once we were two, now we are four. let’s give ashley & nick the warmest welcome!
ashley’s curiosity & love for coffee led her to start roasting from her backyard in 2019. from there blossomed @quietcoffeeroasters and a year later she began picking up shifts behind bar to continue on her coffee journey. ashley is a hella talented painter and never fails to leave us in awe of her work. she is singlehandedly responsible for the portraits above.
slinging it behind bar for 7 years and educating for 3, nick has not allowed white spaces and this industry’s customer first mindset to stop him from questioning the status quo. as a visual artist, nick expresses his love (& gripes) for coffee through photography, videography and writing. we’ve valued his perspective for a while now.
the decision to ask ashley & nick to join andres & i was truthfully a no brainer as we all share similar values and hopes for a more liberating coffee community. a coffee community that embraces and celebrates our neighborhoods, that questions the norm and pushes the boundaries of what coffee consumerism could look like.
together we are blk brw, a collective of black coffee creatives passionate about accessible coffee education and using coffee as a vessel for creativity & community.
thank ya for ur support as we continue to evolve. see u soon.
tay & the bb team 💚
when we originally reached out to Nu’Man and Julian about this crazy idea, there was no way of knowing the impact that it’d have on so many people within our community, let alone ourselves.
not only was this the longest collaboration we’ve been apart of but it was also the most time Andres, Ashley, Nick and I have spent working with each other. over the past year, we learned so much about one another. we figured out our strengths and the things we’re not so good at. unpacked trauma from previous work experiences and learned, through trial and error, not to take our frustrations out on each other (we’re all in this together). we practiced the art of confrontation, worked on establishing boundaries with ourselves and others, and learned how to say goodbye (for now).
during the last few weeks at the shop, the question we got the most was “what’s next?” we got asked it so much that it became an inside joke amongst us. honestly, after a year of the four of us working 2+ jobs, the last thing either of us wanted to think about was “what’s next.” what’s next was time to think about what the fuck just happened. time to enjoy a weekend. time to finally unpack that box that’s been sitting in my living room. time to give birth.😅
but a few weeks have passed by and i think we can finally answer the forbidden question. what’s next for blk brw? in short, how you’ve all come to know blk brw is changing. we want to step away from the bar and shift to focusing on consulting - helping new coffee shops (and old ones) with menu development and barista training. after so long of working in other shops and the year we spent building our own, we’re confident in our abilities to craft a coffee program that thrives.
that means we’re taking an indefinite break from pop ups. this will leave us with so much needed time to explore our personal interests, develop other skills, and hopefully fall in love with coffee and the industry again. we’re endlessly grateful for all the support y’all have given us as we wouldn’t have the autonomy to make this decision if that weren’t the case.
if you see us around, please say hello! we hope to sip with y’all soon ☕️💚
love,
tay + the bb crew
You’ve had it and you love it, it’s the “Curious Chai”! (Or, if you want, Chai Curious 😏)This one is a sweet, creamy drink built around your choice of masala chai or decaf rooibos chai by the one and only @soul.chai , with banana and vanilla syrup. This drink isn’t super complex but it’s not as straightforward as it seems at first glance either. An idea with the give and take between sweetness and spice at its heart, this is the only house drink that can be had hot or iced. If you somehow haven’t had it yet, you know what you need to do.
BLKBRW SUMMA SCHOOL 👩🏾🏫
it’s been a while since we hosted a series of classes and we’re so happy to be back in action for the summer. y’all know… we started blk brw in angst and with the desire to make information around coffee, tea and whateva we want more accessible. though we’ve put a lot of focus into our beverage program over at @four.miami , our love for sharing knowledge never died.
so on that note, here’s the classes we’re offering this summer! always on a sliding scale, always affordable. always with our people in mind 💚
link in bio to sign up and for more info. all classes will be held at our home-base in north miami @four.miami
hope to see y’all there!
TIME UPDATE:
We’ll now be open Mondays from 9-3 pm! @blkbrw will be holding it down with drinks and a very limited food menu by Andres. That means no bread and the usual pastries you can expect on the weekends.
This is not an introductory post but a farewell one. Say goodbye to “Karma Made Me Do It”, another original drink by the one and only Andres. You probably didn’t know you needed this Afro-Colombian riff on Vietnamese iced coffee until you had your first sip. Changed your life didn’t it? Maybe it made you do some things you weren’t quite in control of, like maybe order another one? As for the name, that comes from Andres’ love for comics, specifically X-Men. More specifically, a queer, Vietnamese mutant who goes by the name Karma. And guess what her special ability is? It might include the ability to make you compulsively order sweet drinks at a particular cafe. Pull up tomorrow to see what new drink we’re adding to the rotation.
Sometimes, less is more. Maximalism is definitely the trend right now when it comes to drink creation. The world of specialty coffee and tea drinks is one of bright colors, novel ingredients, or unexpected twists on established recipes.
Truth is, there’s nothing new under the sun and that’s certainly true of the “grown-ish”. And much like the cocktail it’s based on, it adds up to much more than the sum of its parts. This one is a nod to the classics. So take a sip, shoot some film, throw on some oldies. Cheers to it all.
Find us this weekend at @thrdhrzn Caribbean Film Festival! We’ll be serving up coffee and tea to get you through the long days.
We’ll be at the festival from 10-4 pm Sat/Sun and at @four.miami during our usual service hours. See ya!
These beauties will get their own individual breakdown soon enough, but all we’re gonna say is we’ve done it again. These are expressions of us, our celebration of our love of play because even though this work is hard, it should also be fun. These are your new house drinks!
INTRODUCING
“Curious Chai”
“Lavender Marriage”
“Grown-ish”
“Karma Made Me Do It”
If you haven’t had one yet, make sure you try one this weekend! And if you have, have another one lol.
The best oat milk in all the land is on our shelves and behind our bar too! Really cool to be using @ghosttownworld at our little spot. Too often in our industries, we see ownership that is hopelessly out of touch with the culture of the workers and the unsung value of the labor these industries couldn’t exist without. A real pleasure to be using oat milk made by baristas. Cartons are on the shelf for sale.
Hey y’all, been bit busy but we could not miss pulling up for Comic Book Day, especially since we just got a restock on comics!
You know how it goes, come through, grab coffee or a lemonade and a few comics while you’re at it; and as always, this is completely free!!!
If you have any comics you’d like to donate feel free to drop them off!!! We’re also always accepting comic book donations at @four.miami
#coffeeandcomics #blkbrw #brewingwhileblack #coffeebringscommunity #readingisfun #comicbookday #comicbooks #miami #coffeemiami
BAKER TAKEOVERS AT FOUR.
Julian will be outta town, taking a well needed break, so when’s a better time to invite some bakers into the space…each day someone and something different 🤭
Super excited to have @boytoy.bread and @jasilienn in the building this weekend! Mick’s taking over Friday and Jasilienn on Sunday, both concocting their own original menus.
++ Saturday, Andres and Taylor from @blkbrw will be holding it down, like the old days!
Expect pastries and lite bites, happening during our typical am hours, 11a to 3p (or sell out!). Come out ++ support some other local dope talent!
C 🫵🏾 THERE!
