A decade in, Lantern Coffee is still chasing the same goal it opened with in 2013 — community first, coffee without pretension, and a neighborhood worth showing up for.
Tell us about your journey into coffee. What first pulled you into the industry, and how did that lead to Lantern Coffee?
I started getting into coffee in college after having a great experience at a café in Detroit called Dessert Oasis. I thought what the baristas were doing was super cool, and I wanted to learn how to do that myself. When I moved back home after college, I bought a Chemex and became hyper-obsessed with making and tasting coffee.
“I bought a Chemex and became hyper-obsessed with making and tasting coffee.”
I started working at Starbucks in October 2014 and later joined Lantern in July 2016. After many years at Lantern — with a brief 8-month gap when I took a corporate job — I became an owner in August 2022.
What is the story behind Lantern Coffee — how did it start, and what were the early days of building the company like?
Lantern is located in a part of town that has been up-and-coming for quite a while. When we opened our doors in 2013, there wasn’t much in the neighborhood besides a music venue, a burger joint, and a record store.
Lantern’s main goal has always been to support our neighborhood, our city, and our supply chain. We’re heavily focused on creating a safe space where people feel welcome and can enjoy fun, specialty coffee.
What does Lantern Coffee stand for today, and what kind of experience are you trying to create for your customers?
We stand for community, supporting one another, and creating a space where people can experience coffee without pretentiousness. Coffee is fun, and people should enjoy it.
“Coffee is fun, and people should enjoy it.”
How would you describe your approach to roasting, and what do you focus on when developing a coffee profile?
My approach is very simple. On our 1980 Diedrich, we try to roast as fast as possible without scorching and develop the coffee as little as possible without underdevelopment. The goal is to retain as much flavor and terroir as possible.
We focus heavily on crack time, temperature, and post-crack development time, depending on the varietal.
How do you approach sourcing green coffee, and what qualities matter most to you when selecting coffees?
We trust our import partners to provide the freshest green coffee possible, and we’re always looking for clean profiles with no defects.
Depending on our menu, we love everything from coffees with lots of funk and advanced fermentation to extremely clean, single-variety washed coffees.
What is the specialty coffee scene like in Michigan, and how has it changed since you’ve been involved?
The specialty coffee scene in Michigan is great. Everyone mostly gets along, supports one another, and cheers each other on. We’re stoked to be a part of it.
It’s changed a lot over the last 10 years, especially in terms of drink offerings and trends. These days, nobody is too good to have some cold foam on the menu — even us.
What have been some of the biggest challenges in growing Lantern Coffee, and what have you learned from them?
Since we started roasting in 2023, one of our biggest challenges has been growing online sales and simply getting our name out there.
What we’re learning is that building genuine relationships with the people who already support us matters most. Community and word-of-mouth recommendations have played a huge role in helping us grow.
“Community and word-of-mouth recommendations have played a huge role in helping us grow.”
Looking ahead, where do you see Lantern Coffee in the next few years, and what excites you most about the future of coffee?
I think we’ll continue to grow as we source and select better and better coffees.
What excites me most is that the overall floor for coffee quality keeps rising. People everywhere continue to have access to better options for the coffee they brew at home, and I think that trend will only continue.
Final Thoughts
Lantern Coffee reads like a shop that’s grown up alongside its neighborhood rather than in spite of it. There’s no forced mystique here — just a straightforward belief that good coffee should be approachable, and that showing up for the people around you matters more than chasing trends.
Ten-plus years in, the light’s still on.
The Realm Dial
Two From Lantern
Two coffees, two brew methods — here’s how each one cupped.
The Realm Dial
Francisco Rivera
Lantern Coffee — Peru
Washed · $24.00
Flavor Notes Lavender, Sweet Citrus, Papaya
Brew V60 · 1:15 · 95°C · Fellow Setting 5.2
Recollection
In the mountains, overseeing the morning clouds as the sun rises — Philippines, early 2012, alongside the Philippine Marines.
Shop Francisco Rivera — $24.00
The Realm Dial
Oscar Osorio
Lantern Coffee — Colombia
Double Fermentation Washed · $21.00
Flavor Notes Golden Apple, Juicy Plum, Honey-Like
Brew AeroPress · 1:16 · 93°C · Fellow Opus Setting 3
Recollection
Preparing for the climb of Mount Fuji — determination, limited resources, not knowing what to expect or how long it would take to reach the top.
Shop Oscar Osorio — $21.00CropTalk is an ongoing interview series by The Coffee Realm highlighting the people, ideas, and philosophies shaping coffee culture around the world.
Every cup has a story. We’re here to tell it.
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