Achilles Coffee Roasters @ The Rey
Curator’s note
Where most brands put a mission statement, Achilles put an ambition to pay the highest barista wages in San Diego County, and it credits the consistency of its coffee to the people who stay. Pinning the cup on who is still behind the bar is a plainer claim than most roasters make in public, and a harder one to fake.
A rotating selection of single origin coffees, $4.50 to $5.50.
Three scrambled eggs with white cheddar, tomato, onion, and mixed greens, served with avocado and mini pancakes in maple syrup.
The coffee
The roasting is the company's own, done in small batches in San Diego, and the retail bags are named to the grower: the Peru Geisha is Wilder Garcia's, washed, off trees he tends himself at 1,800 meters in the northern highlands. Batch brew is the house blend of South and Central American coffees at $4 to $4.50, and no page names the brew gear or prints a roast date.
- Ethiopia Bekele Kechara Natural Murago
- 74/112, 74/110
- Natural
- Bekele Kechara
Strawberry Compote · Cocoa Nibs · Honey
- Guatemala Huehuetenango El Mirador
- Bourbon, Caturra, Catuaí, Maragogype
- Washed
- Ceci Armas + Paulina Rosalia Xutuc
Blueberry Jam · Cherry · Caramel
- Costa Rica Hacienda Sonora Caturra Natural
- Medium-light
- Caturra
- Natural
- Alberto and Diego Guardia
Tropical Fruit · Honey · Dark Chocolate
- Colombia Finca Monteblanco Purple Caturra Tropical Natural Co-Ferment
- Purple Caturra
- Tropical Natural Anaerobic Co-Ferment
- Finca Monteblanco
Pineapple · Mango · Coconut · Star Fruit · Kiwi · Lychee · Tamarind
- Peru Finca Miraflores Honey Bourbon
- Bourbon
- Honey
- Finca Miraflores
Dark Chocolate · Pipe Tobacco · Berry · Brown Sugar · Black Tea
- Peru Wilder Garcia Geisha Washed
- Geisha
- Washed
- Wilder Garcia
Floral · Blackberry · Coconut · Honey · Maple Syrup · Strawberry · Tea Rose
- Ethiopia Bench Maji Gesha Farm G1 Natural
- Gesha, Local Landraces
- Natural
- Gesha Karmach Farm
Dried Blueberry · Cherry · Jasmine
- Gold Coast Blend
- Blend of Natural and Washed Coffees
Mango · Dark Chocolate · Honey · Spice
The room
The room is a courtyard: benches and shaded tables at the foot of the residential tower overhead, with the city streets running past the edge of it. The shop calls the space its way of pulling the neighborhood together, and since it is outdoors the shade and the seating do the work walls and lighting do elsewhere.
The vibe
Photos
People
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