in Nicaragua, www.fincmagdalena.com, will have to contact them to find out whether it's work for knowledge. I'm sure when I return there will be enough places in Oz for me to approach for employment prospects but if anyone knows of people that have gone to South America and worked for knowledge or something similar please let us know. Anyway thanks peoples,

askthecoffeeguy