The coffee industry is huge, but the chance of a good cup of coffee served by a smiling barista is small.
Founded by a father, Ryc Greenwood, and his son, Andru Greenwood, Small Coffee Big Taste hopes to change the experience of the standard coffee house by serving a variety of coffee, teas and pastries on wheels.
“I wanted to help my son create something for myself and for him,” Ryc said. “We believe we’re in a coffee boom right now.”
The beverage truck partners with Cafeciteaux Coffee Roasters for locally sourced beans and Red Stick Spice Co. for its teas. Ryc’s daughter Brae Greenwood makes the recipes for the pastries and beloved salted caramel cookies, which are baked at Breads on Oak.
It’s a family-owned business, so everyone is an equal part in it, Andru said.
It took the father and son duo two years to perfect the right cup of coffee, which has certain checkpoints for quality, including timed shots and a certain temperature for steaming the milk.
Nothing is put out that the two would not drink personally, Andru said.
The project manifested after the pair kept running into the same problems at coffee houses: inconsistency, a lack of knowledge and quality regarding coffee and unpleasant attitudes.
The goal is to make the customer feel welcome and that they can ask for recommendations and advice because coffee is expensive, and the customer deserves to know what they’re drinking, Ryc said.
Before diving into the coffee business, Ryc manufactured reverse bungees for 19 years in Baton Rouge, and Andru went to school for classical music composition.
The two used to work in an auto shop together, and Ryc has a background in engineering, so they put their skills to use by gutting out the truck and redesigning the inside complete with an espresso machine they bought from a local barista.
All of the pair’s knowledge on how to make the perfect cup of coffee is credited to YouTube videos, talking with other baristas and seeking tips from coffee experts.
Small Coffee’s menu includes mochas, lattes, cappuccinos, cold brew coffee, hot chocolate, flavored lemonade, sweet teas, espresso over ice cream and pastries and a variety of other specialty beverages.
The coffee served is a medium roast with a smooth flavor.
Small Coffee is parked in front of the Louisiana Department of Health building on North 4th Street downtown from 6:30-9:30 a.m. and at ITI Technical College on Airline Highway from 4:30-7:30 p.m.
For more information on Small Coffee, visit smallcoffeebigtaste.com.