About

Coffee that's mild on purpose.

A small roaster and tea curator in Tacoma, Washington. We buy direct, roast gently, and try to keep the menu shorter than the line of people in it.

Roasting coffee
Our story

Started in a garage. Still small on purpose.

In 2019 we started roasting on a Huky 500 in a Tacoma garage, sharing bags with neighbors who told us they wanted coffee that didn't punch them in the face. Six years later, we're still chasing that idea. We roast on a Loring S15, but the brief hasn't changed.

We work with eight farms across Honduras, Ethiopia, Guatemala, and Yunnan. We pay above fair-trade. We post green pricing on every bag. And we still answer every customer email ourselves.

What we believe

Four things we've decided not to compromise on.

01

Direct sourcing, transparent pricing

We publish what we paid for green coffee on every bag. Our farm partners are listed by name, by relationship length, and by the price we paid per pound.

02

Roast for clarity, not theater

Every profile we develop favors sweetness and acidity over char. We don't chase trophies — we chase the cup that's still good on the third pour.

03

Small on purpose

We cap our wholesale accounts. We turn down the chains. The roastery floor will never have a second machine. You get a better cup when fewer people are deciding.

04

A real café, not a brand activation

The Tacoma room is a quiet 26-seat café — wood, plants, real ceramics. No QR codes on the tables. No digital signage. Just coffee and conversation.

The team

Three people, no investors.

We're small on purpose. Everyone you talk to actually works here.

Nico Alvarez
Founder, head roaster

Nico Alvarez

Started the company out of a garage in 2019 after seven years roasting at other shops. Buys all the green coffee. Drinks all the espresso.

Hana Sato
Tea director

Hana Sato

Spent six years importing for a small Tokyo tea wholesaler before joining us. Curates the tea menu and runs our cupping room.

Marcus Reid
Café manager

Marcus Reid

Runs the Tacoma room. Trained the entire bar staff on dialing-in. Will remember your order after the second visit.

Drop in

The Tacoma café & roastery.

One room. Twenty-six seats. Best filter coffee on the Hilltop, our customers say.

Address

612 N Pine Street, Tacoma WA 98403

Hours

Tue–Fri 7a–4p · Sat–Sun 8a–3p · Closed Mondays

Roastery tours

Saturdays at 10am — free, by reservation

Get in touch

hello@mildbrew.com · (253) 555-0182

The Mild Brew café in Tacoma
The Saturday note

A short letter, every Saturday.

One origin we're tasting, one brew tweak we're trying, one short read worth your time. No promos, no upsells.

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