The La Marzocco Café and Showroom opened in April 2016 in Seattle. The café is unique in that it is designed to serve as a platform to showcase the diversity and creativity of specialty coffee. Each month, a new “resident” takes over the café in order to present their vision of coffee service. Residents curate the coffees that are served, design the complete menu (every item and every ingredient), select the equipment that will be used during their residency, design supporting bar flow, and train our team to execute the coffee program.

In addition to designing the coffee program, residents are also invited to use their residency as a platform for education and community engagement. Residents are encouraged to develop and present educational programming and unique engagement experiences for café guests during their residency, as well as design a launch event to begin their residency.
Our goal is that residents will fully embrace the opportunity to express their creativity and showcase their work. No idea is too far-fetched, and our team is eager to be challenged, and to bring each resident’s vision to fruition.

We are now accepting applications for one-month residencies for Year 3, beginning May 2018.

Our goal is to create a slate of 2018-2019 residents that are diverse in their perspectives, geographies, and size.

We will be selecting individual residents based on the completeness of their applications, and the unique perspectives and creativity expressed in their applications. We will also prioritize creating an overall slate of residents that is diverse; we will be considering the group overall, in addition to reviewing the individual applications.

Each residency is meant to create the resident’s coffee experience that they choose to present to the communities they serve. Applications should highlight their perspective, and a commitment to creating something special, novel, and unique while in residence.

Applications will be evaluated based on our ability to understand the applicant’s perspective, and the supporting elements (menu, educational programming, company background, etc.) that help showcase that perspective. We will also be giving special consideration to applicants who can commit to having team members train our team in Seattle in the days leading up to the start of their residency, and in the first few days following the launch of the residency.

Coffee samples will be evaluated in a blind tasting.  

While being a La Marzocco partner (someone that purchases our equipment) is not required, it is heavily considered.  If you are not currently a partner of ours, please share with us what attracts you about our residency program.

The application will serve as the basis for your residency; you are essentially designing your residency as you envision it.

Be as thorough and complete in your answers as possible.  Please keep in mind that this application process will take significant time and attention, as the application period will not be extended.

We have found that the Seattle community we serve enjoys being challenged by unique experiences – and they have come to expect it. We hope you’ll surprise them!

If you have questions as you work on your application, please first refer to the FAQs provided below.
If you have additional questions, you can contact Amy Hattemer at amy@lamarzocco.com.

We look forward to learning about your vision for a residency at the café!

1. The applicant’s unique perspective within specialty coffee, how their perspective is creatively expressed.

2. The overall diversity of the residents (perspective, company size, geography – international and domestic).

3. The completeness of the application.

4. The applicant’s ability to commit to be in Seattle to train our team in the days before and after the residency begins.  

1. Work with your team internally to design your residency application.

2. Submit the requested information below in any format you desire.
(video, online drive with uploaded content, song, online presentation, etc…)

3. Complete your application by February 15th, 2018, 11:59pm Pacific Standard Time.

a. Each new residency begins on a Tuesday
b. 1-2 days before launch, your team is present in Seattle, preparing for training and launch
c. Sunday before launch, 6pm-9pm, there is an in-house training for the La Marzocco team
d. Monday before launch, 5pm-10pm, the new residency is loaded in
e. Wednesday following launch we reserve for a Launch Party/Event

Please let us know if you have any black-out months that would not work for your company for the 2018-2019 cycle, keeping in mind that nothing is guaranteed.

In depth residency planning between our team and yours begins no later than 7 weeks prior to the start of each residency.  The 7 weeks leading up to the residency launch and the launch week can be very intensive as we prepare and execute your residency design.  Full attention to detail is expected of each resident; your application here will be a first taste of your level of commitment.

We strongly encourage a member of your staff to be present at our cafe to train our team in person and be available the first week of your residency.  If this is not possible for you, we understand, and if training will need to happen in a condensed way, we ask that you supply our team with as much training documentation as possible in advance.

Please note, however, that your team's level of engagement with us will be an integral part of your residency and priority will be given to residents who can commit to being with us in Seattle in the days leading up to, and immediately following the residency launch.

Please think of what you want your residency to be like, and assume we can make anything happen.  We want this to be your experience.  We will only offer what you create on your menu and as your service platform.  It is best to not assume that we have any standard sizes or regular offerings.  We will only offer the drinks you create, with your recipes and sizes.  Think big.  We will let you know if it is too much, but it probably isn't.  

We use a local milk delivery service (Pete's Dairy) to select from several milk and milk-alternative options.

We have partnered with a local bakery, The London Plane, to provide daily pastries for the cafe. If you would like to have the bakery make any special items for your residency, please let us know so that we can coordinate collaboration.  If there is any food item that defines your service experience, which you want to create in our space, please let us know in detail.

We encourage our residents to enhance their time in Seattle by sharing their unique knowledge of coffee in classes, lectures or events.  You have full access to the entire cafe for these events, including the Home Espresso Lab, which features two Linea Minis, two GS3s, and a smart TV, compatible with Apple TV.  Your representative is also welcome to cover barista shifts, host Friday tastings, or have one-on-one sessions with consumers on the main bar, Home bar, etc.  Your team also has the ability to use the larger KEXP Gathering Space for larger events; AV support is available for hire, upon request.  Any out-of-the-box thinking on music and coffee collaboration is encouraged.

Each resident will have the opportunity to host a launch event on the first Wednesday of their residence. This can be as simple as serving a free specialty drink all day long, or as detailed as using the KEXP Gathering Space that surrounds the cafe to host a band or some other entertainment.  

Our partnership with KEXP is unique, and KEXP is keen to help promote the intersection of coffee and music. While not required, if you have a band that you want to incorporate into your residency and during your launch event – that would be great!

The launch event is a chance to kick off your residency and share the energy and enthusiasm that your residency will present in the month ahead. Like the rest of the residency, there is nothing "normal" or "usual" about these events, and we will help you create your ideal launch event, however it is up to you to design and execute this experience. Our team can help connect you to local vendors to help create your vision, and is available to help execute it, but it is your responsibility to design it and cover the costs for it.

Within the Google Maps search for the La Marzocco Cafe, you will find photo links for the "look inside" feature, where you can virtually go into our cafe space.  We highly recommend taking advantage of this tool so that you can virtually see and stand in our space to get a feel for how your flow and approach to coffee service can best work through equipment and layout choices.

 Also you will find many photos of our bar on our Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/lamarzoccocafe/

Exciting menus, visual changes to the space, interactive launch parties, and events are all enticing to our customers.  Small personalized details help remind our guests that they are experiencing something very special that otherwise would not be able to be experienced outside of your home cafe/roastery.

Be authentic: be who you are.

While the content of your application will ultimately be the deciding factor, we know that the hard work and creativity that you put into the application process will be a reflection of the hard work and creativity you will put into the residency.