BIENVENIDOS / WELCOME
Reforma- Modificación de una cosa con el fin de mejorarla.
Reform- make changes in (something, typically a social, political, or economic institution or practice) in order to improve it.
How it began
In 2017, our Founder, Angel Medina, began roasting coffee in his Portland apartment as a way to raise money and awareness for DACA recipients. This is where the story begins to take shape – one half-pound batch at a time on a tiny Behmor home roaster.
After only a few months of roasting, Angel had found enough success selling his coffee to open his first cafe, Kiosko.
By 2018 he had opened his second shop, Con Leche, just blocks away. Then, one year to the date of opening his first shop he opened his third, La Perlita, in Portland's Pearl District.
Resilience
In the summer of 2019, he walked away from his cafes and his roasting business to pursue a greater understanding of the life of a Producer at the places where coffee was grown.
Based out of Mexico City, he would spend days traveling by bus to small and remote producing towns throughout the growing regions of Mexico; Chiapas, Veracruz, Oaxaca, Colima, Nayarit, Puebla.
In January of 2020, he began producing a Docuseries on the topic. On March 13th of 2020 production came to a halt at the start of COVID-19 pandemic, a week later he made his way back to Portland in hopes of riding out the uncertainty of the times.
After only two weeks of sitting around, he decided he was going to find a purpose to start all over, from this sentiment Reforma Roasters was born.
A coffee company that encompassed all of the lessons from his time spent around Growers and Producers, and more importantly the people who work for them.
Continuum
On June 2020, at the height of a devastating pandemic, Medina and his former employee (now business partner) Axel Villa, decided to re-open the doors to La Perlita. Within only a few weeks of being open, La Perlita became a favorite of the BIPOC community along with many other patrons who supported the values, beliefs, and intentionality of the tiny little shop.
After their great success that summer, Medina and another group of partners opened the doors to República, a Mexico-forward restaurant that fast became one of the most beloved restaurants in the country, earning a James Beard Foundation nomination as well as the title of "Top 10 Best New Restaurants" in the country by the prestigious Bon Appetit publication.
Since its official formation of his hospitality group; República & Co. , the group has gone on to open more Restaurants, Bars, and Cafes...
All with the same intentionality and values set forth by the Reforma Roasters brand.
