Mike Tan started roasting coffee as a hobby in the back of his parent’s garage in 2015 before turning Meebz Coffee Roasters into a boutique coffee roasting company, which includes a retail store and espresso bar in Milford, North Shore, and roastery located in Otahuhu.
“We’re a small team who are passionate, experienced, and enthusiastic about the New Zealand hospitality industry. We love coffee and our passion is to ensure our customers find their favourite taste whether you are enjoying one from our own espresso bar, or from one of our hand selected café partners,” says Mike.
At any given time Meebz Coffee Roasters has more than 20 different coffee offerings including specialty, organic, and Swiss water decaf coffee for wholesale and retail customers.
“Our sources extend worldwide, and our coffee is often sourced from smaller farms such as cooperatives, small estates and microlots. We not only have a wide selection of fine and premium grades, but our coffee is precision roasted daily in small batches, so your order is guaranteed always fresh,” says Mike.
“We’ve also extended our offering to include the superlative coffee menu, which features a selection of seasonal rare, exotic, and super high-quality coffee. This menu typically contains award-winning coffee and those grown or processed in a very unique manner standing out from the rest.”
For hungry customers, the roastery offers gourmet cookies from Wild Cookie Farm, serving a range of flavours such as pistachio, macadamia and hazelnut with white chocolate, and triple chocolate and orange.
“We supply coffee to the gourmet cookie bakery and in return they provide these delicious cookies. It’s a win-win,” says Mike.
The Melbourne-inspired café features a minimalistic, sleek design with grey and white tones adorning its walls, furniture, and roasting equipment.
“I’ve always been a big fan of the Melbourne coffees scene. I used to travel there quite a bit to get a sense of what’s trending. I drew on a lot of inspiration from that aesthetic,” Mike says.
Back in New Zealand, Mike recently returned to the world of competition and participated in the New Zealand Specialty Coffee Association Meadow Fresh New Zealand Barista Championship 2023, placing runner-up after a five-year hiatus.
“Since my last time competing in 2017, the barista championship has always been on my mind every year, and getting back on stage was always a goal of mine. Each year [that I’ve competed] has been a new learning experience, not just for the competition scene but for coffee, hospitality, and presentation skills that are applied in my personal and professional life,” Mike says.
“Walking away from the championship with second place which is a great achievement and accomplishment.”
Meebz Coffee Roasters
3 Milford Road,
Milford, New Zealand, 0620
Open Monday to Friday 8am — 3pm,
Saturday 8:30am — 2pm
This article appears in the June 2023 edition of BeanScene. Subscribe HERE.