Junko Hata grew up in nearby Fujisawa loving the smell of the coffee her father, who worked for a food trading company, often used to brew at home. As a kid, she would add lots of milk and sugar to remove the bitterness, but over time she came to appreciate the taste, especially after spending some extended time in the San Francisco area after university. She was impressed by not only the art of making coffee she witnessed there, but also the very social atmosphere of the local cafes. She was surprised by how people of all walks of life mingled, like uniformed policeman walking in and chatting with other locals or the barista, a sight you never see in Japan.
Enthralled by the cafes she frequented, it became her dream to have her own cafe. She moved to Seattle to study under renowned barista, David Schomer. He was strict and meticulous about the process of making coffee and even required her to repair the barista machines herself, something she still does to this day. After about two and a half years in the US, Junko returned to Japan to work on bringing her dream to fruition.
Meanwhile, Kengo was working as a bartender/waiter for many years in Yokohama, where he was born and raised. In 2004 their paths crossed when Junko visited the restaurant Kengo was working at to instruct how to use their newly purchased barista machine. The couple hit it off and Junko’s passion for coffee quickly rubbed off on Kengo. They began discussing the idea of opening a cafe together. But not any cafe. Junko was adamant that it have the two main elements that the cafes she honed her skills at in Seattle had: high quality coffees and a an atmosphere encouraging social interaction. For Kengo, the cafe could be nowhere else, but in Yokohama.
For five years they leased space in a bar to run their coffee shop in the afternoon only, but in 2010 they finally were able to open their own place, Cafe Elliot Avenue, across from Yamashita Park. Kengo loved the location for it’s proximity to the park and it’s historical significance as the previous location of the Grand Hotel. As a tip of the cap to Yokohama history, he makes the “bamboo cocktail” that was a famous drink of the hotel.
It’s the couple’s wish that more people open shops similar to theirs in concept and they want foreign visitors to Yokohama feel the same love for the city that they do. After a visit with them, it would be hard not to.