Tag Archives: Temple Coffee

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A Bean (& A Few Thousand Pennies) For Your Thoughts: Temple Coffee’s Sean Kohmescher and His 10-Year Takeover of Sacramento

When I moved to Sacramento three years ago, I knew nothing about this town other than it was a little bit dangerous, dry and hot for a large portion of the year and about an hour and a half away from “the city.” It didn’t take me long to discover the things that make this town unique: And really, all I mean here is that it didn’t take me long to realize we have some amazing food and—most importantly—coffee. Lots of it. I found myself spending hours at Temple Coffee after work, getting to know the baristas and the regulars and drinking my weight in coffee. I was the new kid in town, and Temple quickly became my own version of Cheers. Turns out, this is a darn good town to live in if you dig coffee.

Is it even a secret at this point? Sacramento consistently ranks high on the national lists of places for coffee lovers to caffeinate themselves silly. In Sacramento, the craft coffee shop is king. If you work or live near the grid, you have a multitude of options for snagging a well-crafted cup of Joe (I’m convinced the “coffee break” is the new “smoke break,” am I right?!). And chances are, you’ve been to one of the shops that helped spearhead the movement: Temple Coffee.

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Temple Coffee Owner Sean Kohmescher

Just celebrating its 10-year anniversary, Temple Coffee has become one of the default go-to spots for gatherings of all kinds—from study sessions, to business meetings, to book clubs, to first dates—and at the helm of this empire is Sean Kohmescher, the guy who took his life savings, sold his rare 1948 Harley and 1958 VW Beetle to open up shop on 10th Street downtown.

Originally from Oklahoma, Kohmescher moved to San Diego and instantly fell in love with the coffee culture there, where he felt inspired by the community of folks that gathered for the sake of coffee, sand and days at the beach. Eventually he decided to migrate north and get a graphic design degree in San Francisco (where he also worked in the dining industry) before moving to Sacramento to pursue the coffee business. He went to work for Naked Lounge and lived with its founder, Chris Pendarvis, along with his other buddy Jason Griest, the owner of Old Soul. With their energy, passions and support of each other’s ideas, Sacramento coffee was on the brink of becoming something special.

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“Sacramento … It was a little cooler back in the day,” Kohmescher says, “cool/uncool. Now it’s more ‘mainstream cool’ but 10 years ago it was underground cool. It was like a little rockabilly town.”

He and his friends would hang out at spots like Benny’s, Java City and go see rock shows at Capitol Garage. “That was it, that was Midtown,” he said. And when Temple opened its doors in 2005 (you now may recognize it as the Insight Coffee location near 10th and J streets), Kohmescher had few specific goals in mind for his business. “My goal? To be able to eat. To pay rent …” he laughs, “to live.”

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Temple Coffee hit the ground running in their first year and became the first coffeehouse in town to offer single-origin coffee. Their coffees consistently receive top ranks in Coffee Review, which ranks coffees all over the world for outstanding quality. Temple also established “Farm to Cup” sourcing, where their director of coffee, Eton Tsuno, travels to the coffee farms themselves to establish relationships, ensure quality and purchase beans in a sustainable way. In fact, Temple recently set the mold by publishing their financials via “Return to Origin” reports on their website, in an effort to accomplish the most transparent and fair trade business practices with their farmers, perhaps in the hopes that other shops will be nudged to do the same.

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Ten years and five locations later, Temple Coffee’s newest digs in Midtown (on 22nd and K streets) represents not only the culmination of their success in Sacramento, but also a nod to the history of Midtown.

“We try to build [our shops] around what is existing in the space. We try not to make it something that it’s not,” Kohmescher said of the new location, which combined new and old to match the “old world” Sacramento with the new, modern and contemporary buildings popping up around town. “We wanted a space in Midtown that was very ‘Midtownish.’”

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If you’ve been to the K Street location, you’ve probably noticed a few of its strange features, like the penny floors and the motorcycle parked in the middle of the cafe. “It’s kind of an autobiography as far as accents in the space,” says Kohmescher. “We did a lot of combining that old, rough, raw old-school wood aesthetic with walnut, modern, clean lines.”

While Kohmescher is proud of the barn-like ceilings, it’s the penny floors that capture the most attention (pretty sure it’s Instagram famous, at least), and the motorcycle perched in the seating area is a throwback to the Harley that Kohmescher sold to finance the first shop.

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Submerge-Temple-Kevin Fiscus

But it isn’t all about the looks—the new location on K Street offers a few special things that the other locations do not, such as custom dessert pairings from various bakeries around town, and Kyoto slow-drip coffee (previously only offered at their Davis location). The seating is cozy, offering a large community table flanked by smaller tables with warm lighting and a large sofa (and I can’t help but think of Friends/Central Perk every time I see that sofa). There’s also cheery outdoor seating in front and large, surprisingly comfortable, rocks to sit on around the corner of the building, offering a great view of surrounding Midtown. It’s the kind of place you’d want to meet up with a friend and chat about your week, your new favorite book or maybe even the coffee shop you hope to open one day.

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Head Roaster Jake Deome

To celebrate the K Street location’s grand opening and Temple’s 10-year anniversary, head roaster Jake Deome created a special three-bean blend utilizing Nicaragua Jaime Molina, Nicaragua Ana Maria Albir and Costa Rica Las Lajas Estate—a delightfully sweet and exotic mix that the shop only offered for the week. Deome said they were excited to be working on a few “premier” coffees (“these are small lot, like the geishas,” Deome says) to gear up for Temple’s busiest season of the year leading up to Christmas.

As for Kohmescher, he’s not sure what’s next. When asked if he planned to expand business to other cities or states, he said maybe—but only if the time is right, and if his team is ready for the growth and added challenge. And if Temple went anywhere, it would probably be down the California coast. But he’s in no hurry; he really just wants to spend more time at home with his family.

“There’s people who are always looking too far ahead,” he said. “The best way to get to the top is one step at a time. And I’m one who doesn’t look a whole lot of steps farther than where I’m walking at the time. Every single step is just closer to whatever that is.”

Temple Coffee now has five locations in the Sacramento area: 22nd and K streets, and 2829 S Street in Midtown; 1010 9th St. Downtown; 2600 Fair Oaks Boulevard in Arden Arcade; and 239 G Street in Davis. You can also learn more at Templecoffee.com.

Sean Kohmescher-Temple Coffee

The Eighth Annual Submerge Holiday Gift Guide {Part 2}

The Eighth Annual Submerge Holiday Gift Guide {Part 2}

By Submerge Staff

It’s your duty as an American to shop. That’s not an opinion, it’s right there in the Declaration of Independence. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. OK, so it doesn’t specifically mention “shopping,” but it’s clearly in the subtext. So, if it’s your duty to shop, why not do it locally? You’ll impress your family and friends with your awesome taste and knack for finding unique gifts, and you’ll also help grow your community’s economy. Double bonus! That’s what the season’s spirit is all about (again, subtext). Please enjoy the following compendium of (mostly) local holiday gift ideas and feel your heart cockles fill with patriotic pride!

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Fanny Packs by Avenue Dee at Old Gold

Perfect for everything from music festivals, to hikes, to a night on the town, fanny packs are back, baby! Check out these fun, functional and stylish ones from Los Angeles-based company Avenue Dee, available locally at Old Gold (located inside WAL Public Market, 1104 R Street, Sacramento). Prices range from $30–$34, patterns and colors vary, see store for details.

Smart Balance Wheel

Smart Balance Wheel from Back to the 80’s Store

The hottest gadget of the season this year is surprisingly not an Apple product, but instead the Smart Balance Wheel ($499) available locally in a variety of colors at the new Back to the 80’s Store (2131 K Street, Suite B, Sacramento). Combine a Segway with a skateboard and you’re somewhere in the realm of what these “hoverboards” are all about. Each one has speakers built in! Connect with your smartphone via Bluetooth and let the good times roll. Includes carrying case and one-year warranty.

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Cold Bruer Iced Coffee Maker from Temple Coffee

For the coffee lover on your list: The Cold Bruer ($80) is a simple and transparent way to make delicious cafe-style slow drip cold brewed coffee right at home in as little as four hours. It’s sleek, simple, easy to use and a breeze to clean. Who cares if it’s cold outside? Any true coffee lover will always be down for properly brewed iced stuff! Pick one up locally at Temple Coffee locations (call ahead to make sure they have it in stock) or snag one online at Templecoffee.com.

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Handmade Shoes by Benjamins

For the stylish gentlemen out there: These handmade shoes by Benjamins are produced in extremely limited runs and made right here in Sacramento inside the WAL Public Market (1104 R Street, Sacramento). Owner and maker Benjamin Schwartz uses the highest quality luxury fabrics and traditional shoemaking techniques, resulting in some seriously comfortable and visually appealing kicks. Prices start at $195 on up, and he’s currently got about a four-month waiting list (each pair is handmade, after all). All shoes include cedar shoe trees and linen shoe bags.

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Adult Coloring Books from Blick Art Supplies

Obligations, stress, work, family, bills, emails, text messages, social media … Phew, life is complicated and sometimes exhausting. When it’s time to unwind, unplug and relax, these Color Me Calm and Color Me Happy adult coloring books ($16.99), available locally at Blick Art Supplies (905 Howe Avenue, Sacramento) or online at Dickblick.com, will help do the trick. Organized into therapeutically-themed chapters, these books were designed by art therapist Lacy Mucklow and artist Angela Porter to help you get coloring and get relaxed. Don’t forget Blick Essentials Colored Pencils ($3.99 on up).

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High-Quality American-Made Glass Pipes from Exhale Smoke Shop

Sacramento’s newest smoke shop and glass gallery Exhale is now open on the corner of E and 29th Streets (under Pine Cove Tavern) in Sacramento. Owner Ryan Donnelly only carries glass that is high-quality and American-made, in addition to a huge selection of e-juices, rigs, papers, containers, grinders and more. HVY Glass 12” Bubble Bottom Waterpipe ($220), assorted dry glass pipes range from $10–$90.

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Beautiful $10 Bouquets from Nice Stems Flower Shop

While perusing all of the fine local shops inside the WAL Public Market this holiday season (and beyond), you’ll notice an adorable flower stand tucked in the back called Nice Stems, offering a fabulous minimalist selection of flowers sourced from the highest quality locations. Flowers make great gifts! Perfect for one’s home or office. This grab-and-go pre-made bouquet was only $10, and they have $15 and $20 versions too. Individual stems go for around $4. They even deliver anywhere on the grid via bicycle! Nice stems, indeed, and cheap too.

***FOR MORE GIFT IDEAS, CLICK HERE TO SEE PART 1 OF OUR 2015 HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE***

It’s All in the Details

Inside the Creative Mind of Sacramento Artist Daniel Choe

Artist Daniel Choe lives in what he describes as “a more colorful neurological hemisphere.”

His mind is constantly reaping the essence of overlooked beauty caught in the monotony of day to day life, only to let it seep in his brain and regurgitate it all via ink onto a blank canvas.

Choe creates pieces with the blackest calligraphy-like lines. You can see where he increases pressure on his utensil to create the marks that stain his canvas, spreading the ink darker and wider. The ink forms to create a topographic landscape with layers upon layers of varying depths that unite to make one entity, often splashed with a bit of watercolor.

He has described his work as being “An evolving culmination of matter that stems from my creative and illogical outbursts.”

You may have seen Daniel’s work wrapped around the silver coffee thermos from Temple Coffee, which is reportedly almost sold out because it was so dang pretty. I recently met up with Choe (pronounced Choy), to find out where he is, and where he plans to be.

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How has your show at Temple been?
It has been really good. I always work on art purely for self-gratification. Just to say my motivations with these things are usually me working on art because it feels good to me. Inquiries are never expected, but it has really been a pleasant after-effect of displaying my art in this show. I feel like I am being gifted with interests and opportunities right now.

You also designed a special thermos for Temple.
Yes, Temple asked me to help design a limited edition thermos for their artist series. I also manage one of the Temple locations, so I work closely with them on a daily basis. I chose to wrap a coffee plant around the thermos. It sold way better than I expected and was really successful. In fact, I think they are pretty much gone and sold out. Temple, however, has some more really cool things planned in terms of the thermos series.

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You also participated in the Pizza Rock pizza box design contest?
I created this really intricate and detailed box for Pizza Rock in a competition they held a little while ago. I utilized every section of the box from front to back, and even did a bit of research on the owners and took some of those findings and included little personal trademarks for each one. Only they would be able to find the trademarks among my designs.

Who are your subjects? You use a bunch of females. Are they friends or figments of your imagination?
Sometimes some of the subjects I know. Some are just inspired by passersby.

Most of the things I use are drawn from daily rituals and nature. I just look at physical life in-depth. I pay attention to things I see on my daily routine and I naturally incorporate it into whatever I am working on. For example, have you ever really picked up a leaf and examined it? They are everywhere, but have you picked one up every once in a while and noticed how beautiful and intricate they are? I like to take these little tidbits and appreciate them. One thing I really love to do is hike. Whenever I hike, I pay attention to texture and symmetry or lack thereof. I incorporate all of these things into my work.

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Is this why you like to use topographic lines?
My work has a lot of similarities to a topography map. Some people have even flirted with the idea of commissioning me to make an actual topographic map for them. I use the lines to show texture, contours and depth.

I recently read a book called Daily Rituals [by Mason Currey], and it explores the environments in which creative minds thrive. What sort of rituals do you have while working on your art?
I’m actually pretty neutral and low key. I sit in my small one bedroom apartment in Carmichael, usually with my dog curled up at my feet and some odd background noise. I like to curl up on my couch, or sprawl out on my kitchen floor. Usually a strange documentary for ambience will be playing in the background. I work almost 100 percent from home because everywhere else is full of distractions. A lot of the time, I just need to go home and spill out what has been mentally brewing.

Do you come from artistic roots?
My dad was a musician who drew on the side. At the time, I remember thinking he was really good. I mean, I still think he is really good, but it wasn’t his main artistic commitment. He was just a very creative person, and drawing was simply another avenue to express that. For me, it is my primary direction. The last few years, I have taken on a very serious relationship with it. Dad was a jazz percussionist who also played strings. I remember I would often bug my dad to draw me small things.

Despite this, I actually didn’t grow up in a household where art was commended. I’ll accomplish something, yet, I’m not a doctor or lawyer so its not good enough. I can honestly say that I’m pretty good at not letting things get to me. I do something I love and enjoy, that can never be taken from me. I never had a clear and supportive path paved for me. I work for everything I have, despite it being a struggle sometimes. I just chill and drink coffee and say, “Well, OK!”

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How do you handle critics?
Art is such a subjective thing. You’re going to get fans, and you are going to have critics who are not very happy with what you are producing. You kind of just have to roll with the punches. I’ve come to realize that I shouldn’t be trying to make anyone happy. Well, especially with me and art, because it has always been, like, this isn’t a job. I love this and it’s not turning into this thing I do to please others. If it upsets people, then that’s cool. It’s evoking some sort of emotion even if it’s not in my favor. Weighted opinions never really upset me, because it would limit me. It should leave people inspired to do something themselves and consider how they came to these feelings, and think back to initial contact with the piece.

On your personal site, Limeflavorednoms.com, you provide a list of intentions. What are some up-to-date intentions?
These intentions still all hold true. In essence, I just want to do everything. I think that Sacramento has an art scene that has so many great things going on. Every time I hear of a project, I want to be a part of it. I want to expand, collaborate and create as much as possible. I just want someone to offer me a mural to paint and I would be so happy.

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Visit Choe’s site at Limeflavorednoms.com/press for upcoming show dates.

SHINE CAFE IS UNDER NEW OWNERSHIP, WILL CONTINUE TO HOST ALL-AGES SHOWS

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More than just a coffee shop and café, Shine (located in the Mansion Flats neighborhood at 1400 E Street) has steadily been carving out its own niche in the local music and arts scenes for the last couple years, consistently hosting a variety of all-ages shows featuring both local and touring bands as well as hanging local artists’ work on their walls. They also host comedy shows, poetry readings, the list goes on. It’s the type of place that helps drive the city’s thriving arts and entertainment scenes forward, so you can imagine our concern when we heard from someone on the street recently that Shine had been sold to new owners. “We hope they keep up the love for local art and music,” we told ourselves. Turns out, after a little research and connecting with one of the new owners, 35-year-old Amanda Lawrence, we’ve got nothing to worry about. “Shine remains committed to supporting local art and music,” Lawrence recently told Submerge. “Each month we feature a new visual artist, each Tuesday is Jazz Jam Night, the second and fourth Wednesdays are Poetry Night and Fridays and Saturdays still feature bands.” She even went on to explain that they hope to further expand the genres that they bring in. “We are looking forward to drawing in more culturally diverse music and performances, such as bossa nova and Latin jazz, as well as African dance troops.” Lawrence, who moved to Sacramento from Portland in October, co-owns Shine with her older brother Lance (43) and their friend Tyson Wells (38). “This is our first venture into business ownership, but we each bring varying skills and knowledge from experience working in the coffee and restaurant world,” she said. “We bought Shine because it was overflowing with potential to be a part of the burgeoning ‘eat and drink local’ movement, as well as to serve the Mansion Flats neighborhood as its anchor coffee shop by day and a nice little place to get a drink and catch a show at night.” Since taking over in late November, the crew has added some nice personal touches to the space, including building and installing an awesome new stage for performers that features a background constructed with reclaimed barn wood and funky lighting features. They also upgraded the menu and are now serving Temple Coffee. Their official “grand opening” party will be on Friday, Jan. 10 and will feature live music from As Yet Untitled, Sicfus and POG. That show will be just $5 and will kick off at 8 p.m. As always, all ages are welcome. To learn more about the new Shine and to view their calendar of upcoming events, visit Shinesac.com. To Shine’s old owner, Rena Davonne, we’ll miss seeing you and your awesome, cheery daughter every time we drop off a stack of mags! To the new owners, welcome to the neighborhood and thanks for keeping up the local music and art love!

A Journey Into the Unknown

The bizarre worlds conjured by visual artist Erik Hosino

There’s something dichotomous about visual artists. Take for instance, art displays in coffee houses. The artist comes in and revisualizes the space, and patrons have the opportunity to scan each piece as closely as they’d like. But the artists themselves needn’t be present. On one hand, their work is upfront and exposed. But if the performance doesn’t need the performer, there lies some mystery. From the viewer’s perspective, it can seem as though the artist might feel isolated from new audiences, but it’s quite the opposite.

“It feels interactive to me and helps me get my artwork to such a wide array of people, just to see what they think of it,” said Erik Hosino, an artist nearly native to Sacramento who’s been displaying his work at Temple Coffee.

“One of the great things about hanging art at a place like a coffee shop, especially in a place like Midtown, is you really get a slice of the population. You get everybody from lawmakers, people at the capitol, to young hipster kids and everyone between,” Hosino said. “I’ve been flattered to see people who buy my artwork are not just this age group, this type of person, that I’ve actually sold artwork to young people, old people, white collared, all over. So in that sense I get that interaction.”

Hosino has been living in Sacramento since before he turned 1, and has been drawing throughout his entire life.

{“Release”    Pen & Ink/Watercolor}

{“Release” Pen & Ink/Watercolor}

“The extent of my formal art training honestly doesn’t go too far beyond high school and a few classes at the junior college,” Hosino said. “I think the fact that I took to art at such a young age has kept me inspired to keep doing it.”

A huge part of that inspiration has come from studying well-known artists like Edward Gorey and his masterful pen-and-ink illustrations. Hosino’s work has been compared to Tim Burton’s numerous times, both sharing a similar darkness, also found in Gorey’s work.

“I’ve had people look at my artwork and think, ‘Are you depressed? Because you paint a lot of stuff about death and skeletons,’ but honestly it’s quite the opposite for me. I think that by sort of accepting death and celebrating it as a part of life has made it less taboo, and therefore it’s never felt weird to depict it whether in an explicit or more symbolic way. But because I am sort of drawn to the mysterious, I think that darkness and dark subject matter does lend itself well as fodder for my artwork.”

{“Awkward”   Pen & Ink}

{“Awkward” Pen & Ink}

Since an artist is rarely present if you by chance see their work hanging somewhere like Temple, the next inevitable step a curious viewer would take would be to look up the artist online. If you search Erik Hosino, one of the first things you’ll come across is a website called Superheroes for Hire, or as Hosino puts it, “The thing I’ll look back on my death bed and kick myself for.”

The idea started out as a project for a class. In his late teens, Hosino had this idea for creating an agency of B-rated superheroes, banding together their lackluster talents to try to find work. The project was praised by his teacher, which inspired Hosino to develop the idea a little more. He sent the piece to Comedy Central and a few other networks. Comedy Central got back to Hosino and asked him to redraft the idea a bit. At the time, Hosino was about 20 years old, and with the motivation level of a 20-year-old and some unexplainable hesitation, he let the opportunity slide and never followed through.

“Now that I’m older and take my art more seriously in a lot of ways and am a lot more disciplined and passionate, I hate that I did that,” Hosino said.

While it was a heartbreaking setback, Hosino has kept the project alive in a smaller capacity. The website has an interactive feel to it, allowing the visitor to scroll through the various superheroes for background on their minimal capabilities, and a comment section for superhero service requests.

“It was a total lesson learned. I try not to beat myself up for it because I was young and I was straight-up stupid about it, but inspired me to keep the idea up,” Hosino said. “It only exists in that incarnation now, but in some ways it gives me some happiness to know it’s not totally dead.”

{“Mother Mary”    Acrylic}

{“Mother Mary” Acrylic}

A good starting point to get a broad sense of his style would be checking out his collection called Strange Places, a book released in January 2011.

“I’ve had people come to me and say they want to buy either a print or original, and maybe they couldn’t afford the original or the one that they wanted was sold. Strange Places was partly a response to people’s desire to have a collection, just a sampling of my artwork,” Hosino said.

Hosino’s style is a blend of odd, imaginative and eerie. Bodies with bulky shoulders and torsos and pencil-thin arms and legs; dark scenery with curled tree branches or cavernous dark spaces. A mix of imaginative and morbid—all very slight, enough to set a somewhat creepy tone but not fearful. The book gives a good example of his versatility. Each style requires a different medium to create.

{“Breakfast, Interrupted”   Pen & Ink/Watercolor}

{“Breakfast, Interrupted” Pen & Ink/Watercolor}

“If I want something chaotic or fluid, that’s where watercolor comes in; and if I want something really controlled, really tight pen and ink lines help achieve that,” Hosino said. “By day I’m a graphic designer, although I’ve been drawing a lot longer, the designer in me informs the way I work as an illustrator. It’s kind of a blessing and a curse. The illustrator in me often longs to be more spontaneous and organic, but the graphic designer in me longs for structure, planning and cleanliness and often times gets the better of me.”

It seems almost as a way to subconsciously merge both sides that Hosino gravitates most toward watercolor.

“I love the organic way, when I work with pen and ink and watercolor—which is a common combination for me—I’m very controlled with my pen work, and I let the watercolor play as much of a role as I do,” Hosino said. “I spent a long time trying to get a good command of watercolor, and it’s only recently I grew to accept it’ll kind of do its own thing. Not only did I accept it, I embraced the fact that I can control what I can control when I’m drawing, but when I put down that watercolor it adds a whole organic way to my illustration.”

Letting go of a little control has become one of Hosino’s main strengths within his artwork.

{Chalk It Up Square 2013    Sponsor: Raley’s}

{Chalk It Up Square 2013 Sponsor: Raley’s}

I’ve found those kinds of pieces that people gravitate mostly to of mine are the ones where they are interacting with it and filling in the blanks,” Hosino said. “That’s one thing people enjoy about my artwork and wasn’t intentional at first, but when I omit certain details to appease, people have come up and said, ‘Oh man I’ve been staring at this piece forever and trying to figure out what’s going on,’ and sometimes they fill in the blanks on their own, other times they like the fact that it remains unknown to them.”

See Hosino’s art for yourself at Temple Coffee’s downtown Sacramento location (1010 9th Street). It will be on display now through Dec. 12, 2013. Peruse the artist’s Web presence at Erikhosino.com.

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The Broadacre Boys

Broadacre Ltd. Coffee
1014 10th Street, Sacramento

Words & Photos by Adam Saake

The last time we left the Elia brothers, Jake and Lucas, they had moved on from their first venture, the chic and elegant Bloom Coffee and Tea out in Roseville, and were onto their next entrepreneurial endeavor, Pause Kitchen and Lounge, which was literally a stone’s throw away from Bloom. Unfortunately, this past August saw the closing of their swanky establishment that had a focus on small plates and thoughtful spirit pairings and found the two brothers back at their drawing boards once more. Luckily for the Elias, their drawing boards are accompanied by very sharp pencils and the Crayola 64 set, if you catch my drift, and these boys wasted no time in setting out to create their next work of art.

This time, along for the ride are two of their long time employees from Bloom, Justin Kerr and Andrew Lopez, who share the Elias’ passion for finely crafted coffee and the vision of bringing it to the masses. The idea for a coffee shop was in place and the four started looking for a space in the midtown/downtown area. With a stir of perfect timing, the firmly established Temple Coffee on 10th between J and K streets was gearing up to relocate from their original location, a charming Hobbit-like structure that was once a bookstore, to a new location just around the corner. This brewed the right opportunity and the perfect space for the four partners to capitalize on their new venture–Broadacre Ltd. Coffee.

With the addition of two more opinions weighing in, decision-making could get hairy. Especially since the brothers had been calling the shots at Bloom and Pause for the past couple years. But Lucas says the addition of Kerr and Lopez is all for the better.

“We definitely saw [Justin and Andrew] as assets and as minds we thought could bring something to the table,” says Lucas. “There are definitely conversations that have been hashed out, and we argue sometimes but at the same time we end up at a better result than we would have if it was just the two of us.”

Those minds all thinking in unison have created a new and knowledgeable destination for quality brewed coffees and beans in the heart of Downtown Sacramento. The location is perfect for foot traffic and their reputations from Bloom precede them. That means those seeking a good cup of Joe know exactly where to go, and Lucas says business has been good so far.

In many respects, Broadacre is a coffee shop like any other. Tables and chairs are aligned in neat rows along the narrow corridor leading to the counter. An espresso machine hisses and gurgles, the crescendo tick of beans spilling into the grinder can be heard and the plates and cups collide to complete the symphony of a busy café. The pastry case is full of croissants and muffins from Freeport Bakery and Doughbot Donuts to accompany your beverage. Angled walkers in stride pass briskly in the morning, some stopping in for a quick cup of coffee on their way to work–some unconcerned by what the sign reads on the outside, only interested in the almighty caffeine contained within. But there are subtleties at work that make Broadacre unique and make them a premier location in town to get premium coffee and an authentic café experience.

It all starts with good coffee and Broadacre has got that covered.

“We just had Verve at Bloom, and so we were an exclusive account,” says Lucas. “Here it’s very dynamic, and it’s changing all the time. We have four coffee roasters and it changes once a month–one drops off and another comes on. So there are always different coffees around.”

Aside from Santa Cruz, Calif.’s Verve Coffee, which the Elias still carry, their other roasters include San Francisco’s Ritual Roasters, Chicago’s Intelligentsia Coffee and Tea and Portland’s Stumptown Roasters. With the coffees rotating so frequently, it’s important that Lucas and the rest of the team dial in the espresso and make sure the transition to the new coffee is smooth.

“It’s not an easy thing to do if you don’t have the right skill set to manage changing out coffees every day, dialing in espressos and making sure everything tastes good all the time. You need to taste it, you need to have a good palate to be able to know that the espresso you’re pulling is tasting good,” explains Lucas.

Good coffee deserves careful preparation to make sure the final product, what’s in your cup, stays consistent. Broadacre currently offers four different methods of brewing for you to choose from: Hario V60, Aeropress, French press and Chemex. All have their different qualities and can bring out different notes in the coffee or reduce oils. Each method can be explained to you if you don’t know which one best suits your tastes. It’s also prepared right before; meticulously weighed out and treated with care.

When I arrived to chat with the brothers, Jake and Lucas were behind the counter helping customers and preparing their own coffee to drink. Both dressed in clean and pressed collared shirts that were tucked into their slacks; belts and dress shoes to match. Their thick, black tufts of hair neatly combed and groomed, a mirror of their surroundings. On the left counter, the shiny and new La Marzocco Strada espresso machine that Lucas spoke fondly of. White mugs sat orderly on the top, and behind the counter two-dozen rocks glasses, each filled with weighed-out portions of fresh coffee beans, awaited the grinder. Three scales rested neatly across the counter; another necessary component for ensuring consistency with how much water is required for the perfect cup. There’s this air of fun about all the young baristas there, seen in their honest smiles and their passion for coffee and how it’s served. Their blog posts that speak to the search for great coffee are always signed off, “the broad acre boys” like they’re some kind of Wild West Robin Hoods; taking the pretentiousness out of carefully brewed coffee and giving it to the common Joe drinker to enjoy. When you walk inside Broadacre, you feel compelled to stay a while and that’s exactly how the boys like it.

New-ish Beginnings

The New Humans’ Avalanche Drops, Finally
Words by Vincent Girimonte | Photo by Raoul Ortega

Don’t broach the time before The New Humans with The New Humans; it’s akin to rehashing a saga and you’ve missed the first couple of installments where some real heavy shit went down. Sitting in front of Temple Coffee on 10th, that savory little nook of downtown Sacramento that feels like a downtown, Cole Cuchna and “new” singer Scott Simpson gingerly sidestep their previous selves as if they were officers in some cult; Simpson speaks briefly on his days with Sacramento rock outfit Still Life Projector while Cuchna is less forthcoming.

“I’m going to drop [Cuchna] out right now too–Cole was in a band called Red Top Road that was kind of big around the same time,” says Simpson. Once you’ve jumped from the ‘burbs, all that noise must be like Calvin Klein to Mark Wahlberg.

But nobody likes the then, especially when the now has finally shown up. The New Humans release their first EP, Avalanche, Aug. 21 with a Korg shakedown of sorts at The Townhouse, supported by Dusty Brown side project Little Foxes and those plucky FAVORS kids making their live debut. And yes, this is The New Humans’ first EP, which is no doubt a little surprising given the all the buzz The New Humans have created over the past few years, playing as an instrumental band nonetheless.

“It was never planned,” says Cuchna of the band’s instrumental phase. “We always thought the songs sounded incomplete. It was never really what we wanted to do.” Simpson took over the vocals after an arduous search for that elusive frontman, futile as they often seem to be. “We got tired of it. Trying out a bunch of people, no one was really going to grasp what we were going for besides one of us,” Simpson admits, though the group maintains that perhaps it was for the better.

The New Humans were conceived on a laptop, initially with a fairly direct “screw the guitar” mentality stemming from their previous ventures. Simpson and Cuchna, childhood friends from their days growing up in Elk Grove, wrote dozens of songs before picking up bassist Robert LaCasse and later adding current drummer, Mike Steez.

“When we started we were a lot more excited about it. I almost forget about it now,” recalls Cuchna. “Our intention was never to be like, ‘Oh check out this band, they don’t have guitars.’ I guess that would be one cool thing about us now.”

No guitars in today’s Midtown doesn’t turn any heads. It’s not uncommon to see a show with the MPC 1000 or something of the like running things on the floor, people kneeling over it awkwardly like some Ouija board. The New Humans occupy a very different side of this trend, though. Sugary, glam-y, coked-out even; it’s glitzy–not janky–in the way K Street is trying to be. “Fever” is the punchy single that predates the EP by what seems like eons, but it’s “All the Kids,” the EP’s opener, that does well to outline the album’s general framework: catchy synth melodies, live drums with percussion loops on top and a piano underneath trying to tether it all down.

“[Not having guitars] lets in the stylistic, bluesy or jazzy undertones–there’s a song on the EP with a Latin-y undertone. It lets all that color come through,” says Simpson, the pipes of this sassy “disco generation.” Some opening falsettos belie his trepidation over taking the lead vocals, and I wasn’t the first to mention that his inner diva was beginning to surface.

“I feel like every show we play, it’s coming out a little more, and in another year I’ll be a complete fucking monster.”

If there’s a sense of relief following the completion of any project, The New Humans are the divorcee who finds love again after Dad packs up and leaves. Six months were spent recording in a Sacramento studio (names are omitted per band’s request), and though both parties remain cordial, those six months were scrapped due to artistic disputes and “fake promises.”

“He wanted to produce it, so we were like, ‘OK, produce it,’ not knowing how far the producing would go,” Simpson says. “It’s a lot of trust to put in someone when you’ve never heard anything they’ve produced before. I don’t trust anybody with my band that way, unless maybe you like, produce fucking Radiohead.”

Cuchna adds, “I think that it was probably our fault for not really setting ground rules.”

Cuchna cites differences in process rather than the actual material being recorded; Simpson recollects on an uncomfortable foray into “L.A. bullshit,” where the band was allegedly being pushed into a deal with a sheisty label.

“It was a commercialized process, which could work for us, but it was an over-commercialized process,” says Simpson. “All the bands, they were trying to get them on The Hills, shit like that.”

The group self-produced with some guidance from Ira Skinner, using his studio space essentially for their own devices–“[Skinner] put in advice where we needed it and where we asked for it,” says Simpson. The New Humans purport to be in the “electric piano rock” vein, and though we can’t derive too much from that, the production doesn’t always speak to the band’s live panache–some tracks lack articulation, components grind together, coming up a little short in the “pop” factor that one generally demands with any electronic project under the umbrella of “dance-y.” But it’s their first production, more of a “demo” according to Cuchna, and he stresses the fact that they were past due on getting the EP released.

“That’s my only thing with the EP–it’s kind of all over the place…not all over the place, but we’re kind of treating it more as a demo,” he says. “At this point, we just needed to get the songs out.”

A mini-tour is planned for the fall, hopefully with a label supporting it. At this point the band is eager to get the EP “in the hands of the right people,” whomever they might be. Suffice it to say they’re in no particular hurry.