Interim Coffee co-founders Raymond Orate (left) and John Herrmann. All photos by Raymond Orate, courtesy of Interim Coffee.
Pyramid schemes usually don’t come with much good, but at least one example can be found in Temporary coffeemodern coffee roastery and retail store near San Diego.
Partners in this local venture are coffee professionals John Herrmann and Raymond Orate.
The pair initially partnered up at San Diego coffee shop Swell Coffee, whose CEO and co-owner Gina Champion-Cain was charged by federal officials in 2019 with defrauding investors of approximately $350-400 million for almost a decade through numerous interests. Champion-Cain to admit guilt to numerous allegations in June this year.
Although Champion-Cain’s illegal dealings naturally put an end to Swell—Orate and Herrmann were fired—the two coffee professionals were forced to continue riding the coffee wave on their own.
Much of the coffee comes from Denver Cape Horn Coffees baked on Diedrich IR-5 machine, Interim Coffee recently opened a 320-square-foot cafe one block from the beach in Carlsbad Village. Orate credits Interim regular Fallon Rusing with lighting the fire to move into retail.
Rather than renovate the petite Carlsbad space with state-of-the-art coffee-making equipment, the Interim team let the characterful building speak for itself, largely devoid of adornment except for specialist coffee-making equipment like a La Marzocco Linea Classic, Mahlkönig K30 Twin and a Curtis G4.
“We decided to build a bar on a cart and keep the design elementary,” Orate said. “We put up some shelves to sell vintage items we’ve collected over the years, and we also put some photographs up for sale. That’s it for the interior design.”
This relaxed approach is also reflected in the company’s image, where film photography emphasizes quality and authenticity without the need for rushing.
Said Orate, “Carlsbad residents love coffee and they love supporting owner-owned businesses.”
Interim Coffe is now open at 10am. 2943 Carlsbad Blvd. in Carlsbad, California. Tell us about yours new cafe or roastery here.
Nick Brown
Nick Brown is the Daily Coffee News Editor at Roast Magazine.
