HoneyCo Coffee Roasters

HoneyCo Coffee Roasters launched in January 2015 as the roasting side of Scout Coffee, founded by husband-and-wife team Jon and Sara Peterson in San Luis Obispo, California. The company began operations less than a year after opening their first Scout Coffee cafe in downtown San Luis Obispo in January 2014, both founders being alumni of Santa Cruz-based Verve Coffee Roasters. Initially operating from a cramped warehouse in San Luis Obispo for nine years, HoneyCo has grown from a local Central Coast operation to serving customers nationwide through their online platform. In 2021, the company embarked on their most ambitious project by acquiring the former Bank of America building in downtown Morro Bay, transforming the 8,451 square foot, two-story structure into their flagship showcase roastery, cafe, and commissary bakery. The new Morro Bay facility features a state-of-the-art Loring Kestrel 35 Kilo roaster, effectively quadrupling their roasting capacity from their previous San Franciscan 25lb roaster. The transparent roasting operation allows visitors to watch the coffee roasting process through viewing windows, emphasizing the company's commitment to transparency and craftsmanship. HoneyCo's philosophy centers on making great specialty coffee accessible to all by offering a wide range of styles and roast profiles. They build their seasonal rotating coffee menus exclusively with the top 1% of fresh crop coffees, purchased through direct relationships with producers while always paying well above Fair Trade prices. Their roast profiles are meticulously developed using advanced roasting software to ensure consistency and reproducibility across every batch. The company positions itself in the middle ground of specialty coffee, developing blends that are surprisingly sweet, clean, with nice acidity while remaining very drinkable and still tasting "like coffee." This accessibility-first approach has driven their success both in retail locations and online sales, with coffees ranging from light and bright single origins to extremely balanced and chocolatey blends and espresso options. HoneyCo operates as the roasting arm of Scout Coffee, which has multiple locations throughout San Luis Obispo County including downtown San Luis Obispo, Foothill Boulevard, Cal Poly campus, and their flagship Morro Bay location. The company has received recognition from major publications including The New York Times, Sunset Magazine, and features from celebrity chef Alton Brown, establishing themselves as one of the most sought-after coffee destinations on California's Central Coast.