A third-year commerce student at Wellington’s Victoria University, Paige Flashoff’s coffee career began almost four years ago at Drop Shot Kaffee in Hawke’s Bay, where her love for the art of coffee-making developed.
“I had never been a big fan of coffee before my first job at Drop Shot. I was lucky to have stumbled across the little shop and thought it seemed like a nice place to work,” said Flashoff, now the duty manager and head barista at Egmont St Eatery.
She found herself lucky to have visited many roasteries in Hawke’s Bay, and once she discovered the beauty and complexity of coffee, she became hooked.
Since then, Flashoff has enjoyed developing her latte art skills, learning about how different beans affect the quality and taste of coffee and working on all sorts of coffee machines. She found it incredible how many different ways a single bean can be processed and curated to make hundreds of different variations of coffee drinks.
Egmont St Eatery makes its popular cold brew from All Press coffee beans, which Flashoff claimed was a smooth and refreshing way to enjoy coffee. The eatery also tries to minimise food waste as much as possible and utilises excess coffee grinds as a dry rub for the beef ribs on its dinner menu.
It also offers a spiced house coffee liqueur used in espresso martinis and other cocktails.
“As for the coffee itself, we like to keep it simple. There are no shot syrups or fancy gimmicks—we just let the coffee speak for itself.”
Flashoff's personal favourite is a coconut milk mocha. However, she added that a thick, smooth layer of crema on the coffee was essential in making a delicious coffee.
During her free time, Flashoff enjoys cooking and baking, reading and playing board games with friends. She believes that making coffee is an art and is very grateful that people recognise and enjoy something she loves to do.
