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Broadcast Coffee expands north from CD, Capitol Hill roots

72164_313259285465826_904570578_nWith Starbucks adding its heft to the roast your own coffee culture of Capitol Hill, a smaller player has quietly begun roasting beans off the Hill in Interbay and is opening a new northern outpost this weekend in the far flung and exotic Roosevelt neighborhood.

Broadcast Coffee owner Barry Faught inaugurated his new roasting operation a few months ago. The roasting plant facet of the expanding Broadcast operation was located in the more industrial Interbay area to save time on permits that would have been applied to a Capitol Hill location, Faught said.  “I just wanted to have more control over the coffee I serve,” he said.

The caffeine peddler has kept himself busy, in addition to his store duties, as the facility’s primary roaster with the help of an assistant.

SDIM1635“Right now, I roast our two [drip and espresso] blends.” The Broadcast set-up can produce 35 kilos of drinkable product in as little as 10 minutes or up to an undisclosed time — naturally, Faught wouldn’t share his proprietary secrets. The owner did tell CHS a new coffee offering is in the works just for the Central District.

The new batch, called Charity Roast, will see a percentage of its sales go toward a local charity, and will only be available at the Broadcast Central District location while another community specific flavor will also hit the cafe’s newest location in Roosevelt.

The third Broadcast storefront opened this week at NE 65th and Roosevelt. The new location joins Wayward Coffeehouse and the Roosevelt Square Starbucks on the growing coffee corner, the Ravenna Blog wrote.

Back in the Central Area, the business growth of Broadcast, a longtime CHS advertiser, has lead to the off Hill transitions. “Things have been going well for us,” said Faught. He is hoping to spread his coffee farther in the city if the right option presents itself.

The 2008 opening of Soho Coffee at 20th and Yesler, started on the heels of the economic recession, marked Faught’s first project into the coffee market leading him to quit his job to run the business full-time.

“I’ve never taken big risks, so I think this is something I need to do,” Faught told the Seattle Times, in 2009. The risk paid off as he later re-styled and re-tooled the Soho brand.

Soho Coffee before name change to Broadcast (Image: Central District News)

Soho Coffee before name change to Broadcast (Image: Central District News)

In 2011, Faught spoke with Central District News on his plans to rename Soho coffee while giving the store a facelift.

“My passion for coffee and coffee preparation has risen,” he said. “The new name and styles of coffee preparation will show that.” Soho became Broadcast on October 20, 2011 and continued to thrive.

A second Broadcast location opened on Capitol Hill in April, 2012 and Faught had similar attitudes on his business growth while talking with CHS at the time.

“I’ve developed a lot with my coffee preparation skills and I feel I’m ready for Capitol Hill.” The cafe set up in a, then newly renovated, 1,000 square foot space on Bellevue Way.

CHS checked in on his progress in August, 2012 and snapped up some pictures of the growing Capitol Hill cafe.

With a roasting facility, store specific brews and his third shop open it seems Faught was ready. “We’re not doing anything new and innovative,” he said. “Just want to keep it old school.”

You can learn more at broadcastcoffee.com.

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