Radio Roasters Coffee — Restaurant in Scottdale

The barista who tutted me away from the counter today did a spot risk assessment when I lightly tapped the glass bean hopper to ask if the Rwandan was on tap: "Better tell him hands off the equipment, there's no telling what he'll put his grubbies on next," he must have thought.

"Don't touch," in any case, composed the majority of his response, the rest of which was to inform me that the bean in question was only available as an espresso.

Something about being treated like a two-year-old with no impulse control soured my visit to Radio today. That and, on reflection, I was looking at beans that could have been scooped out of the espresso hopper and made into a pour-over. Instead of service, what I got was "no" and "hands off, please." I was ready to trade a handful of Hamiltons for more beans and eager to audition the Rwandan, but this time I left empty-handed and amazed.

Radio is not special. From what I could assay from two or three bags of beans from a previous purchase, they're better marketers than roasters, but since coffee is a mercurial product at best, any roaster that gets a solid B gets at least one more shot. I don't care about trendy co-ferments (fancy flavored coffee), anaerobics (fermented coffee), and cheeky blends. Terroir and technique matter to me, and I was there today to see if I could pick up a bag or two of new beans, hoping I could put Radio into the rotation as a roaster of choice.

Not this time, and...

We visited here on a sunny afternoon in March 2023. The male barista "Alexis" was what made this experience for us. My partner is a coffee-phile when it comes to roasting process and taste, while I have worked on coffee farms from the transplanting to picking to processing or roasting on neighbors' farms from my home island. I'm not a fan of drinking coffee, but I can appreciate the process.

Alexis is a gem. I laud anyone who is so passionate about not just a topic but even moreso, educating the public which brings in more awareness for how to appreciate and support sustainable and marginalized producers of coffee. He's not the typical pretentious barista...very much the opposite, extremely approachable and treats every question like an astute question even if I think I'm asking a totally silly simple question!

We tried an anaerobic variety and a washed variety, both pour over, both great.

There's not much for seating here, but the atmosphere of the space was very cozy and calming. The clean, organized set up of the roasting space; packed beans in conscientiously selected non-airtight but quality containers; lofted warehouse space, etc.

The music was quite calming. The Vestaboard reminded me of an old project to build one on my own too, so...nostalgia there.

Will definitely return when we're in Georgia...

I genuinely hate giving 1 stars and roll my eyes when I see them. However, I’m not happy. Really not happy.

I’m a coffee head and love my craft roasters. I walked in and asked the barista which light roasts they’d recommend. A washed light Ethiopian is my jam. Well, he didn’t answer the question and just told me in a rather condescending way not to focus on roast (that’s a new one) and more on what’s going on in the bean. If this is an owner driven marketing narrative, I’d ditch it immediately.

Sure.

So I grabbed 2 bags, and lo-and behold one was a medium-dark and the Bourbon was a dark. Ground up with my 1zspresso k-ultra and v60.. both bitter.

Also, the whole reason we drove across town was to get pour over. It’s not available on the weekends. So.. we got drip. I figured I’d give it a shot. It was their hi-fi blend.

Well, The hi-fi coffee drip was also dark roast and bitter.

I like my light roast, and after $40, I’m 0/3. 0/4 if you count the no pour overs

I’d strongly recommend management label their bag roast levels. Dark is just bitter no how you spin it.

If you like a regular bitter cup from an average roaster, come here. If you’re looking for a nice soft aromatic blend, order SEY out of NY. No luck...