If you wanted coffee from a joint more local than Starbucks before 2005, your only quality option was bourgeoning coffee leviathan Stumptown. Enter Ristretto. What started as a solo 600-square foot café has grown into three coffee shops, a dedicated roastery, and close to a hundred wholesale accounts all over Oregon (and some as far as Hong Kong).

Founder and Portland native Din Johnson started roasting his own coffee when he was living in LA because, in true Portland fashion, “the coffee was so terrible I had to roast my own.” He returned home in 2003, bought a roaster, and decided to take the plunge into professional coffee roasting.

Ristretto has since become a Portland favorite, sourced at coffee shops and bakeries all over town. Johnson’s roasts consistently offer balance, letting the beans speak for themselves, and his roasting philosophies have caused Ristretto to become something of an anti-dark-roast guru. “We try to hit a lighter, medium roast while maintaining some sweetness, not just an acidic blast in your face.”

For its tenth birthday, Ristretto is giving their customers a gift: free drip coffee and $10 bags of beans at all three locations this Saturday and Sunday. 

Ristretto Roasters
555 NE Couch St.
2181 NW Nicolai St.
3808 N Williams St.