IT’S JUST COFFEE!

The Y2K vs 2026 Barista | COFFEE BREAK!

Working as a barista in the early 2000s looked different to barista jobs of today. From an influx of specialty coffee, to new equipment, automation, workflow changes and ever increasing expectations for great customer service, the 2026 barista is playing a completely different game. We discuss the evolving coffee industry, and what has changed for baristas since Y2K!

Coffee Break is your weekly inside scoop into the coffee community. Everything from on the fly barista tips, honest and unfiltered cafe reviews (eek), hospitality stories and gate kept coffee secrets.

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IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236

Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.

Proudly sponsored by:

Marco Beverage Systems: https://www.instagram.com/marcobeveragesystems/ 

Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/ Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/ 

 Riverina Fresh: https://www.riverinafresh.com.au/

Thanks for listening! 

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Being a barista in 2026 means more than dialling in espresso.Dialing in from Canada, we’re joined by seasoned barista first, social media personality second - Emily Makes Coffee. With 40,000 followers, millions of views, and a lot of very honest takes about life behind the bar, Emily has become a refreshing voice in the coffee conversation. 

From burnout to opportunity, we explore what the job really demands today - and what needs to change for coffee careers to become truly sustainable in and out of the cafe.

FIND her @emily.makes.coffeehttps://emilymakescoffee.ca/ CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro

02:48 Being a Barista in 2026

09:16 The Skills Customers Don’t See

13:27 Burnout, Wages & Career Sustainability

18:10 Content Creation, Authenticity & Representation

29:31 New Opportunities for Baristas

38:20 Safety, Boundaries & Difficult Customers

46:14 What Makes a Great Barista

52:38 Great Customers, Bad Habits & Pet Peeves

1:00:12 What Makes a Great Café to Work In

1:02:58 Advice for Young Baristas

1:05:31 Hospo Horror Stories

1:11:13 Hot Takes + Final Shoutout

Want more coffee content? 

IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236

Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.

Proudly sponsored by:

Marco Beverage Systems: https://www.instagram.com/marcobeveragesystems/ 

Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/ Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/ 

 Riverina Fresh: https://www.riverinafresh.com.au/

Thanks for listening!

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What does it actually take to turn a coffee idea into a real product?In this episode, we sit down with Dominic Symons, Founder of Subminimal and designer behind tools like the NanoFoamer and Subscale. We unpack what separates genuinely useful coffee equipment from the endless stream of gadgets hitting the market.From identifying real problems behind the bar to prototyping, manufacturing, patents, and raising over $1.5M through Kickstarter, Dominic shares what most people misunderstand about launching a product, and why simplicity is often the hardest design challenge.We also explore copycat culture, protecting ideas, and why many concepts should never make it past the sketch phase.If you’ve ever wondered how coffee tools actually come to life, this episode is for you.If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day - It's Just Coffee!

https://subminimal.com

@subminimal

Products mentionedNanoFoamerNanoFoamer PROSubscaleFlick WDT Tool

CHAPTERS

00:00 Intro

00:24 Meet Dominic Symons (Subminimal)

02:04 Raising $1.5M on Kickstarter

03:01 Is Kickstarter Still Worth It?

04:33 Product Development Reality Check

09:15 Why Milk Frothing Needed Innovation

12:35 From Side Project to Global Product

14:09 What Makes a Great Coffee Tool?

15:41 Copycats, Patents & Protecting Ideas

18:22 Product Ideas That Didn’t Make It

23:25 How to Start Designing a Product

26:36 Finding Manufacturers & Production

28:08 Real Cost of Launching a Product

32:11 Filming the Kickstarter Campaign

34:17 Coffee Market Update

36:16 Brands Pushing Innovation

37:11 Coffee Trends That Might Be Overhyped

39:09 Where to Find Subminimal

40:01 Outro

Want more coffee content?

IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236

Want to get in touch?

Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.

Proudly sponsored by:

Marco Beverage Systems: https://www.instagram.com/marcobeveragesystems/

Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/

Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/

Riverina Fresh: https://www.riverinafresh.com.au/

Thanks for listening!
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Edwin Noreña is a fourth-generation farmer and coffee innovator, leading Finca Campo Hermoso in Colombia. The farm is known for its experimental coffees, with Edwin himself developing a co-fermentation technique inspired by the craft beer industry. We caught him at MICE2026 to talk “co-fermented” vs “infused” coffee, as well as hops in coffee processing, and the complications that come with bringing co-ferments into the mainstream. 

If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day - It's Just Coffee!

Campo Hermoso: https://www.instagram.com/campohermoso_coffeefarms/ 

CHAPTERS00:00 Introduction & Why Experimental Coffee is Trending

02:30 Campo Hermoso & The R&D Approach to Coffee

05:10 Co-Fermented vs Infused Coffee Explained

06:45 Multi-Stage Fermentation & Using Hops

10:40 Fermentation Science (Yeast, Anaerobic, Lactic)

12:00 Adding Value at Origin

14:00 Extreme Flavours & Market Trends

18:00 Quality vs Co-Fermented Coffee Debate

21:30 Consistency Challenges in Experimental Processing

25:30 Can Big Brands Scale Co-Fermented Coffee?

27:45 Future of Coffee Innovation

29:00 Final Thoughts & Where to Find Edwin’s Coffee

Want more coffee content? 

IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236

Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.

Proudly sponsored by:

Marco Beverage Systems: https://www.instagram.com/marcobeveragesystems/ 

Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/ Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/ 

 Riverina Fresh: https://www.riverinafresh.com.au/

Thanks for listening!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hany Ezzat is the Founder of Ni Wares–creating science backed cups for coffee competitions and elevated everyday use. He also just won the Next-Gen Talent Award at MICE2026. We caught up with him at the expo to talk about what the win meant to him, as well as his recent (and controversial) use of the xBloom in a filter competition, why he thinks young people aren't as engaged in specialty coffee, and the importance of multisensory design.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Intro

01:55 Who is Hany Ezzat?

03:40 Starting Ni Wares

06:05 Designing competition cups

08:50 The science of taste perception

11:45 Multisensory coffee experiences

14:20 Using xBloom in competition

17:05 Innovation vs tradition in coffee

19:40 Why young people disengage from specialty

22:10 The future of coffee tools

24:40 Advice for competitors & creators

26:45 Final thoughts

If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day - It's Just Coffee!

Hany Ezzat: https://www.instagram.com/barista_hany/

Ni Wares: https://ni-wares.com/

Want more coffee content?

IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236

Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.

Proudly sponsored by:

Marco Beverage Systems: https://www.instagram.com/marcobeveragesystems/

Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/

Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/

Riverina Fresh: https://www.riverinafresh.com.au/

Thanks for listening!
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices