What Makes a Great Café in 2026? | COFFEE BREAK!

Can a faster coffee machine make your café feel more human? Following their deep dive into matcha, Rohan and Jai Lott sit back down for a Coffee Break on where cafés are heading. They get into automation, pre-batched espresso and why getting your head up from behind the machine might be the best thing you can do for your customers.

The conversation moves from Melbourne hospitality and remembering someone’s name to signature drinks, simpler menus and the equipment Jai would choose if he were opening a café today. Plus, the mistakes he keeps seeing in new businesses: too little money and beautiful spaces with terrible workflow.

Condesa Co.Lab also brings us the weekly green coffee market report. COFFEE BREAK! is your weekly inside scoop into the coffee community. Everything from barista tips and honest café conversations to the coffee knowledge people don’t always share.

CHAPTERS!

00:00 The Future of Cafés with Jai Lott 01:28 Café Automation and Hospitality 07:13 What Melbourne Gets Right 15:05 Signature Drinks and Simpler Menus 16:59 Jai’s Ideal Café Setup 19:25 Common Café Opening Mistakes 24:11 Condesa Co.Lab Market Report 26:36 Building a Café in France

Find Jai at: https://www.instagram.com/coffeewithjai/ Kissako Matcha: https://www.instagram.com/kissakomatcha/

Want more coffee content? IT’S JUST COFFEE!: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod Want to get in touch? Hit us up at hello@itsjustcoffeepod.com with your questions, café stories or hot takes. Proudly sponsored by: APAX LAB: https://apaxlab.com/ Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/ Thanks for listening!

#CoffeeBreak #CafeAutomation #SpecialtyCoffee #JaiLott Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices