If your day can't begin without a satisfying cup of coffee, be thankful Kansas City is a hot spot for craft coffee roasters. It's true! Many importers store their green coffee beans in local caves. This makes it easy for area roasters to get the product since they don't need to ship from across the country.
Maps Coffee and Chocolate has been one of those craft roasters for the past ten years. Roasting guru Vincent Rodriguez has mastered several blended and single-origin coffees, and turns cacao beans into smooth, silky chocolate bars.
"I've long said that we have a relationship with coffee," Rodriguez says. "We all know what happens when you don't get your cup of coffee, right? So, our goal at Maps is to make that relationship better. I find many people have questions about coffee and don't know who to ask or where to start. I feel that what we do really well is help them along their journey to a better cup of coffee. Our job is to answer questions, not be pretentious, and take time to help them explore."
Rodriguez began his coffee career 30 years ago as a Starbucks barista in Seattle. Fast forward 12 years to when he came to Johnson County and opened a shop featuring his other passion--bicycles. The following year, he set up a roaster in the back of the shop to try his hand at roasting coffee beans. Once Rodriguez mastered the skill, he began to sell the results to the public.
Eventually, the bike shop was sold and relocated so coffee could take center stage, although Rodriguez still fabricates custom handmade bicycles. He also likes to teach himself something new every year. It's not only how he got started with coffee but also chocolate. When he learned there wasn't a chocolate maker in Kansas City, he decided to be that chocolate maker.
He explains, "There are a lot of confectioners and chocolatiers, but very few chocolate makers who actually make the chocolate that everyone else works with. So, with the timing of me selling the bike shop, it seemed appropriate that I would add a chocolate experience to the cafe and roastery."
In a unique twist, Rodriguez created Bloc, a bar that looks like chocolate but is made with coffee. He explains, "Chocolate is made of cacao, cocoa butter and sugar. Bloc is coffee, cocoa butter and sugar. I knew I was going to have a difficult time explaining that it wasn't chocolate. That's why made it in a different shape, so it doesn't look like your typical chocolate bar. You can eat your coffee!"
Anyone curious about Maps coffees and chocolates can visit the retail and cafe location at 13440 Santa Fe Trail Drive in Lenexa. The cafe offers single-cup pour-over coffee so customers can explore the various roasts. Or check them out online at MapsCoffee.com. Rodriguez also hosts roasting sessions for groups and families where participants go through the roasting process and can develop their own custom blend.
"I would ask every customer to come in and be curious about our coffees," Rodriguez says. "Don't be afraid to understand better what we're about."