onan's history
Passion, quality and farmers
Bringing coffee, tea and joy all over the place since 2004
Onan has been around for a while now, since 2004 to be exact. When he was younger, our founder Hans Onan worked in many cafés and always loved the warmth and the cosiness associated with coffee and tea. A nice cup can be an excuse to meet up for a chat with a friend, a way to start your day off right or the perfect companion while reading the paper or a good book. However, Hans felt like there was much more potential in the product. He realized more time should be taken and effort be made to master the perfect brew, refine the taste and explore the different ways in which coffee or tea could be enjoyed. When he was 32 he quit his job and followed his lifelong dream of starting his own coffeehouse. That’s how Koffie Onan found its place in the Parijsstraat in Leuven.
A TEAM OF TWO
In his strive to create the perfect place to enjoy a cup, Hans soon got help from a very energetic student, called Chloé. On her search for good coffee she happened to buy some at Koffie Onan . She started working there while studying to become a preschool teacher but soon the passion for coffee became stronger than the one for teaching (although you can still find her enthusiastically explaining everything you want to know about what exactly you’re drinking when frequenting the bar). After graduating she decided her future lay with the bar, and she soon after joined Hans in his endeavour to create a fun place, where people from all walks of life feel welcome to enjoy a cup of coffee or tea prepared with the care it deserves!
ROASTERY
At the start the bar was a bit more ‘oldschool’ than it is today. Wicker chairs. Coffee served at the table. A different and less specialized menu. All that quickly changed when we were introduced to barista championships and discovered the world of coffee beans and their producers. We started buying small amounts of beans, roasting them per 2 kg for the bar and selling them to the customers. As the demand for specialty coffee became higher we soon outgrew this way of working and we finally acquired the roastery here in Leuven. Together with the roastery our team grew, we got a bit bigger and a lot better as we are constantly trying to get even more specialized. We are now a team of 5 passionate coffee and tea lovers and we do our utmost to get the best out of each cup every day! Straight from the farm to the shop & bar!
What’s happening in the roastery?
WE GO WAY BACK AND WE GO DIRECT
We started refining the roasting process, paying our full attention into perfecting it. Slowly we gained more control over every step along the way, from bean to brew. We made contacts with some excellent coffee farmers in Brazil and India, who were as passionate about delivering the perfect bean as we were, and found ways in which we could further humanize our way of producing coffee. For over 70% percent of our coffees we now rely on direct trade, and at the moment we have 4 private Onan lots. This way, we can control as many factors of the process as possible, and have an honest relationship with our farmers, whose expertise and passion we value greatly.
Read more about how we work
