The Story
Brendan Mullally founded Elm Coffee Roasters in his hometown of Seattle in 2013, bringing with him a decade of coffee industry experience and a vision for something grounded in excellence and sincerity. Having spent years working in New York City, including at Joe Pro Shop, Brendan was ready to bring his passion for high-quality coffee and warm hospitality back to the Pacific Northwest.
Prior to coffee, Mullally was a graduate student at the New School studying philosophy, with dreams of becoming a professor since age 16, but eventually realized he didn’t see himself being happy with that career and moved to coffee as a career path.
The journey to opening wasn’t easy—Mullally had naïve expectations about the timeline, thinking it would take six months but it actually took two full years. He moved to Seattle with no financing and no space in mind, choosing Pioneer Square because it was a lovely up-and-coming neighborhood with relatively inexpensive rents. After applying to 10 different banks for loans and having a signed lease with no money at one point, he finally convinced a lender to fund the business.
Located in the heart of Pioneer Square, Elm Coffee Roasters became both a café and a roastery, where all beans are roasted on-site in full view of customers, with a sleek, minimalist design that reflects the brand’s focus on letting the coffee speak for itself.
Sourcing & Relationships
Mullally describes his approach not as a philosophy but as “a practical approach, which is work with importers I know are paying good prices, not just to the producers but to the pickers as well.”
Each bean that makes it into the lineup is selected through trusted importer relationships, with a focus on quality and transparency.
They focus on coffee from Colombia, Guatemala, Ethiopia, and Honduras—countries where they’ve had the best success sourcing from at the right price, which also gives them the ability to dial in great roasts from each region year after year.
The roastery features a rotating menu of exceptional coffees, like the returning favorite from Hugo Melo, a small producer from San Agustin whose crop offers rich chocolate and caramel tones layered with citrus and herbal notes. Another recent highlight is the Peru Luis Vasquez lot, which brings zesty limeade and grape-like acidity to the table, reminiscent of Ethiopian coffees. While Elm doesn’t practice direct trade in the strictest sense, their commitment to working with importers who maintain ethical relationships throughout the supply chain reflects their values-driven sourcing approach.
Roasting Philosophy
Elm focuses on light roasts , though they describe themselves as “pretty light, but not on the super light end of the spectrum,” striving for acidity and balance.
Elm specializes in light, delicate roasts packed with complex flavor.
Mullally acknowledges that “roasting well, light roasting coffee is very hard. The window is extremely small, if it’s too light its sour and vegetal.” They don’t particularly like roasty flavors in their coffee, preferring not to go too far in that direction.
Their selection process starts with ensuring nothing is wrong with the coffee—eliminating 99.8% of coffees that are “agey, or fermenty” with various defects. After that, they look for “something that’s a little more fruit forward with interesting characteristics. Sweet, clean, then we roast it to highlight the fruit.”
As their team describes it, “We’re a lighter roaster and we have a lot of interesting processes that people are into.” This approach allows them to showcase the inherent characteristics of each origin while maintaining the delicate balance that light roasting demands.
What to Try
Of particular note is their Ethiopia Worka Sakaro, which was so exceptional that Seattle Coffee Gear featured it as their coffee of the month for July.
This roast’s notes of black tea, jasmine and lemon are all distinct and noticeable.
Their espresso offerings include Colombia Edilma Piedrahita (a washed pink bourbon coffee with tasting notes of pink lemonade, orange blossom, and honey) and their 9 Swans Seasonal Coffee, which rotates but has featured Guatemalan coffee from the Huehuetenago region with tasting notes of cocoa, nougat, and cherry.
As of recent reports, Elm typically offers around 5 roasts: two Ethiopias, two Colombians (one decaf) and one seasonal blend.
Their “One of Everything” tasting includes an espresso, a macchiato, and a brewed coffee , offering an excellent way to experience their range. The focus remains on highlighting fruit-forward characteristics and clean profiles that showcase each coffee’s origin story.
Note: Recent reports suggest Elm Coffee Roasters may have undergone ownership changes. Readers should verify current operational status and offerings.