Barrel One make really good coffee. I know because it’s the coffee that’s packed into my stovetop 9 and a half days a week. From humble wholesale supplier with a single account, Barrel One has grown into a small team of coffee enthusiasts plying their trade at two signature cafes while continuing to supply cafes and coffee lovers across Sydney with fresh grinds. My daily choice is the Honey Pot blend but I encourage Dan to throw me a curve ball every down and then.

I caught up with Dan, leading lover of coffee at Barrel One to see how things were.

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MF - Dan, tell us about Barrel One, how long have you guys been around and how did it come to be?
DA - I started Barrel One in 2012. At the time I was working for a cafe in Mona Vale and a friend of mine who was starting a cafe in Manly contacted me and wanted to use a local product. I pretty much started Barrel One for that one cafe. Back then it was just me and a few boxes in my dad’s garage. From there the brand grew organically. Fast forward 8 years it myself and my business partner Samuel. We now have a small (but great) team, 2 flagship cafes and wholesale accounts scattered around Sydney. 

Who are your customers and how do you serve them?
We’re a coffee wholesaler and cafe, so we have a wide range of customer and clients. We wholesale to cafes and restaurants all over Sydney we also have an online platform where home brewers can order from anywhere in Aus to grab some tasty beans. 

Also as mentioned earlier our two flagship cafes in Manly and Brookvale serving brews and bagels everyday day ending in “y”

What’s the one product at Barrel One that generates the most conversation with your customers?
We are heavily focused on coffee obviously but the food offering at our cafes is very well received.  Especially our cheese grills. (The Fondue is the most popular if I was to name one) 

These tasty little numbers are from a good friend of mine in Melbourne who has graciously shared his recipes with us. His store is Maker & Monger. Known for killer cheese toasties and being one of the best in the business in Aus. 

How are you continuing to serve your customers while we’re all in shutdown? What’s been resonating with customers so far? How can people continue to support during the shutdown?
We have been lucky enough to still trade under the current restrictions. But that being said we’re limited to takeaway only. Customers are also still able to order all our coffee products online. 

We have just launched our “Breakfast Box” delivery service where we send out a box of goodies such as bagels, smoked trout, cream cheese, avo, etc. and all the ingredients to make your own Barrel One breakfast at home. We deliver every Saturday & Sunday mornings. The delivery is contactless and a text is sent as soon as we drop the goods at the door.

With everything going on it feels like we're in uncertain and unprecedented times, what are positives you think we can emerge with?
I’ve noticed a massive shift in staff/guest interaction during this time. I mean all our customers are great and kind but recently we’re all spending that extra couple minutes or so to talk and how we and they are going. We are all connecting that little bit more which is really nice. Something that I hope will stay long after this is all over.

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