Cork Café series: "At 15, I was hooked on double espressos"

THE morning sun cast its light across Tuckey Street and onto the signature matt black paint of Soma Coffee Company.

The street was empty but for a Soma barista placing the outdoor seating onto the street, bracing themselves for the early morning rush of caffeine-craving punters.

Soma have become a flagship café in Cork city, with their hyper-slick style and consistently high standard product. They’re emblematic of the youthful surge that new wave coffee represents. Over the years, they have continued to expand their operations, by roasting their own beans, opening new locations, and always developing products to excite their customers.

I met with Managing Director, Alex Bruce, to have a peek behind their matt black curtain and into the operation after his return from sourcing coffee in Brazil.

Let’s start from the start...

How long has the café been open and how did your café name come about?

Our Tuckey Street premises has been open for over five years now. While coming up with ideas for names, I heard a song that I’d never heard before - you guessed it, the name of the song was Soma.

After looking into the name, we found multiple meanings, including an ancient Vedic ritual where soma is the drink of the Gods and is prepared by extracting the juice from a plant. 

We found this to be quite fitting alongside the general look and sound of the brand name Soma.

Where did the inspiration for the design and aesthetic of the café come from?

We wanted a simple, no distractions space to allow our product and brand to be the star. Simplistic and industrial was the MO and we achieved this with polished concrete floors, handmade steel and oak furniture, minimalist lighting, and of course our trademark black paint.

Can you pinpoint when you fell in love with coffee?

Probably my first job, which was in a beach bar in Greece. The gentleman that owned the premises was quite the coffee lover and got me hooked on double espressos at the age of 15.

What are the most important factors for serving quality coffee?

Freshness, consistency in preparation and dosage, and an enthusiastic barista.

What espresso machine do you use?

We are a partner and distributor for Rancillio Milan; hence we use all of their top machinery in our cafes. Our three stores use a Rancillio Speciality RS1.

How do you choose your espresso blend, and how often do you change it?

We are constantly changing our single origin Brazilian house espresso as we work a lot with smaller farm holders. They may only produce enough coffee for a three to six month period that year, so we are always finding new and interesting coffees to offer our customers.

We just came back from an origin trip to Brazil, meeting a lot of farmers who are doing amazing work, so we are really looking forward to sharing those coffees with everyone later this year.

Do you sell filtered coffee?

We sell a lot of batch filter in stores and it’s also a staff favourite as this method of drip brewing really allows you to taste all the aspects of a particular coffee’s profile. Methods of brewing may offer stronger, sweeter, or more complex outcomes from your bean.

What are your three bestselling drinks?

1. Flat White 2. Iced Latte 3. Cascara Tonic.

What are the favoured drinks amongst your team of baristas?

Definitely batch brew and cascara tonic. That is a drink made from the fruit of the coffee plant and served with tonic, mint, and grapefruit.

Have keep-cups made a full resurgence since Covid?

They have definitely come back strong, which is great for sustainability reasons. We also offer a 20 cent discount for customers who bring their own cup, which is a great incentive to use fewer single-use take away cups.

Do you stock dairy alternatives, and how popular are they?

We offer oat, almond, soya, and coconut. These options are hugely popular, especially oat and coconut.

What’s an ideal barista to you?

Someone who is passionate about coffee and wants to learn all they can about speciality coffee.

What’s your ideal morning café playlist to get the blood flowing and the punters happy?

We love a bit of James Blake and Bonobo to ease us into the day ahead.

What’s your daily caffeine limit and do you have a cut-off hour?

Definitely not! No limit, no cut off. We never sleep.

How would you describe the spirit of your café?

Friendly, welcoming, progressive, and informative.

One final word to your customers and the people of Cork city…

A huge thanks to all who have supported us and our growth over the past five years in Cork and beyond. It wouldn’t be possible without your custom and continued loyalty.

Soma Coffee Company can be found on Tuckey Street, Anglesea Street, and at the Black Market, Cork city.