Coffee Department

Overview

Coffee Department is a specialty roastery and café in Istanbul's Balat neighbourhood, on the western bank of the Golden Horn, founded by Metin Benbasat and Hanife Ozyurt Pekkip after they moved away from the rush of central Istanbul. Its Probatino-class roaster sits in the centre of the room as the literal anchor of the design, and Benbasat roasts after-hours to keep up with wholesale demand for cafés across the city.

Known for

• Specialty roastery and café in Istanbul's Balat neighbourhood
• Co-founded by Metin Benbasat and Hanife Ozyurt Pekkip
• Probat Probatino in-room roaster as the focal point of the interior
• Turkish red pine wood interior
• Wholesale supply to cafés across Istanbul

Why it matters

Istanbul's third wave was effectively founded by Çağatay Gülabioğlu's Kronotrop a few blocks across the Golden Horn, but Coffee Department was one of the first operations to take the same standards into Balat — a working-class historic neighbourhood that didn't have a specialty café until they arrived. Co-founder Hanife Ozyurt has since gone on to launch KiMMA Coffee Roasters as a separate project, which makes Coffee Department both a destination roastery and a hatchery for the next generation of Istanbul specialty operators.

Production

destoning

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head roaster

Metin Benbasat

color sorting

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roaster machine

Probat Probatino

filter equipment

Royal Belgium Coffee Maker among others

cupping frequency

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roastery location

Balat, Istanbul

espresso equipment

Sanremo

annual volume tonnes

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Café

Balat, Istanbul

Sources

• https://europeancoffeetrip.com/best-coffee-in-istanbul-part-1/
• https://www.facebook.com/coffeedepartment/
• http://kimmacoffee.com/new-page-1