To the future…
Happy New year everyone, 2024 felt like a long year, but all the hard work put in by the Ministry team will hopefully have laid the foundations for what we aim to achieve in 2025.
Wellington Street Cafe
It has been no secret that we have been locked into a legal dispute with our Hintonburg landlord and with that in mind, our time at 1013 Wellington Street is coming to an end.
The last day of trading will be Sunday 12th January. We have decided to close this early for a couple of reasons. This time of year is notoriously quiet in the hospitality industry and it gives us the opportunity to move some of the equipment to parts of the business that need them more in the long term.
Our original plans for Wellington Street were to be able to offer a lot more than we have been able to.
The main issues we had in the space revolved around a kitchen that we weren't able to properly use, and that we had planned on using as a central production area to supply our other venues.
Over the entire time of our lease, we saw the building deteriorate to a point that the cafe turned into a space that we weren't able to be proud of and really restricted what we could do to keep the business moving forward.
We have had a deep attachment with Hintonburg ever since one of our founding members moved to the city back in the early 80s.
Losing a regular presence in the area will take some getting used to, and while we can’t say we won't be back at some point, it will likely be some time before we can seriously consider trying again.
With regards to our staff who have held down the fort over the final stretch of our lease agreement, we will of course offer them positions in our other locations. We would like to extend a further thank you to our Welly team for their efforts during such an uncertain time.
141 Laurier Avenue
The decision to take on the new space will hopefully allow us to make the improvements to the business we have been hungry for for the last five years.
We are so excited to be back in an area where we first introduced Ottawa to The Ministry of Coffee, and want to invite you all to stop by.
Our Laurier Avenue cafe wouldn't have been possible without the hard work put in by the newest members of The Ministry’s management team.
You may have seen them buzzing around one of the cafes or kitchen spaces, but it's been a pleasure to have them join us in our goal to serve the best food and coffee possible.
Robbie joined us at the end of 2023, and put their keen eye for detail into the redesign of our new coffee packaging and website, before taking the lead in the design and project management that saw the Laurier Avenue cafe introduced to the world. Now you might find them in the Laurier kitchen, putting their energy into creating an incredible food menu.
Robbie’s industry experience started in coffee service and education, starting in Starbucks before moving into quality focused specialty cafes and Roasteries in Europe and Australia.
Robbie, who has always had a passion for food and science, moved into management roles in high volume, quality European bakeries and then on to Research and Development for major commercial food brands.
Josef joined the team in the middle of 2022, and was a central figure in opening our coffee roastery in Nepean.
Their extensive industry experience has revolved around nothing but coffee for over a decade, working, with and consulting for, some of the most recognised specialty coffee companies in Europe and Australia before moving to North America.
Josef regularly publishes articles through Perfect Daily Grind, a coffee focused online publication.
Rebranding and roastery
The opening of our roastery at 203 Colonnade Road was the first step in the company’s new direction, wanting to showcase the vibrant world of modern specialty coffee.
We carefully source, profile and test every coffee that comes through our doors which has helped our coffee offering grow into something we are very excited and proud of.
Modern coffee focuses less on a roasting style (although you could say we are definitely on the lighter side of the spectrum) and more at unlocking the full quality of a coffee bean.
The work being put in by those who grow coffee has created an industry that has been consistently growing in global popularity over the last two decades.
This part of our evolution meant that finding the right brand image was imperative for the business to move forward.
Our new packaging, along with the Laurier Avenue cafe represent the direction we are moving in, favouring modernisation and quality over the more classic coffee house experience, which is widely available in the city already.
What 2025 holds for The Ministry of Coffee
This year is gearing up to be an exciting one. More changes are on the way as we start to see our work come into fruition.
Weekends at Laurier
The first thing to note is that with Wellington Street closing its doors, we are going to start opening on weekends at Laurier Avenue, and plan to make it an enticing location where we can share our passion with coffee lovers across the city.
Opening hours will be announced in the very near future.
Extended wholesale offering
Now our roastery team is complete and raring to go, we are looking to bring in a few partners across the city.
We offer high quality, specialty coffee at very competitive prices, along with a complete training and support system to help anyone wanting to improve their coffee offering to fulfill their ambitions.
From cafes to offices, we want to see Ottawans drinking the best coffee possible.
Get in touch for a free consultation or pricing, and see if we can work together going forward.