Leaving school, Luke Roberts knew the university path wasn’t for him. As a people person who enjoys new social interactions every day, the hospitality industry had an immediate draw for Roberts and he started out as a dishy - “as most teenagers do”.
Working his way up the ladder, Roberts went from dishy to kitchen hand, to front of house, and finally settled in the role of barista.
Now as Barista Manager at Crave Café, a local hotspot in Auckland’s Morningside, Roberts has found a natural talent for turning customers into regulars.
Crave is a social enterprise owned by a collective, and all profit goes towards the community. A basic craving of humanity is to connect with each other, and outstanding coffee, superb food and engaging conversations in locally-crafted spaces are a brilliant way to connect with all. Crave Café provides the perfect venue for this, with a large, lofty space and outside seating that is superb when the sun is shining.
The café serves Common Good coffee, an epic, socially-conscious, Fair Trade roastery. Roberts defines a great coffee by the even colour of the crema as it pours from the portafilter, which shows the balance of the bitter caramel and the acidic flavours working together for a perfect balance. Good product and perfectly aged beans make a difference.
The barista has enjoyed using Common Good’s MYLK coffee blend, designed to go with the acidity and flavours that come with oat and soy milk. Its lighter roast, cherry and nectarine aromas, and delicious dark caramel flavour have become a favourite - especially since milk alternatives have seen a huge rise in popularity. Roberts also spends time working at Crave’s plant-based sister café, KIND which sells more oat milk than any other milk.
Latte art remains important to Roberts even as customer demand switches between takeaway and dine-in coffee throughout pandemic restrictions. The barista feels that the pandemic’s dent in people’s lives has meant a larger appreciation for small details.
“Good latte art doesn’t make coffee taste better, but it lets you know the barista knows what they are doing and adds to the overall experience.”
Roberts’ go-to coffee order is a tulip regular milk flat white for his first, followed by an oat milk flat white for his second. When not working as a barista, the manager enjoys Auckland’s music scene.
“With a liking for vinyl and mixing music comes lots of friends and watching much more musically talented people than me.”
Crave Café is located at 6 Morningside Drive, Morningside. Visit cravecafe.co.nz for more information.
