Mel Coffee Roasters

Overview

Mel Coffee Roasters opened on January 21, 2016 in an 8.58m² space in Osaka's Shimmachi district, founded by Masahiko Fumimoto and his partner Rie after Fumimoto walked away from an engineering career at one of Japan's largest car companies. The shop's name nods to Melbourne — where the founders first encountered specialty coffee — and its centerpiece is a 1968 Probat 5kg that Fumimoto chose deliberately over the Fuji Royal default and spent eighteen months overhauling.

Known for

• Big 7 Travel: 3rd in The 50 Best Coffee Shops in the World 2019; 2nd in Asia 2019
• 1968 vintage Probat 5kg — atypical choice in a Fuji Royal-dominated Japanese roaster scene
• Two-tsubo footprint — 8.58 m² — handling roasting, espresso bar and hand drip in one room
• Founder Masahiko Fumimoto served as Japan Hand Drip Championship judge in 2015 and 2016
• Modern Osaka outpost in Time Out Market Osaka

Why it matters

The reference Osaka specialty roaster — proof that a 2-tsubo neighborhood stand can compete on the world stage by combining Japanese precision with Melbourne-style hospitality.

Production

destoning

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head roaster

Masahiko Fumimoto

color sorting

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roaster machine

Probat 5kg (1968 vintage, fully restored)

filter equipment

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cupping frequency

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roastery location

Shimmachi, Nishi-ku, Osaka (in-shop)

espresso equipment

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annual volume tonnes

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Café

Shimmachi, Nishi Ward, Osaka

Recognitions

• Big 7 Travel — 50 Best Coffee Shops in the World #3 (2019)
• Big 7 Travel — Best Coffee Shops in Asia #2 (2019)

Sources

• https://mel.coffee/
• https://kurasu.kyoto/blogs/kurasu-journal/november-2016-featured-roaster-mel-coffee-roasters-osaka
• https://www.thewaytocoffee.com/roaster-stories/mel-coffee-roasters-osaka/
• https://www.timeout.com/time-out-market-osaka/restaurants/mel-coffee-roasters
• https://www.dlalshop.com/pages/brandmel-coffee-roasters