While specialty coffee and supermarkets aren’t always associated together, Blue Zone Wellbeing Kitchen at Pasadena Foodland is changing this perception serving specialty coffee by Paradox Coffee Roasters.
Offering both a café and “coffee supermarket” concept, Blue Zone is located within Pasadena Foodland and offers seating space for 20 people, which head barista Thanh Luu says is perfect for those seeking an expertly brewed coffee and a healthy bite to eat.
Unlike store-bought coffee, customers can also have a two-way interaction with the baristas on the specialty coffee they are purchasing, including its flavour notes, how to best brew this coffee, and more.
“We’re trying to make specialty coffee more approachable and accessible with this concept,” says Thanh. “This is supported by our Slayer espresso machine, on which we can vary extraction times, conduct brew profiling, and lower espresso extraction temperatures to manipulate the end coffee taste.”
Thanh says this helps Blue Zone bring out the best of each coffee while tailoring its flavour profile to meet customers’ requests.
“We source our coffee from Paradox Coffee Roasters, who do a fantastic job, particularly with single origin coffees by bringing out the terroir’s natural flavours in their roasts,” says Vanessa Luu, Head Barista at Pasadena’s sibling café, Frewville Foodland.
“We were first introduced to Paradox Coffee Roasters through Slayer, and after six to eight months of trying countless beans and long nights shaking with caffeine, we chose Paradox because of its amazing flavour profiles.”
Part of Blue Zone’s specialised service is related to its baristas’ enthusiasm and wealth of knowledge.
Working in her parents’ bakery since she was 14, Vanessa grew up with a coffee machine. Thanh has been in the coffee industry for more than 25 years and has also worked internationally in all areas of the supply chain from bean to cup.
“At Blue Zone, we ultimately want to introduce more single origins and cold drip, and get people really excited and educated about coffee,” says Thanh.
“This is all in line with the Chapley family — owners of Pasadena and Frewville Foodland —and their vision to be the best supermarket in the world and introduce people that have never experienced this quality of coffee, to start that conversation and to change the coffee culture.”
Blue Zone Wellbeing Kitchen
Pasadena Foodland, 20 Fiveash Drive, Pasadena, South Australia, 5042
Open Monday to Friday 7am – 9pm, Saturday 7am – 5pm, and Sunday 8:30am – 3:30pm
This article appears in the December 2021 edition of BeanScene. Subscribe HERE.