Love Your Barista: Bike oriented cafe a hit in Masterton

All the components are working together like a well-oiled machine to get a bike shop-based cafe off to a rolling start in Wairarapa.

The Coffee Ride in Solway, Masterton is incorporated into a brand new development with a major homewares chain store as its cornerstone tenant.

Owned by barista Jonathan Pearce and wife Toni, the coffee shop is steeped in bike culture, notwithstanding it shares its floor space with a bike shop.

Pearce said the cafe seems to have hit the sweet spot in the south end of town and has been extremely busy since opening in mid-October.

“It’s going really well, we’re getting steady regulars coming in so my morning trade is huge.

“I was expecting to be able to do this alone for the first couple of months, and we are just about two months in and I’ve hired three staff members from the community.”

Though they are located in a cycling store, Pearce reckons 80% of their customers are of the non-cycling variety – they just want a nice coffee and good food.

The food side of things also has family connections. The wider family has interests in Coupland’s Bakeries chain, and the cafe’s food is supplied from their South Island outlets by courier.

Among the menu list are items that pair well with cycling. They have magic bars, made of condensed milk and muesl, which hold around 400 calories of energy to keep you going on the long rides.

Pearce entered the world of coffee many years ago when he worked for L’ affare in Wellington. In the interim he’s been in the building industry but after a bad accident he has tilted back into the world of hospitality.

The family has always been tied up with biking. Pearce is a cyclist himself, his wife helps with local cycling events and Coupland’s sponsors riders including Toni’s son, Tom McCullum.

Tom owns the adjoining bike shop, Cycling Tom’s, in the shared space in the Solway premises near SH2.

The building is part of the new development with a superette also sharing the building next door to Harvey Norman’s new store.

Pearce said the area had become “quite a little hub” at the south end of town.

“All four businesses including the dairy next door all feed off each other. People might come in here to look for a bike and go ‘oh there’s a coffee shop in here, I’ll get a coffee while I’m at it’.”

Prices: Flat white $5.20, black coffee $5, plus $1 for alternative milk

Thank your barista

Love your barista? Know of a generous loyalty scheme, an excellent brew, a must-try bean or a steady price? As cafes do it tough The Post wants to hear from coffee drinkers and cafes alike, so we can spread the word about, quite simply, good coffee. Email news@thepost.co.nz