Mint Plaza Cafe, Birthplace of Our 17-Ft Espresso Blend
The Enduring Mystique of Our Second Location
It’s not every coffee company that takes six years to open its second location. But at Blue Bottle, we tend to think the best things sometimes take the most time.
Since opening in 2008, six years after our 2002 founding and three years after the 2005 opening of our first brick-and-mortar location, our Hayes Valley Kiosk, San Francisco's Mint Plaza cafe has garnered a reputation that feels almost mythical. While we won't discount its location in the historic 1912 Provident Loan Association building, or the row of coffee siphons that, to the unfamiliar, look like the accoutrements of a mad scientist, we think this allure is rooted in a tradition of coffee excellence.
“Even before I started worked at Blue Bottle, I always put it on a pedestal as far as coffee goes, with the Mint as its mystical coffee mecca.”
Blue Bottlers have worked hard to ensure this reputation is well earned. While the five-light siphon bar might be the most eye-catching coffee element in the cafe, it’s far from the only high point. For traditionalists, there’s Mint’s house espresso, 17ft Ceiling, a blend created for the cafe and that is served only there. (All other Blue Bottle locations serve Hayes Valley Espresso.) The darker-roasted, straightforward blend, modeled on the traditional Italian espresso, was inspired by Mint’s classic architecture, which to us, evokes Rome.
From its beginning, culinary offerings have also been at the forefront of Mint’s charm, never an afterthought, from favorite items like our Liège Wafel and Avocado Toast to new additions like our no-holds-barred version of a breakfast sandwich: a frittata served with cheddar and house-made hot sauce on a flaky croissant.
“The first time I went there, I just got this feeling that the people there cared about each other, and the guests, too,” says Blue Bottle Learning and Development Partner Emily Olson. She describes the experience of welcome, beauty, and coffee expertise as “nothing short of dreamy.”
For many Blue Bottlers and guests alike, Mint is a space where curiosity and kindness meets a passion for coffee and delicious food.
Years after its opening, many of us at Blue Bottle still enter Mint and feel a sense of awe at its physical beauty. Sometimes we find ourselves overwhelmed at our luck to get to spend time in such a special place. Mostly, though, we find ourselves downright grateful that such a place, which radiates heartfelt warmth, still exists.