Famish’d owner Georgia Samuel knows what the corporate world demands, and more than anything that demand, is coffee.
“I worked as a corporate lawyer for six years before I left it all to start-up a salad bar,” she says. “But I know for a fact that corporate workers love their coffee fix.”
Famish’d first opened in 2010 on Little Collins Street in Melbourne’s CBD.
Since then Georgia says business has gone from strength to strength, with morning coffee lines and lunchtime queues out the door.
With such a great reception to Famish’d, Georgia opened a sister venue at the west-end of the CBD at the Saint James building in September 2013.
“Famish’d – West End is just being discovered and people are excited about it. A customer recently said to me ‘I’m so glad you’ve opened, you’ve changed my work life’, says Georgia. “There’s huge demand for specialty coffee in the city. Our customers are people who spend their weekend at cafés such as Three bags full, St ALi and Proud Mary, but from Monday to Friday when they’re working in the city and still want quality coffee, they can get their St ALi coffee fix from us.”
Famish’d serves St ALi’s Champion blend on its three-group La Marzocco Linea.
Georgia says this blend contains flavours of ripe fruit, caramel and orange – with a sweet spice finish. It was created for its consistency in both milk-based and espresso coffee.
The coffee bar also serves a rotating St ALi single origin.
Georgia says her recent favourite was a Finca Fidel from Costa Rica.
“It’s a round, juicy, silky smooth coffee with flavours of chocolate, marmalade with a tropical bouquet,” she says.
Famish’d is designed by ST Style with a fit-out that Georgia says is “part industrial part modern”.
“I’ve kept the look quite organic and raw. I’ve left concrete columns exposed, used white subway titles, recycled wood, and balanced the earthiness with neon lights,” she says.
For the hungry office workers, Famish’d specialises in gourmet salads where visitors are invited to make their own from a selection of fresh ingredients, or sample one of their specialties. Famish’d also serves big brekky toasties such as ‘smash’d avo’, ‘good ol ham and cheese’ and ‘mushy madness’.
