The Golden Cup is an award presented to operators who have met the strict brewing standards of the Specialty Coffee Association, attesting to the excellence of their brewed coffee. This program's primary role is promoting a better cup of coffee.

This is recognition that the vast majority of coffee drinkers preferred a coffee beverage prepared from a formula that fell between 3.25 and 4.25 ounces of coffee for each 64 fluid ounces of water.

In addition to using the proper brewing formula, five other key factors are identified for properly brewed coffee: Proper Grind, Correct Temperature, Correct Time, Good Water, Clean Equipment.

The following restaurants have met these requirements and have been awarded the Golden Cup Award for their excellence in coffee:

• Zephyr Cove
• Lynn's Paradise Café
• Le Relais
• Vincenzo's
• Winston's at Sullivan College
• Asiatique
• Stonehearth Restaurant

The Golden Cup Can Mean Golden Profits
By: Brian Stephens

So you think you brew a great cup of coffee? The Specialty Coffee Association of America wants you to prove it. If you can, you'll get an award certifying your excellence; you'll also be able to use it to show your customers that they are drinking a "Golden Cup."

The Golden Cup Award isn't new. The Coffee Brewing Center gave the award to more than 6,000 foodservice operations in the United States, Canada, and around the world from 1959 to 1975. FETCO Director of Sales Karalynn McDermott was instrumental in helping SCAA reinstate the award as part of an effort to improve coffee brewing in restaurants throughout the country. The program makes sense because the U.S. market is increasingly demanding higher quality coffee, says SCAA Special Projects Coordinator Maria Liberati.

All foodservice operators that sell brewed coffee can apply for the award, not only SCAA members. All a foodservice operator has to do is request a Golden Cup kit and mail samples of its brewed coffee and the water used for brewing back to the SCAA for analysis. To qualify for an award the coffee must have between 3.25 ounces and 4.25 ounces or coffee for every 64 fluid ounces of water, producing a beverage with between 1.15 percent and 1.35 percent dissolved coffee-flavoring, material.

Using great coffee and getting the formula right aren't the only requirements, however. If the operator doesn't grind the coffee properly, brew it at the correct temperature for the right amount of time, or use good water and clean equipment, it's not going to taste good, Liberati says. In order to ensure consistent quality, Golden Cup winners must go through the process annually. In addition, SCAA also offers periodic on-site inspections by SCAA certified brewing technicians.

Applying for the award may sound like a lot of work, but the resulting marketing advantage makes it worth the effort, Consumer's Choice coffee Director David Lange says. "People realize if I go here, I'm going to get a great cup of coffee," says Lange. Calling the award "probably the highest award a coffee can receive," the Louisville, Kentucky, businessman has made it his mission to get as many local restaurants certified as he possibly can.

Lange isn't the only restaurant owner who believes the award is an important indicator of the establishment's quality. Greg Fearing, the owner of Winston's at Sullivan College in Louisville, says attention to detail matters in the industry and the award shows customers that a given establishment is detail-oriented. "It's the personal touch that wins somebody. The award could be the difference between restaurant A & B," he adds.

Dino Francisco agrees with Fearing's assessment. The owner of Metuchen, New Jersey's Brewed Awakening says he is distressed by the lack of attention to detail he sees in many restaurants, especially when it comes to coffee. "Not too many people care about how they brew their coffee," Francisco says. What they don't realize, he adds, is that "the impression is just as important as the first impression."

Cafe Carluccio owner Karl Poetes believes the award is so important he mentions the Golden Cup on his menu and all his promotional materials for his Newport Beach, California, restaurant. Displaying the award in a prominent location also lets his customers know they are drinking a really great cup of coffee. "When people go to the bar for sugar, cream, and sticks, there it is, right in their face," he says. At the same time, Winston's displays it in the hall in the restaurant and Fearing makes a point of telling each customer about the award. As he puts it, "It says to diners that we have a great cup of coffee."

Mark Buettner, owner of Las Cruces, New Mexico's Sky's the Limit Coffee House, is so proud of the award he advertise it in the business section of the local newspaper with slogan, "Drink from the Golden Cup." As he sees it, inconsistency is one of the biggest problems with coffee bar service. The award tells customers they will be able to get a consistently good cup at his establishment.

The concern over consistency is one of the main reasons McDermott pushed to reinstate the golden Cup program. "Restaurants don't start off a meal with a crummy glass of wine, so why should they end it with a crummy cup of coffee?"

Fearing says coffee is one of the best ways for a restaurant to increase profitability. It may cost more to make quality coffee but it's worth it. "It cost me so much more... but I get it back in profits," he says.