Coffee is happiness in a cup

If you are a coffee lover, then you would definitely consider a barista as a magician. It is a job that requires science, creativity, a flair for the dramatics and yes, often, a little dose of madness. A great barista knows exactly how you want your coffee to be. It comes with the territory according to Andrew Papadakis, head barista of Tr.Eat, one of Intercontinental Hotel Muscat’s flagship cafe. Everything about Andrew’s workspace was influenced by his personality — rustic, comfy and the sweet, awakening aroma of coffee pervading the air. [gallery link='file' ids='530961,530960,530954'] “My parents used to own an old restaurant and I used to help out with coffee making there when I was very young. It was a very old Italian shop — where I tried all sorts of espressos. It’s where I started to learn,” he shared. Arriving in the Sultanate on December 2017 to an empty shell of a concrete space, he was motivated to give Oman a variation of coffee it has not seen before. Having gallivanted the world travelling to countries in North America, then to Japan, New Zealand, Europe, and South East Asia, he was armed with the knowledge that he believed would change the coffee experience in the Sultanate. But coffee doesn’t grow in Oman. So they can only import the beans and have the local roasters prepare it for them. “The conditions in Oman just aren’t right for coffee plants to thrive. They require the right amount of rain and sunshine and all over the world, they follow a certain belt or ring. Coffee may grow a little bit in Yemen, but in Oman, the conditions are different,” he said. But despite this, a good barista should know how to cater to different people’s taste. While a cafe usually offers a wide array of cold and hot brews, it still boils down to what works with a customer’s taste buds. “Coffee is a preferential thing. Some like their coffee without milk or sugar while others have even more specific requirements. It is a barista’s job to get it right,” he said. “There are many options and ways for people to customise their coffee to their taste. It’s kind of a little bit of barista detective work and by asking the right questions you can really figure out what their taste it,” he added. To keep up with the growing competition, “Even with the coffee, we try new origins, new blends, it’s just constantly growing which is good.” They also make sure that they have nice designs that are enticing and Instagrammable. “What people should know about coffee is that it isn’t as simple as getting the beans, roasting them, grinding to perfection and then pouring in hot water. There’s a science behind making coffee -- there are recipes, a lot of weighing, a lot of time and experimenting which is really interesting,” he said. He pointed out that mass-producing coffee companies have made it possible for people to know the variety and difference in taste through pronounced flavours and aromas. “People always want to drink coffee and better understand it. A regular person usually cannot tell the subtleties of the flavours. In the end, the way it’s served and how it’s served makes the difference. Great coffee is one thing but making the experience likeable is also a major part of it,” he said. Of the many tools and equipment at Andrew’s disposal, one of his favourites is the syphoning machine that he said would remind one of the people doing science experiments. “It looks like a bunsen burner but what it does is prepare a very clean coffee for you with very brown caramel colour and great flavour,” he said. In Oman, coffee is evidently ingrained in the culture and it is customary in many households to be greeted with qahwa and halwa. The passion for coffee keeps on growing with Andrew noting that coffee making competition and barista competition had been getting popular. “People have taken things to another level. There are coffee championships now and several barista competitions. People had been making their own blends, combining their own minerals — it’s a growing scene,” he said. “We’re less than a year old but going strong — we have been busy and with the new menu introduced as well,” he said. Andrew noted that lots of people in Oman are obviously moving towards a more modern trend. “They had been adopting healthier traits going for gluten, dairy free stuff. We recognize that in Oman. The menu needs to be more accommodating to vegans and vegetarians as well — this is something that’s lacking here,” he said. YERU EBUEN & TITASH CHAKRABORTY