Treasure behind the treasure: Roast Factory

In this monthly feature, we shine a spotlight on one of our local entrepreneurs. This time, it’s Stefan’s turn: coffee guru, founder of Roast Factory, and the supplier of coffee beans to many of his fellow The Hague Treasures. This month, Roast is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Every reason to raise a cup (of delicious The Hague coffee!) and toast to a decade of truly great coffee.

What does your work week look like?

Our week always starts with tasting our coffees. We check for any flaws, whether all the roasts turned out as they should, whether we’re just as happy with them as we were the week before, and if there’s anything we can improve. After that, we get started on producing the orders that came in on Monday and Tuesday. We check, roast, pack, and then deliver them all over the city on Wednesday!

From Wednesday through Monday, our coffee bar on Brouwersgracht is open, and we spend our days serving great coffee and welcoming customers.

What do you love most about your work?

The contact with coffee farmers from all over the world. Right now, many of them are facing significant challenges as climate change increasingly affects their production. We try to think along with them about ways to keep their harvests as productive as possible. Building greenhouses or installing irrigation systems isn’t always practical on coffee plantations, but improving plant varieties, increasing biodiversity, and taking even better care of the soil can make a real difference.

The very best part is receiving coffee from a farmer we’ve visited in person, sometimes even helping with the harvest and sharing ideas. Last winter, we were in Costa Rica, and just last week we tasted the first samples from that crop. It’s shaping up to be something really special. How amazing is it that coffee like that will soon be available right here in The Hague?

We always say, “A The Hague Treasure is worth a detour.” What do you make a detour for?

With Roast Factory’s roastery and coffee bar located right in the heart of the city, I often find myself looking for a peaceful place to enjoy a cup of coffee away from the hustle and bustle. The Restaurant at Pluk is exactly that kind of spot: wonderfully quiet, surrounded by nature, yet still close to the city.

Of course, I also regularly cycle towards the beach, especially during the last hours of the day. And if I have a free weekend and feel like making a truly long detour, I’ll head to the Veluwe. The fact that we have such beautiful nature so close to home in the Netherlands is pretty fantastic.