Coffee People ft. Mat Cohen, Coffee Connections Chicago

Full video posted below, or watch and/or listen to Coffee People on:
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Guests: Mat Cohen, Founder of Coffee Connections, Chicago, IL.
What they drink: Cortado or Cappuccino
Find On Online: https://www.coffeeconnectionschicago.com/ • @coffeeconnectionschi on Instagram

"I think, maybe its not the best advice, but maybe somehow—slowly—get started gradually, as much as you can, you know. Don't wait around for everything. You can always be doing stuff. Start the brand, and start to gain momentum, before everything gets set in stone and perfectly aligned. And yeah, just start."
• Mat Cohen

WATCH THE FULL EPISODE

Coffee Connection, at its core, is a job training program for baristas, but it is so much more. Mat Cohen's goals balloon well beyond adding milk-steaming or espresso-shot-pulling skills. With the non-profit, he aims to bridge the gap of skills, vocabulary, confidence, and connection that would make specialty coffee jobs in the Chicagoland region* more accessible and the workforce more equitable.

It wasn't his first foray into coffee. After the coronavirus sidelined some of his journalism work, he took a job as a barista. He had spent hours upon hours working at local Milwaukee coffee shops like Colectivo Coffee, and the coffee shop experience resonated.

The in-the-shop days were slow, and he had the opportunity to learn. Eventually, he decided to take on entrepreneurship. He found an old ice cream truck to rehabilitate, and Cattle Dog Coffee was born.

He hit the streets in Chicago, Cincinnati, and even the San Francisco Bay Area. His entrepreneurial trajectory was leading toward a brick-and-mortar location, but a core journalistic question kept nibbling at his mind: Why?

What is the point of my work? What is essential? How do I get rid of the fluff?

What he really wanted was to work with people, uplift a community, and if that could be through coffee, perhaps a coffee shop wasn't the right answer. There are plenty of coffee shops doing great community-building work, but there is a need for more skilled specialty coffee baristas. The idea for Coffee Connections came from Mat's effort to cut the fluff in his pursuit of an entrepreneurial goal.

*I should clarify, the Chicagoland region, for now.

SPONSORED

Visit with the Roastar Team IRL Booth 2443 at the upcoming World of Coffee San Diego, April 10-12. Learn more about the upcoming event at: https://usa.worldofcoffee.org/world-of-coffee-san-diego-2026

VISIT ROASTAR.COM

COFFEE CONNECTIONS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization providing no-cost barista trainings and valuable connections to help create pathways into specialty coffee. This aims to connect adults in under-represented Chicago communities with job opportunities, as well as help people develop new skills and bolster resumes. These programs will ultimately place trained, reliable and responsible people in Chicago’s cafes, making the specialty coffee workforce more equitable and accessible. As well as address the growing unemployment rates of Chicago adults.
From: www.coffeeconnectionschi.com

You can apply for an upcoming barista and coffee education session by clicking the blue link below.

• Day 1: Coffee foundations, supply chains, farming, point of sale, and customer service.
• Day 2: Correct techniques for steaming milk. 
• Day 3: Espresso 101. 
• Day 4: Espresso, milk, and pouring. 
• Day 5: Cafe day! Practice sessions and guest speakers.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Chicago is the greatest city in the world for about two to four weeks per year—split equally between the trees blossoming in the spring and the post-summer warm days, cool nights that come with changing colors. The transition can be abrupt, and you need to be ready to take advantage.
• Coffee Connection cohorts encompass a 5-day program. 25 hours of intense practical skills development. Think milk steaming, espresso 101, tasting coffee, and so on, to get people comfortable going in for an interview at a specialty coffee shop.

• The Coffee Connections program is a 501(c)(3). Mat considered opening a coffee shop of his own, but kept asking himself the ever dangerous question, "Why am I doing this?" The answer was to offer people opportunities, not necessarily to make people coffee. The more he marinated on that, he came up with ideas for how to focus on creating a pipeline of talent that could fill the demands of an industry that experiences a lot of worker turnover without a consistent educational program. In the long run, he hopes that local cafes look to his program graduates when recruiting new baristas.

• I see the benefits a program like this could offer to the local coffee shops, but I wondered how it worked for Mat. What are the benefits for him? Basically, he likes to work with people and finds intrinsic value in providing opportunities in his community.
• Prior to his career in coffee, Mat was a working journalist, which shaped his path into entrepreneurship. It's also where he fell in love with coffee because he was often writing at a Colectivo Coffee Roaster cafe in Milwaukee. It is what he was doing until the COVID-19 pandemic forced him to look at other opportunities. He took a job as a barista.
• Eventually, he started a mobile coffee truck—Cattle Dog Coffee, named after his pup Zoe. The challenges of operating a mobile business are numerous, including:
  • Truck maintenance skills!
  • Insurance!
  • Varying health code restrictions!
  • Weather!
  • Making sure you have enough power, water, supplies, and locations to visit.
• The La Marzocco GS3 everyone.

• Coffee Connections is growing. They recently moved into a Coffee HQ, and have developed partnership programs with local businesses in the city who will provide beans, educators, or support.
• Possibly, the single most important takeaway from the episode: Mat and I only really do things to make our dogs proud of us.

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CHICAGO COFFEE SHOPS RECOMMENDED BY MAT

• Afro Joe's Coffee & Tea at 1818 W 99th St, Chicago, IL 60643 (Mat)
• Dear Monday (part of Monday Coffee Co.) at 2006 S Washtenaw Ave., Chicago, IL 60608
• Muse Coffee Studio at 747 S Western Ave, Chicago, IL 60612
• Café Colao at 2638 W Division St, Chicago, IL 60622
• Tasa Coffee Roasters at 4136 W North Ave, Chicago, IL 60639
• A Sip Of Hope at 3039 W Fullerton Ave, Chicago, IL 60647
• Café Calidá at 3455 W North Ave, Chicago, IL 60647
• Bonus from Ryan: Printer's Row Coffee Co. at 2482 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60614

A CLASSIC EPISODE

The conversation with Chris O'Brien of Coffee Cycle on the challenges and value associated with opening his second Coffee Cycle Roasting location. This was our very first video podcast.