Specialty Coffee Retailer is a publication for owners, managers and employees of retail outlets that sell specialty coffee. Its scope includes best sales practices, supplies, business trends and anything else to assist the small coffee retailer.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/52159
BLUE MAX COFFEE SHOP Forest Park, Ill. P I f you drive by Blue Max Coff ee in the Chicago suburb of Forest Park, you might at fi rst glance mistake it for just another of the many 100-year-old two-story frame houses in the mostly residential neighborhood. Forest Park is a bedroom community just 10 miles due west of Chicago's Loop, and the comfy houses and leafy streets make it a calming refuge from the city. And that's the feel customers get when they walk into Blue Max. "Th e feeling you get when you come in is that we want you here and we don't want you to leave," says owner Terry Griffi n. Th e layout refl ects the structure's origins as a house, with lots of wood, windows and interesting spaces. A large deck opens to the house's backyard, and comfortable wicker furniture beckons customers to enjoy a latte or chai while gazing at the lawn. "You walk in and there's a good vibe here," Griffi n says. And the vibes aren't just fi gurative: "I hear voices when no one else is here. Whatever is here is a good spirit. Old houses don't make great restaurants, but they make great experiences." Five years ago Griffi n was a trader on the Chicago Board of Trade, a coveted job that has made many people wealthy. But it wasn't his calling. "I took two years off and worked with a group that was looking to open a national chain of restaurants," Griffi n says. "We visited lots of really great restaurants. It was the best two years of my life." But when the restaurant tour was over, it wasn't the fancy food that most stuck in his mind, it was the coff ee: "Th e one thing I fell in love with was coff ee." Griffi n returned to the trading fl oor and 38 | January 2012 • www.specialty-coffee.com I BY ED AVIS indulged his newfound passion by roasting coff ee at home. Eventually he decided he would be happier working a roaster than trading commodities, and went in search of a coff ee shop and bakery he could invest in. He found it in Blue Max. Blue Max was two and a half years old then, and the owner had established a solid business. More important, the place just felt right. "I really liked it," Griffi n says. "It just felt really cool." Of course, the vibe of a place is only half the equation; great coff ee and food complete the scene. Terry worked with a professional roaster who taught him how to establish roasting profi les. Th e previous owner had already been roasting top- quality beans, and Terry built on that to create coff ee that he feels rivals any in Chicago. Amazing food is essential to Blue Max's success, too. Breakfast specialties include Blue Max frittata (loaded with veggies and cheese), chocolate chip pancakes, and 2.5-inch thick omelets such as spinach and mushroom. Homemade guacamole, panini and quesadillas are popular later in the day. Everything is made to order from amazingly fresh ingredients. "We only order enough for the next day, so we keep it as fresh as we possibly can," Griffi n says. Just because the food is made to order doesn't mean the service is OWNER: slow, though. Griffi n instituted professional restaurant procedures that reduced the ticket time from 40 minutes when he bought the cafe to 11 minutes now. Th e vibe, the coff ee, the food...it all adds Terry Griffin EQUIPMENT: Probat L25 Roaster La Marzocco Espresso Machine up to success at Blue Max. "I love what we're doing," Griffi n says. Blue Max Coff ee Roasters and Cafe 26 Lathrop Ave., Forest Park, Ill. www.bluemaxcoff ee.com 2