Decatur, GA — Opo Coffee celebrated its grand opening in Decatur’s Old Depot District on Friday, Jan. 13.

Opo Coffee will offer a variety of experiences for customers and coffee professionals. The shop features various seating areas, an espresso and tea menu, and pastries, like muffins, scones, and cookies. The menu includes items like cappuccinos, lattes, basic teas and a chai tea made in-house. The staff is developing other food items.

“In addition to savory scones and such, we’re work-shopping a Quiché recipe right now,” owner Jonathan Pascual said. “Hopefully, we’ll release that soon. We’re open to other things that give people a little bit more substance if they’re hanging out for several hours with us or during a meal time.”

Pascual and his team are working to launch the roastery branch of the business to be able to roast the coffee the shop uses, provide coffee for wholesale, as well as online orders. The e-commerce store is coming soon.

The shop has a training lab that will provide Specialty Coffee Association certifications for baristas. Classes for at-home coffee drinkers will be offered as well.

“In that classroom, we have a whole espresso bar set up,” Pascual said. “We have an espresso machine, we have coffee brewing equipment. We have sit-down desks, and we are able to actually run classes there.”

Early on in his journey in specialty coffee, Pascual spent many hours at the Counter Culture Training Center in Atlanta. It has temporarily closed, but he was able to use their machines, take classes and learn how to taste coffee.

“Right now there are not a lot of places that offers that opportunity since Counter Culture shut down their training center. We want to provide that, not just for our own employees, but also for our community of people who work in specialty coffee in Atlanta and then outside of that as well,” Pascual said.

More information about the classes will be on the Opo Coffee website.

Pascual also owns Taproom Coffee in Kirkwood, but he had a dream to expand his brand and passion for coffee. He opened Taproom nine years ago, and it will remain a small neighborhood coffee shop.

“There’s not physical space for roasting. It’s not going to have any grander presence than just in the Kirkwood neighborhood or serving Atlanta, but we wanted was to provide a larger umbrella that we could have a company that is more comprehensively a coffee company, rather than just a neighborhood coffee bar,” Pascual said.

Pascual is the sole owner of Taproom. He wanted Opo Coffee to be more than just him.

“I wanted to invite others into it because I don’t know how to do everything when it comes to all the different areas of coffee,” he said. “I brought in a diverse leadership team with varying levels of experience. We also brought in another community of people, including shareholders, who could advocate for and be resources for this company. Taproom was just me, but Opo is a whole community of people.”

As customers begin to visit Opo, Pascual hopes they feel welcome in the coffee shop.

“I would really want someone to feel a sense of belonging, whether it’s their first time or they’re an everyday customer…I want them to come in and feel like this place is welcoming, I like being here, it gives me joy to be in this space,” Pascual said.

Opo is Filipino for “yes” (with respect). The name recognizes Pascual’s heritage and encapsulates the company’s values of positivity, respect and honor.

“Opo Coffee, we are here to serve all of you. Our heart is to make a positive impact in people’s lives throughout the world using specialty coffee,” Pascual said during the ribbon cutting on Jan. 13.

The coffee shop is located at 314 E. Howard Ave. in Decatur. It is open Monday through Saturday, from 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.

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