The Story
Pilot Coffee Roasters launched in May 2009 when Andy Wilkin and Jessie Holmes opened Te Aro Roasted in Toronto’s Leslieville neighbourhood. The name was a nod to Wellington, New Zealand — a city that had become shorthand for serious cafe culture — and the intent from the beginning was to bring that same seriousness to Toronto.
In 2013, the operation rebranded as Pilot Coffee Roasters and moved roasting to a dedicated facility on Wagstaff Drive. The rebrand coincided with a period of rapid growth: new cafe locations, expanded wholesale accounts, and the development of a cold brew program that became a significant part of the retail offering.
Today Pilot operates seven locations across Toronto with additional presence in Oakville and Waterloo, along with a national grocery and wholesale distribution network. It is one of Canada’s largest specialty coffee companies by footprint, without having compromised the sourcing principles that defined the original operation.
Sourcing & Relationships
Pilot sources seasonally, rotating their single-origin offerings as harvests come in from Latin America, East Africa, and Asia Pacific. The emphasis is on traceability — knowing exactly which farm, cooperative, or washing station a coffee came from — and on returning to reliable partners year after year.
Their wholesale network across Canada depends on this consistency: accounts at grocery and independent retail need predictability, and Pilot has built sourcing infrastructure to deliver that without defaulting to commodity purchasing.
Roasting Philosophy
Pilot roasts to highlight what each origin does best, without imposing a house signature that overrides that character. Lighter-roasted single origins sit alongside more developed espresso-optimized lots, giving wholesale accounts and retail customers a useful range. The cold brew program demands consistency at scale, and the roasting team treats it with the same rigor applied to the single-origin lineup.
What to Try
The seasonal single-origin filter offerings are where Pilot is most expressive — particularly Ethiopian and Colombian lots that cycle through their lineup year-round. Their espresso blend is reliable and widely available through Toronto cafes. For something different, the cold brew is well-made and applies the same sourcing standards as the rest of the lineup.