Presentation and Culinary Experience

"If you care about the steak then you must care equally about everything around the steak." This is something that is so true to me. I've heard it many times before but the other day I overheard it in the cafe and it got me thinking...

What is an amazing steak if the chairs are uncomfortable? Is the coffee just as good if the mug has smudges on it?

In every aspect of the culinary industry there are inherent expectations for certain items - beer and wine will be served in the appropriate glass, you will get a steak knife for your perfectly cooked and prepared meal. Coffee is no different except that the expectations aren't there yet, I don't think. This is one of many aspects of the coffee industry that need to grow if we expect the general public to accept and truly understand coffee as it should be - a unique and exciting culinary experience.



One way to increase expectations and create a quality experience is through presentation. The reason you are willing to go to a nice restaurant and pay $30 for a steak, green beans, potatoes and a glass of wine is because of perceived quality, among many other things (of course the steak tastes great!). I think there is very little perceived quality with coffee, because 99% of people grew up only knowing coffee as something pre-ground that comes out of a tin can.

Last month Kaldi's changed up some things for our traditional drink menu. We now serve all traditional drinks on a large plate with sparkling water, spoon, coffee and a little chocolate covered coffee bean (its a nice treat after your espresso). I've received a ton of positive feedback from customers who were already ordering from our traditional menu, we've also seen an increase in traditional menu sales. People see the presentation and are intrigued because they've never seen coffee prepared this way before. We have to raise expectations for coffee experiences otherwise it might as well be stale coffee from a tin can.

By presenting coffee in a way that you would be presented any other high end culinary experience you are giving the customer a greater expectation of quality. Sure the tulip art on a cappuccino doesn't actually matter to the taste of the drink, but it shows that the drink was made with attention to detail, with care. It raises the bar as to what the customer should expect when they order a cappuccino, it raises the expectation for coffee experiences.