Oriented on making people closer

Before I entered my favorite coffee shop, a smiling barista greeted me and started preparing coffee with the words: “Are you as always or as usual?”. Aesthetic coffee lovers and hedonists will understand what a special pleasure it is when you can come to your familiar corner, sit by the window with a cup of an invigorating drink and just look at the pedestrians outside the window.

The aroma of freshly brewed coffee, which is felt even outside the coffee shop, like a gravitational field, attracts everyone who is within the radius of this block. And this is no coincidence, because the coffee prepared in "CoffeeHub" rightfully takes the first place in the unspoken rating of Ashgabat connoisseurs of this drink.

Passers-by, having heard its smell, involuntarily stop and look here. And here already, as they say, the domino principle works: they drop in and stay, stay and try, try and come back again, but with their relatives and friends.

Popping into “CoffeeHub” before work has become a pleasant daily ritual for me. And so I am here today. Sitting comfortably, as if in the first row of a concert hall, I am preparing to listen to the morning “coffee symphony”, under the sounds of which a wonderful aromatic drink is born, brewed especially for me.

The algorithm of the coffee brewing process is always the same, but it never gets boring. The barista, who is also the author, who is also the conductor and performer all rolled into one, makes the necessary proportions of ground coffee beans. The grinder solos first. Then comes the turn of the coffee machine. Its lingering hiss while frothing milk is interrupted by the sounds of pouring espresso. And all this is accompanied by a sonorous accompaniment of coffee cups and spoons, which the barista has prepared to serve the drink.

Then it's time for a culminating backlash pause. This is a lull, during which the author of the drink draws magical patterns on the milk foam with deft movements. And, ta-da! The coffee symphony is over, and I am enjoying a delicious cappuccino and admiring another masterpiece of art latte.

Not much time has passed since the opening of the “CoffeeHub” coffee shop, but the number of its visitors is growing exponentially. Looking at the continuous flow of guests, I sometimes feel ambivalent. On the one hand, this is a regret - after all, my favorite once quiet corner is becoming more popular and busier day by day. On the other hand, I am glad that the ranks of fans of this drink are replenished. As they say: "Our regiment has arrived!"

One of those who had a hand in the opening of “CoffeeHub” is Merdan Kuliev, an expert and historian of the coffee industry, a participant in international competitions and the only certified specialist in this field in Turkmenistan, who is well known to ORIENT readers. All young, talented baristas of Turkmenistan are equal to him, many of whom are his students and followers.

The high standards of the coffee business, understanding all the intricacies of this business, Merdan's amazing encyclopedic knowledge and creative approach contributed to the successful opening and prosperity of dozens of coffee establishments throughout the country, including “CoffeeHub”, which he conceived together with his colleagues and like-minded people.

Someone might say that in our traditionally "tea" country, coffee cannot be so popular. But the “CoffeeHub” coffee shop refutes all these statements, becoming one of the most fashionable Ashgabat locations.

The menu at “CoffeeHub” is solid. How many types of coffee can each of us remember? Probably, three or four, and the most advanced in this matter - six or seven. But there are dozens of recipes for this drink in the world, and many of them can be tried at the “CoffeeHub” coffee shop.

All the staff of the coffee shop Merdan trained himself personally. He knows how to captivate his work so much that the students unconsciously begin to copy him. In their desire to be like their mentor, young baristas adopt his playful friendly manner of communicating with guests, repeat gestures and even outwardly try to look like Merdan Kuliev. That's what charisma means!

Merdan knows how to create the right atmosphere in the house. It is in his power to tighten up some invisible screws and pull the necessary strings, as soon as the whole coffee shop team tunes in to the desired working mood. The guys give their best 100%, in every possible way proving to the guests that they are always welcome here. And visitors like it, they feel like members of an unspoken elite club of coffee connoisseurs.

― This is exactly the place where I myself would like to work as a barista, - Merdan says. - Everything is done and organized according to my taste and requirements. Outside there is convenient parking, also for bicycles. A certain temperature is maintained inside for the proper storage of coffee, there are quartz lamps that disinfect the coffee shop, and water filters are installed. This is my dream coffee shop.

― We study the market, see what guests like. If some position in the menu does not work, we replace it with another one, - Merdan continues. - From time to time, master classes are organized for visitors to the coffee shop, where many can learn interesting things from the world of coffee, taste and discover new tastes.

― By the way, we order EkoNiva brand milk for our drinks. Thanks to this, the appearance, and most importantly, the taste of coffee becomes much better. And soon we plan to establish a coffee delivery service in special thermal bags. After all, while the coffee "gets" to the customer, it can cool down and lose its taste. We value the opinion of our guests, and therefore, it is not customary for us to save on equipment and raw materials.

Every morning begins with checks and quality control of coffee. The requirements for staff are also very high. The young people working at “CoffeeHub” have undergone rigorous military training from the chief coffee chef and know a thousand and one recipes for making coffee. Thanks to Merdan, the guys managed to cope and tame Italian technology. His students, having developed excellent skills in handling complex machines, can disassemble and reassemble any coffee machine with their eyes closed. Perfect order reigns inside and outside the coffee shop, everything is polished and shiny, and the staff of 4 people has been in full combat readiness since eight o'clock in the morning. Coffee general Merdan won't allow any fooling around!

Visitors are offered classic types of coffee - espresso, americano, cappuccino, mochachino, Viennese coffee. In the hot season, you can order iced coffee. There are also popular novelties of recent years, such as Raf coffee, invented by Russian baristas. As well as special positions.

You can order coffee according to one of the unique author's recipes created by Merdan Kuliev, and thanks to which “CoffeeHub” has become a trendsetter for new exquisite tastes of coffee drinks.

Chef Merdan's exclusive menu is just rock'n'roll! Be sure to try pumpkin cappuccino, aericano, nutella ice latte or Afogato. There is another version of afogato plus, this is when an inverted cone with ice cream is slammed onto a lush dense foam on coffee. You can add to drinks syrups with the taste of honey, halva, raspberries, cheese, mint and sprinkles in the form of chocolate chips or marshmallows.

I especially liked the way the new coffee recipe called “Fredo” is played with humor. To questions from guests about how this coffee is prepared, a young barista explains with a deliberately serious intonation: “We pick up the phone, call Fredo, he comes, prepares coffee and - voila!”. To a reasonable question, who is Fredo, the answer is also ready. The guests are pointed to the senior barista Kamran, who is busy on the sidelines with important matters, and does not even suspect anything about his new role.

And yet, many of the guests of the coffee shop are often interested: “Why not translate the names of coffee drinks in the menu into Turkmen or Russian, or somehow adapt them to our reality and mentality?” After all, our people like to call everything “by their proper names”. For example, car models. Along with the names that the manufacturers came up with, there are also “folk” ones. If you mention the 2014 Toyota Camry in a conversation, then you must definitely add an important clarification in the form of the word “palta”, otherwise few will understand what it is about.

The founders of “CoffeeHub” explain that they also considered the idea of translating the names of coffee drinks. But we decided, nevertheless, to leave everything unchanged. The reason is simple. Many guests, after traveling in other countries, come to a coffee shop and ask to prepare exactly those types of coffee that they had a chance to taste on trips and which names they remember. The taste of a coffee drink evokes in them associations with the country where they tasted it, revives in their memory pleasant memories associated with travel. Therefore, we decided to keep the original names.

There was a lot of discussion about the name of the coffee shop itself. Options included "CoffeeMan" and "CoffeeCorner". As a result, we chose "CoffeeHub".

― Computer scientists have such a term "hub", - Merdan explains. - This is the center where all information is collected and accumulated. So we decided that let our friends, guests, visitors and coffee lovers “flock” to us. So that all roads lead to us.

In addition to a delicious drink in "CoffeeHub" you can choose pastries in the form of delicious croissants, cheesecakes, cakes, puffs, pies, cakes. Goods in the windows are not stale, as on the second day all the sweets are sold at a 50% discount. Thanks to this approach, “CoffeeHub” managed to win the love of not only an adult audience, but also the smallest guests. Adults come with children, or rather little sweet teeth bring their parents to buy them something tasty. Also for children you can order milkshakes (vanilla, chocolate, berry, oreo), lemonades…

Immediately on the shelves, there are lined up packages of coffee beans. Here are all types of coffee that can only be found in our country. You can check out the Hub and purchase grains or capsules at dealer prices. Guests can not only buy their favorite sort of coffee, but also ask them to grind it right away. Experienced specialists will help with the choice, as well as grind coffee exactly for the method that you use to make coffee at home.

Here you can also buy the necessary equipment for making coffee at home, for example, coffee machines, as well as various accessories and utensils (the shape of which, as it turns out, is of great importance). An important detail is that all the equipment presented on the shelves is sold with a warranty service period.

And I also liked how cleverly they “got out” here, solving the issue with logos on containers for takeaway coffee. No need to bother with ordering special dishes with the establishment's emblems printed on them. The logos on the paper cups are put here using the usual ink printing. Simple and not at all angry, but original and practical. By the way, I was also invited to play coffee bureaucrat, and I gladly stamped myself and other guests with a few cups.

Special mention deserves the high skill of CoffeeHub staff in drawing on coffee foam. As you know, this art - art latte - needs a long time to learn. There are even championships in the world where baristas give out such masterpieces that it’s just a pity to drink this coffee and destroy beauty. The guys told me that while they were studying, they poured out a certain amount of coffee, “spoiled” by unsuccessful sketches and the throes of creativity. So every barista has his own “coffee river”, along which he gets to the cherished shores of experience.

And also, a self-respecting barista should, by the taste of coffee alone, determine what ingredients and components this or that drink consists of and in what ratio. For example, Merdan Kuliev took part in such a competition in Italy, where 24 cups of coffee are placed in front of the contestant, and it is necessary to find varieties of coffee that differ from each other in a short period of time.

Having achieved success with the opening of the popular CoffeeHub point in the capital, its founders are not going to rest on their laurels, but rather on coffee beans. With vast experience in the coffee business, they are ready to share their knowledge and skills. That is why here you can get the turnkey coffee shop service. This is assistance to start-up entrepreneurs related to the selection of suitable premises, the purchase, installation and setting of specialized equipment, auditing, staff training, the selection of high-quality types of coffee, as well as utensils and the organization of the workflow.

The founders of the coffee shop are already thinking about expanding the business. For example, there are plans to create a whole network of coffee outlets, a network of snack bars SnackHub, as well as the opening of the CoffeeLab (Coffee Laboratory) center, the purpose of which will be to standardize work, train professional personnel, certify specialists in the field of coffee preparation and organize master classes.

There are lots of ideas and projects. In the meantime, CoffeeHub is a cozy corner located in the very center of Ashgabat, as if justifying its name, has become a place where the largest collection of coffee varieties is collected, which guests and residents of Ashgabat come to try.

If you want to see for yourself the excellent quality of coffee and this will be your first visit to “CoffeeHub”, don't forget to wear a hat. For after tasting, you will want to “remove” it as a token of admiration.

Address where the coffee shop is located: st. Myati Kyosaeva (old Mopra), store "Ocean". Tel: 72-32-92. Instagram: @coffeehub_tm

Aina SHIROVA

Photo: СoffeeHub