Imbibe 75 Place to Watch: Considered Coffee

A mobile coffee shop operating out of a 1965 VW Microbus isn’t completely out of the ordinary. But closer inspection reveals the solar panels on the roof and the La Marzocco Linea Classic two-group head espresso machine. Santa Barbara’s Considered Coffee, launched last January by Pia Beck, is about more than just selling quality coffee drinks on the go.

“We’re trying to set a new expectation of how we—consumers and business owners—show up in the world, interact with each other, human to human, and what we can be for each other,” says Beck. For Considered Coffee, that means a basic raising of the bar, like paying their staff a living wage, donating 5% of their revenue to causes they care about, and giving all their used coffee grounds to farms, gardens, and local compost programs. Customers can also request the coffee pucks for their own gardens.

And, as an exercise in inclusivity, there’s no extra charge for nondairy. “Often, it’s a dietary limitation or an allergy. You shouldn’t have to pay more for that, even if it’s personal preference,” says Beck. “We’re doing what we can to invite people into the process to rehumanize this thing we all do every day that has become automated and anonymous: drink a cup of coffee.”

The coffee bus can often be found in Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone parked in front of Validation Ale, where they headquarter and use as a commissary kitchen. But coffee lovers can also sign up to get a daily text to see where they’re going to pop up that day.

Click here to read more about some of 2024’s other Imbibe 75 People and Places to Watch.