MOMENT COFFEE a Moment with Chiba
MOMENT COFFEE
a Moment with Chiba.
From Shunan, I jumped back on the Shinkansen, zipping right passed Hiroshima, and down to the furthest point south that I would be exploring on this trip. Fukuoka, only 100 km from the earthquake epicenter of Kumamoto, was still feeling aftershocks from the impact less than a week prior; fortunately they were only tremors.
Slipping into the first café on my list, Moment Coffee, I cozied up by the window, finally taking a moment to relax after a long train ride and dodging a few light showers, and proceeded to order whatever they had on espresso. It was an Ethiopian Guji, and it got me chatting with the young lad behind the espresso machine. His name was Chiba.
With coffee background as a home barista as well as a cook in an Italian restaurant for several years, he decided to open his coffee shop three years before we spoke (this would have been around 2013). In his words, this is the essence behind Moment Coffee.
“I like service. I worked at a bike shop also, and I loved serving customers. My hobbies are also very ‘in the moment’ – photography, surfing, coffee…”
He was working with Ocami as his main coffee roaster, and worked every day as his own barista, in his own space, serving customers the best coffee. Living the dream.
It was a great introduction to the city of Fukuoka, and it definitely set the stage for the other unique spaces the city had to offer. Thanks again for the great moments, Chiba!