Coffee to go
Cape Breton man’s bean business hits the road
COXHEATH, N.S. — All Steve Smith wanted was a good cup of coffee.
The Coxheath man eventually found it and started a business in the process.
“I’ve been all over the world, I’ve tried all kinds of coffee and loved it and decided maybe I could roast my own beans,” he said. “I began sharing them with friends and family and decided to open a business.”
Smith, the owner of Bungalow Coffee Beans, roasts and sells fresh coffee beans as well as fresh brewed coffee at the Cape Breton Farmers’ Market.
Smith is also preparing to open a “coffee camper” in the spring to take his products on the road.
The process began three years ago when Smith, a former mass communication specialist with the U.S. Navy, retired and moved to Cape Breton with his wife Heather, who is originally from Coxheath.
“I’ve been a coffee drinker for a while and while with the navy tried different (blends in) Europe, the Middle East, Italy, Greece and even the Kingdom of Bahrain.”
Smith said his favourite coffee would be from Italy, but it was a cup of cappuccino in Greece that changed everything for him.
“We had a café on the base and my boss would bring a cappuccino in every day and I tried it and that was it, I was hooked.”
After he retired, he was having a hard time finding coffee he enjoyed.
About two years ago he read about someone who was roasting their own coffee beans.
After some research he found there were several roasting methods and suppliers offering green beans directly from various countries.
In April 2017, he roasted his first beans. He used a barbecue grill with a drum he converted into a coffee roaster.
It took about two weeks to get to where he had a great cup of coffee.
Then Smith started purchasing coffee beans from Canadians who deal directly with various importers around the world.
He’d roast enough beans to have a few pounds on hand but there’d always be more than he could drink himself so he started sharing with friends and neighbours.
He attended some Christmas craft shows and sold his product so he turned to the Cape Breton Farmers’ Market a week before Christmas 2017 and has been at the market ever since.
In March 2018, he began grinding coffee fresh on site, brewing and selling pour over coffee.
Smith also plans to take his beans on the road. A year ago, he began searching for a vintage camper.
“It had nothing to do with coffee, we wanted a camper to go camping.”
Eventually he found one near Yarmouth and began renovations.
“As we were renovating we thought what an opportunity to do vending instead, like a food truck.”
The camper has had a new lighting system installed and the interior has been renovated while keeping as much of the original character as possible.
Last week his coffee camper plan was approved by the Nova Scotia Department of Environment.
He will operate the camper business as he does his stall at the farmers market, people will be able to buy bags of beans or a fresh brewed coffee.
He plans on adding an espresso machine, his homemade biscotti and Heather will be baking homemade treats.
“I’ve been all over the world, I’ve tried all kinds of coffee and loved it and decided maybe I could roast my own beans.”
Steve Smith