vampirezed Senior Member Joined: 8 Aug 2003 Posts: 6 Location: shelton Expertise: Beginner
Posted Wed Aug 13, 2003, 1:42pm Subject: how did you get started?
i am new to this. i guess i have been lurking (correct word?). are all of you baristas (er, i guess i mean, do all of you sell espresso for a living)? i suppose some of you are like hobbiests everywhere, you do it in spare time. what do you think of somebody who wants to start a career as a barista. i mean, somebody like me, who didnt know that starbucks wasnt great coffee. to anybody who can stop laughing at me, can you advise me on how to get started as a barista? oh, by the way, i have ordered a copy of the book you were talking about: the chem of quality. looking for a little help, here. please and thank you. michael
Posted Thu Aug 14, 2003, 7:41am Subject: Re: how did you get started?
When I got my first barista job, the owner of a shop asked me if I would like to work for him, right out of the blue. I started my training and was blown away by the detail I had to learn. I loved it so much I dove head first by buying books like you, although I wouldn't suggest Chemistry of Quality for a first or even tenth book.
The only thing I can suggest, which is what I do when looking for a barista job, go to as many coffee shops in your area. Taste their coffee and watch the team and how they work. If you like what you taste and see on a unattached profesional level, apply there. Sometimes it's better of to work for the not so popular small coffee shops. You can then concentrate on being the best barista you can with out the intense pressure of having twelve people in line waiting to order coffee. In the end the only way to do it is just do it. hands on is really the only way to learn making coffee as a barista.
Barista Guild Member #170 Baristas seem like shots of espresso if left to sit too long. They grow cold, bitter and unpalatable.
cheapdialogue Senior Member Joined: 25 Mar 2002 Posts: 156 Location: Bellingham, WA Expertise: Professional
Espresso: Marzocco Linea 3AV Grinder: Espresso- Mazzer, Drip-Bunn Vac Pot: I can still dream... Drip: Curtis APS Roaster: Dreaming of a Probat
Posted Thu Aug 14, 2003, 10:29am Subject: Re: how did you get started?
I was a coffeehouse parasite and I heard a new coffee place was opening in Denver (where I was at the time). I put in an application and was called for an interview. I worked as a barista for a short time and then my super-sensitivity to detail (as compared to the other workers)was noticed. I was trained to roast. I roasted for a year or so then moved on to other shops. I bounced my way all over for a decade, always in coffee shops. Finally my dream to open my own came about when I met my current girlfriend. We opened our own shop and...voila. I can only hope our employees are as ambitious about detail as I am.
cheapdialogue Senior Member Joined: 25 Mar 2002 Posts: 156 Location: Bellingham, WA Expertise: Professional
Espresso: Marzocco Linea 3AV Grinder: Espresso- Mazzer, Drip-Bunn Vac Pot: I can still dream... Drip: Curtis APS Roaster: Dreaming of a Probat
Posted Thu Aug 14, 2003, 10:42am Subject: Re: how did you get started?
Ya know, I totally misread the question. I think I need to wake up more, sorry for giving ya my life history there. To sum up my entering the biz. I was simply into coffee. I didn't have much knowledge, but I did have a love for it. Many times and in many ways that enthusaism will carry through. Some people like knowledgable new hires, some like fresh slates. You never know which place wants what attributes. So all you can really do is simply care about the realm of coffee/espresso, and let it show.
vampirezed Senior Member Joined: 8 Aug 2003 Posts: 6 Location: shelton Expertise: Beginner
Posted Thu Aug 14, 2003, 12:38pm Subject: Re: how did you get started?
thanx for the words, alex and mike t. uh... mike. if you wouldnt start with the book chem of quality, what would you read. uh... can you suggest a few titles for a guy who knows so little he thinks sbux is groovie? please
baristaboy Senior Member Joined: 4 May 2003 Posts: 24 Location: Georgia Expertise: I live coffee
Posted Wed Aug 20, 2003, 8:28pm Subject: Re: how did you get started?
Some men are born to greatness and others have coffee thrust upon them! I first got started in coffee when I went in for an interview at HMS(Host Marriot Services). HMS is the only corp. that has a liscneced partnership with starbucks to run their stores. In contrast to U.S. Airways and Barnes&Nobles Books store which only serve their coffee. But as I was saying I stared at HMS as a Barista in Starbucks about two years ago. It was a stroke of luck that would spark in me new goals for my future. I recently left Starbucks at HMS to go to a larger and more educational corp. run store. The change gives me experince and room to grow while I attend college to major in business. About half a year ago I found coffee geek and a new world of information was open to me. As a result, I read some reviews, wrote some reviews, and spent a lot of money! That's how I got started, in a nutshell.
Posted Fri Aug 22, 2003, 6:57am Subject: Re: how did you get started?
I actually got a barista job thrown upon me I was in a small town named ferndale in the nw corner of washington state. I worked in a small video store with a combined radio shack, seattles best coffee, trading card store and a craft store. well one day while filing videos the manager of the seattles best came up to me and asked if I Wanted some more hours but working espresso so I took it up and did that for a while I really enjoyed it. after I left there I did some tullys, cafe vita in seattle and worked at starbucks for a few hours (they wanted to pay me 6.50)min wage being 6.25 at the time for a barista with nearly 4 years experiance and 1 year being at a really good cafe (cafe vita) anyway I took the apron that they gave me (still have it to this day) called them the next day and said forget it. :) now I'm working as a manager of a cyber cafe serving torrefazione up in redmond (microsoft town). speaking of life history :O
Posted Fri Aug 22, 2003, 11:58am Subject: Re: how did you get started?
You've had a fair number of forum regulars who are baristas weigh in on the topic btu the vast majority of the regular poster in this forum, myself included, are just hobbyists. We range from passionate newbies to folks with a passing interest to the truly dedicated aficionado's who have a wealth of knowledge (e.g. guys like "Another_Jim" aka Jim Schulman).
Many of us like me are somewhere in between. Interested in espresso and coffee as a hobby and have acquired enough kowledge to hopefully be helpful to the newbies when we answer queries but more than anything are constantly looking for ways to improve the espresso and coffee we make at home.
The suggestion to visit Coffeekid.com and look at the book selection is a good one. There's a wealth of information freely available on the Internet. Best bet is to start out learning the basics - the difference between varietals and blends, what makes espresso different from coffee, the mechanics of how espresso is produced, why different categories of machines and grinders are suitable for specific uses (i.e. home use vs. commercial use), what the different drink names indicate etc.
All of this info is readily available and along the way you'll learn a bit about the history of espresso coffee. One thing you'll learn quickly is that most folks who are passionate about espresso and coffee enjoying talking to others about it and sharing their knowledge. There's no such thing as a dumb question (provided you've shown the motivation of learning a few basics before firing out a slew of simple questions). If I was younger and not already in a specific career that is fairly rewarding in many ways, I would readily consider getting a barista job with the target being to manage and eventually own a coffeehouse (or more likely a small chain of them). I might just do it anyway {;-)
Starzzy Senior Member Joined: 4 Apr 2004 Posts: 1 Location: NY Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Apr 4, 2004, 4:11pm Subject: Re: how did you get started?
I want to get started, however am unsure how to exactly due so...I want to work at my local starbucks, and knwo that many of you have worked there before...any ideas as to how i can get a job there? What do they ask at their open hosue interviews? I'll accept anything that can help me! please!!!! I love coffee...
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