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Silicon Valley moves at a fast pace. From grab-and-go coffee shops to drive-thrus, speed is often prioritized in the service industry. But for Amblett, a new pour-over coffee pop-up at Tal Palo in downtown Los Altos, the goal is to be intentionally slow.
Founder and Los Altos resident Andrew Czajkowski said that he wants to “encourage people to slow down and connect with one another.”
Besides its slow bar residency at Tal Palo, Amblett sells its cold brew and beans online, and it periodically hosts guided tasting events and chef collaboration tastings, in which Amblett partners with a guest chef to create a menu around its coffees.
“When you go to wine tasting, somebody’s there walking you through the wine and the tasting notes,” Czajkowski said. “So I wanted to do that same thing with coffee.”
Czajkowski and his wife Angelina first launched Amblett as ACz Coffee Club last year, offering reservation-only coffee flights at Tal Palo. The concept evolved into Amblett, a combination of the words “amble” (to walk slowly) and “duet,” nodding to the idea that things are better together.
Amblett’s slow bar is Fridays and Saturdays at Tal Palo until the end of the month. The slow bar gives customers an opportunity to ask questions about coffee while enjoying a cup of Amblett’s proprietary beans brewed to order via a pour-over method.
“My take with shops that primarily focus on espresso is you don’t get a full idea of what that coffee entails because you’re mixing it with cream and sugar, so a lot of the tasting notes can be muted,” Czajkowski said. “With a pour-over, you’re going to have a pretty good representation of what the farmer and producer were looking to highlight.”
Berkeley-based CoRo Coffee Roasters roasts Amblett’s beans on Wednesdays, and beans ship nationwide on Thursdays. Amblett’s current coffee lineup is a Colombian washed coffee with notes of citrus, florals, tropical fruit and stone fruit; an Ethiopian black honey processed coffee with notes of apricot, mead, green apple and black tea; and a washed Kenyan coffee with notes of blackberry, dark plum and agave. Amblett also has a limited-release coffee in collaboration with Strait Coffee Roasters in San Jose: an anaerobic washed Geisha with notes of green tea, clementine and apricot. A 10-ounce bag of beans costs $27-$31.
While coffee is currently the focus of Amblett, Czajkowski said it’s a launching pad for broader opportunities within hospitality. Czajkowski works in tech but hopes to eventually work on Amblett full-time.
“We’re going to see where it leads us,” he said. “My wife and I have a pretty shared idea that obviously just starts with coffee, but hopefully it’ll grow into something bigger.”
Amblett, Instagram: @amblett.coffee. Slow bar at Tal Palo (149 Main St., Los Altos) Fridays and Saturday from 8-11 a.m. through November. No guided coffee tastings or chef collaborations scheduled at this time.
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