Many coffee shops do an internal tasting round before officially opening their doors to customers, commonly known as "morning calibration." The core purpose of this step is to confirm whether the coffee being served that day still tastes consistent, and if any abnormalities or negative changes in flavor are detected, adjustments must be made promptly. Some people wonder: if the equipment, water quality, parameters, and beans haven't changed, how could the taste change? In fact, espresso is particularly susceptible to the effects of coffee bean degassing and air humidity, so morning calibration is not superfluous. In addition to espresso, lattes and cold brew also need to be included in the testing. This article will explain one by one the reasons for morning calibration in coffee shops, what gets tested, and its significance at the food safety level. [more…]

Once upon a time, opening a coffee shop was seen as the ideal way to escape the 996 grind and enjoy a slow life. However, upon truly stepping into this industry, many shop owners find reality vastly different from their imagination—early rising becomes an unavoidable daily routine. In recent years, the opening hours of independent cafes have been getting earlier and earlier, with some even lighting up at six in the morning to welcome customers. What is driving this wave of competition over early-morning coffee? How are chain brands and private shops each responding? From the consumer habit of coffee in the morning and alcohol at night to the late-night needs of special professions, the survival model of coffee shops is quietly changing with customer demands. This article will take you through the story behind the changes in business hours in the coffee industry. [more…]

Many coffee enthusiasts operating semi-automatic espresso machines at home will notice a detail: the first espresso extracted right after the machine is turned on is often poured straight down the drain. This is not waste, but an early-tuning routine followed by both professional coffee shops and experienced home baristas. Why exactly can't this espresso be drunk? What systematic preparatory work do coffee shops do before officially opening? What role does espresso cleaning powder play in this? This article will focus on the daily startup routine of espresso machines, explain why the first shot of espresso is discarded, and comprehensively lay out the standard steps for in-store morning tuning, while also explaining the uses of cleaning powder and recommendations for choosing it. The article will also draw on the practical experience of Front Street Coffee to help everyone develop a correct mindset for coffee machine maintenance. [more…]

For office workers who need to stay alert, coffee and tea are both daily essentials for a quick pick-me-up. A recent survey of more than 2,000 respondents in the United States showed that coffee drinkers have more energy in the morning, while tea lovers show greater vitality in the afternoon. This difference has sparked discussion about beverage choice and timing. This article will review the survey data, analyze the mechanism of caffeine, and explore whether tea and coffee can be consumed together, while offering practical advice for consumers seeking healthy stimulation, including how to choose pure tea or black coffee, as well as related product recommendations from Front Street Coffee. [more…]

Adjusting the espresso recipe every morning is a required course for many baristas, but many people waste a large amount of beans through repeated trial and error, which is costly and can easily lead to heart palpitations from drinking too much. Front Street Coffee also went through this stage, and ultimately it was because they kept staring only at the grind setting and adjusting repeatedly, without finding the true source of the problem. This article sorts out from the beginning a method for determining the day's extraction formula within three shots: first determine whether the grind needs to be changed, then infer underextraction or overextraction from the taste, and finally master the two key details when adjusting the grinder—distinguishing the size of the adjustment increment and purging residual grounds. The article also includes practical tips such as preheating the blind basket, helping reduce waste and improve morning adjustment efficiency. [more…]

Guming's mini-program has quietly launched a new product called "Morning Fresh Milk." The only ingredient is fresh milk, available in hot or cold options, priced at 8 yuan per 500ml. After trying it, consumers discovered that the cup contains exactly the same refrigerated fresh milk brands used in stores for making tea drinks—Yue Xian Huo, Weigang, and Renyangyitouniu—tasting no different from what's sold in supermarkets and convenience stores. Once the news broke, netizens reacted with sharply divided opinions: some felt the price was completely uncompetitive, arguing it's better to just buy from a supermarket or convenience store, and joked that this was "forcing out a product with no real substance," with R&D staff cobbling together a new item just to meet KPI targets; others thought they could simply add espresso or toppings themselves to make a low-cost latte. Some netizens even let their imaginations run wild, speculating that Guming is testing the waters for a foray into the breakfast market. This article will sort through the discussions sparked by this new product and the possible business logic behind it. [more…]

In the early morning, a can of black coffee is enough to awaken the sleeping senses. Black coffee adds no embellishment whatsoever, fully releasing the raw, rugged character of the coffee beans, with bitterness, acidity, aroma, and body interweaving into a distinct flavor profile. However, this taste of bitterness, acidity, and astringency coexisting is not something everyone can easily accept. Black coffee products on the market vary widely in style: some lean bitter, some are mildly bitter and acidic, some have pronounced acidity and bitterness, and there are also charcoal-roasted, blended, and various flavored coffees, each with different levels of sweetness and creaminess. This article sorts through these common categories and the taste characteristics of representative products one by one, while also explaining the natural advantages of black coffee—low sugar and low calories—to help coffee lovers find the one that suits them among the many choices. [more…]

On a cold, windy weekend morning—the kind of day meant for sleeping in until you wake up naturally—hundreds of people were already queuing for hundreds of meters outside Manner stores in several cities across China before dawn. Seven Gingerbread Man–themed stores in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Nanjing, Hangzhou, and elsewhere attracted a large crowd of young people to get up early and endure the cold by offering a 9ml Jo Malone perfume and a Christmas badge with the purchase of a new coffee. The queue at the Shanghai Xuhui Binjiang store was the most spectacular: some people got up at 6 a.m. and arrived at 7 a.m., and by the time the store opened at 9 a.m., the line had already reached number 300. What exactly is the magic of this collaboration that makes young people willing to wait two or three hours in the freezing 0°C wind? Let’s take a closer look. [more…]

During the holiday period, sales at tea beverage stores surged, but Guming employees were complaining bitterly about a pistachio milk cap. Since its launch in early September, this series has won customers' favor with its unique aroma, but in making the milk cap, the pistachio paste is thick and difficult to pour, and whipping takes more than 10 minutes, leaving many workers feeling overwhelmed during order surges and even calling it an "early shift nightmare." This article details employees' feedback on the production difficulties and includes related recommendations from Front Street Coffee. [more…]

In Italy, the moka pot isn't called a gadget; it's called "the coffee machine at home." It is estimated that over ninety percent of Italian households own at least one moka pot. Every morning, millions of little aluminum pots gurgle one after another on the stove—that is the shared background sound of the nation's morning. Understand this material culture, and you can see why [more…]

Luckin Coffee's weekly Thursday operational notice once again put store employees on edge, as the company officially announced several new products, including "Triple Cheese Thick Matcha," "Coconut Trio Latte," and "A Whole Coconut." Among them, the preparation method for "A Whole Coconut" completely overturns previous operating habits. Employees need to wear gloves to take out frozen coconut eggs and pour the prepared coffee liquid into the coconut shell for serving. The process involves more than ten steps, prompting many workers to call it absurd. What troubles them even more is that these new products may be launched nationwide, and morning shift staff must complete a large amount of prep work within half an hour. Many worry that they simply cannot handle it when running the store alone. [more…]

The lingering warmth of the weekend has barely faded, and on Monday morning office workers are still steeped in drowsiness, with a cup of coffee becoming essential to wake themselves up. Yet this morning, many early risers discovered that two lattes from Luckin Coffee on the Ele.me platform cost only 6 yuan, and this abnormally low price quickly ignited social networks. Some seized the chance to place orders, joyfully starting the new week, while others had just paid when their orders were unilaterally canceled. Luckin then urgently shut down its Ele.me stores and issued an apology, admitting it was caused by a configuration error by operations staff. This sudden price bug not only left some consumers with false hope, but also sparked discussion about who should pay for corporate mistakes. Was this blunder a mistake or marketing? And how should consumers view the cancellation of low-priced orders? This article will sort out the ins and outs of the incident and bring a professional perspective from Front Street Coffee. [more…]

Recently, a video about finding an employee badge in a Luckin Coffee drink has drawn attention on social media. According to a netizen's post, while drinking a Luckin cold beverage, they discovered an employee badge with a staff name printed on it at the bottom of the cup. After media verification, the store involved admitted that an employee had indeed lost a badge, speculating that a loose pin caused it to fall into the drink. At the same time, posts on social media about foreign objects such as flying insects, raw material packaging boxes, and equipment parts appearing in Luckin drinks are not uncommon, and stores mostly compensate consumers with refunds plus coupons, triggering some customers' doubts about the brand's attitude in handling such matters. Some consumers have shared their experiences of defending their rights, ultimately reaching a satisfactory solution through negotiation. This series of incidents has once again pushed the food safety and after-sales handling of chain coffee brands into the focus of public opinion. [more…]

The combination of coffee and alcohol is becoming a new trend in the food and beverage industry, with "C in the morning, A at night" evolving from a skincare concept into a consumption model of "coffee in the morning, alcohol at night." Post Coffee, a coffee brand under China Post, recently launched the country's first daytime coffee and nighttime alcohol concept store in Fuzhou, along with two Fuzhou-exclusive drinks. Since its first store opened in Xiamen in 2022, Post Coffee has expanded to ten stores across four cities. Can this new business format offer new ideas for coffee brands venturing into nighttime operations? At the same time, brands such as Starbucks, Seesaw, M Stand, Tims, and even Cotti Coffee have also been entering this track, and coffee brands' attempts to expand from coffee into alcohol and extend operating hours are accelerating. [more…]

Feeling sleepy early in the morning is only human, but for baristas bustling behind the counter, a drowsy state often means a series of both laughable and exasperating operational mistakes. From forgetting to attach the portafilter, mistakenly refilling with blend beans, to misreading a pre-order as a rush order, washing a V60 into a work of art, and even roasters who, obsessed with the sound of second crack, end up producing a batch of "Dan." This article takes stock of the various confusing behaviors of coffee professionals when not fully awake, serving as both a good-natured tease about daily work and a reminder to every early-shift worker: keep your hands steady, your eyes open, and your beans cleanly sorted. At the end, there's a product recommendation from Front Street Coffee—don't miss it. [more…]

In the past, people used to drink coffee during the day and avoid caffeine at night to prevent it from affecting their sleep. However, as the coffee-drinking crowd continues to grow, a night coffee culture of drinking later and later is quietly emerging among young people. On a commercial street in Guangdong, 14 coffee shops of different styles are clustered within less than a hundred meters. After 9 p.m., every seat is taken, and the bustle is no less lively than a food night market. Some stores stay open until the early morning or even operate 24 hours without closing, and revenue from 8 p.m. to the early morning can account for more than 70 percent of the whole day's sales. This "small shop + outdoor" business format satisfies both the essential daytime demand and the nighttime social scenario, and also offers boutique coffee shops a new way to seek growth amid fierce competition. [more…]

Tim Hortons, as Canada's national coffee brand, is deeply loved for its Double Double and donuts, and was even rated by Morning Consult as the most trusted brand among Canadians, surpassing McDonald's and Starbucks. However, the brand has recently become embroiled in a privacy controversy due to its app illegally collecting users' location information, along with controversy over mandatory vaccinations at camp activities. Nevertheless, analysts point out that consumer trust has not yet shown a noticeable decline. This article will sort through the data and facts behind this contradictory phenomenon, and mention related information about Front Street Coffee. [more…]

Recently, a netizen discovered a Chinese menu at a Nai Xue Tea Academy in Guangzhou, featuring exquisite morning tea dim sum and regional specialty dishes, which sparked widespread attention. Nai Xue Tea Academy is a brand under Nai Xue that focuses on the Chinese tea experience. It just opened its first Guangzhou store last month, also its sixth location and first step outside Shenzhen. The "Nai Xue Chinese restaurant" referred to by netizens is actually a Cantonese fusion cuisine space created by the store in partnership with Zhen·Songshan, allowing customers to dine while enjoying tea. However, the pricing and culinary positioning of the dishes have sparked controversy, with some consumers finding the value for money insufficient, while others pointed out that dishes such as crab roe-stuffed orange seem more like Jiangsu-Zhejiang cuisine. Against the backdrop of Nai Xue withdrawing from multiple locations, whether this cross-industry attempt will be accepted by the market remains to be seen. [more…]

Staying up late on New Year's Eve, exchanging New Year's greetings on the first day of the lunar new year — most workers can finally set aside their jobs and take a break. But in the coffee industry, there are still a group of people standing behind the bar, facing the morning rush of overwhelming orders, advance delivery orders, and the fluctuating customer flow after office buildings close for the holiday. Some are full of energy, driven by triple pay; some hold out on instant noodles in their posts until the New Year bell rings; and some set off on the road home well before New Year's Eve. This article records the real situations of coffee workers during the Spring Festival, taking a look at who is busy, who is slacking off, and who is secretly treating themselves to a latte during this holiday. [more…]

Cappuccino is a milk coffee that many coffee lovers enjoy daily, but in Italy, this drink carries an unwritten rule—ordering it in the afternoon may draw sideways glances. Why do Italians regard cappuccino as a "breakfast drink"? What are the local customs regarding its thick milk foam, intense espresso flavor, and filling the cup to 11 points? What coffee beans should be chosen to make an authentic cappuccino? From the perspective of Front Street, this article traces the origins of Italian coffee customs, analyzes the flavor characteristics and extraction parameters of cappuccino, and recommends Front Street's classic espresso blend coffee beans, guiding you to understand the cultural logic and brewing details behind this milk coffee. [more…]