Methodist Coffee - CLOSED

Overview

The Kindred family have been at the helm of Melbourne's coffee scene over the last decade, and two of them have now brought their expertise to the eastern suburbs.

Reuben Kindred has been playing around with coffee roasters since he was 16 and has whittled it down to a fine art. He was one of Australia's early cuppers (people who measure the smell, taste and mouthfeel of a good brew), earning the world's highest qualification in the process. More recently, he has been a driving force behind highly-influential roastery, Industry Beans. His business partner (and mother), Nikki Kindred, has built ten coffee outlets from scratch, including Hobart's The Cupping Room. She runs her coffee empire under the name Oomph Coffee.

Methodist Coffee has opened up behind an ornate, heritage-listed shopfront on Burwood Road earlier this year. But there's a lot more going on behind the facade than appears.

"We felt we needed to get a place started in Melbourne that has a unique style of roasting that captures the complexity of distinct origins," says Reuben.

You might hear the word methodist and be reminded of religious terminology. However, it's a play on words — there's strict scientific method behind the production and cupping of coffee.

"You're batting against 1200 different compounds, all competing with each other to be the most dominant in the cup," Reuben explains. "We question everything. To make anything better you need to have method and technique. Hence why we are the 'methodists' of Melbourne coffee."

Methodist Coffee is first and foremost a roastery, but quality food is served up in the cafe. Try the sous vide buttermilk fried chicken which comes with house-made kimchi, rosemary cheddar waffle, and spiced miso maple. Or there are the citrus cured ocean trout and green pea fritters with zucchini, broad beans, mint and a buttermilk dill emulsion.

To walk right through the premises is a bit of a pilgrimage in itself. "You can walk right into the roastery complete with a mini-stadium to sit and watch the roasters and chefs battle it out at their stations," says Reuben. "As the name suggests, there's a sense of duality. The roastery and kitchen have a more spacious and futuristic look to it, which contrasts with the lovely, old heritage-listed building."