Build-Outs Of Summer: Qualia Coffee In Washington, D.C.

Another day, another sweet new Build-Out from the Washington, D.C. area. Qualia Coffee‘s stated goal is to treat coffee like fresh produce. Quips owner Joel Finkelstein, “The only flavor we offer is coffee.” This new cafe opened earlier this summer.

As told to Sprudge by Joel Finkelstein.

For those who aren’t familiar, will you tell us about your company?

Retail roaster established in 2009 to treat coffee as fresh produce. We sell all our beans within three days of roasting, coffee brewed on site by the cup plus a single-origin focused espresso program. The only flavor we offer is coffee.

Can you tell us a bit about the new space?

Building on eight years of experience, the new space expands on the current focus on single-origin, locally roasted coffee while refocusing our approach to customer service. With an 18-foot bar and no central register, the new space enables greater customer interaction and education while highlighting specialized equipment such as a Poursteady single-cup pour-over brewer and a Slayer espresso machine.

What’s your approach to coffee?

We treat coffee like fresh produce with a limited shelf life. As a retail roaster, we are able to tightly control when our roasted coffee is brewed on site as well as delivered to the end user. This allows us to roast to maximize the flavor profile without making compromises to extend shelf life. Therefore, much of our customer education can focus on the natural product, specifically where the beans come from, how they are processed, and how to improve brewing at home. We also source our green coffee from a wide variety of suppliers both small and large scale importers, focusing on farm direct and small lot offerings.

Any machines, coffees, special equipment lined up?

We have a Poursteady, allowing us to effectively offer any of our wide selection of coffee beans by the cup in a variety of sizes, hot or cold. We also have a Slayer espresso machine that allows us to highlight single-origin espresso.

What’s your hopeful target opening date/month?

We opened on July 15th.

Are you working with craftspeople, architects, and/or creatives that you’d like to mention?

We worked with Bestudio Architects and Something Different Contracting.

Thank you!

The Build-Outs Of Summer is an annual series on Sprudge. Live the thrill of the build all summer long in our Build-Outs feature hub. Got a Build-Out of your own? Get in touch.

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