Fresh Cup Magazine, providing specialty coffee and tea professionals with unique insight into the trends, ideas, products and people that shape their world.
Issue link: http://freshcup.epubxp.com/i/43236
CAFÉ CROSSROADS Three Ravens Coffee House Tierra Amarilla, N.M. Paul Namkung, owner When Paul Namkung first traveled through the village of Tierra Amarilla 15 years ago, he saw a 110-year-old adobe mercantile building that was boarded up and rotting away—and knew he had to own it. Though the local government had plans to bulldoze the site, Namkung, a lifelong social worker, couldn't ignore the distinctive shape and look of the 4,000-square- foot building. After spending more than a decade saving up funds and meticulously restoring the structure, he opened Three Ravens Coffee House in 2009. The café (which boasts beans from Intelligentsia, PT's and other top roasters) has since become a hit with locals as well as a source of inspiration for others looking to breathe life back into the forgotten buildings and communities of northern New Mexico. RETAILER SPOTLIGHT • with DAN LEIF BEFORE AFTER Q: Q: 24 What was it about the building that was so appealing to you? three or four times a year. I was breaking into the building, taking photographs and making plans on how to renovate the place. I guess it was kind of presumptuous since it wasn't for sale, but I knew I was going to buy it. A: Why did you decide to stretch the renovation out over such a long period? coffee, I made a profit. A: continued on page 26 Fresh Cup Magazine freshcup.com I didn't want to owe anything. I didn't want a mortgage or to be in debt. I bought the building for $37,000, and then over 11 years I put in a couple hundred thousand in renovations and equipment. When I sold my first cup of My friends all said, "What's the matter with you? Why would you even think about such a monumental task?" My answer was: I'm an artist, I can visualize the end product, and it's beautiful. It wasn't for sale for four years. I kept coming up