Frad Coffee

Special thanks to Frad Coffee for extending this product review invitation.

There is a Caltex gas station at Jalan Song Ban Kheng of Bukit Mertajam. Occupying the same building as the station is Frad Coffee. Its sales office is adjacent to the dining section of NH Coffee, a café formerly known as Northern Hill Coffee. The name "Frad" is an acronym for "Freshly Roasted And Delivered".

Frad Coffee's primary business is the distribution of freshly roasted coffee beans to café customers throughout Penang Island and Seberang Perai. Its signature blend is a mixed blend of 100% Arabica beans, typically roasted to medium. Upon request, Frad Coffee also roasts single origin beans from Ethiopia, Brazil, Colombia and Indonesia.

Besides coffee, Frad Coffee also supplies new and reconditioned espresso machines. There is a range of single and double group machines from several brands. Espresso machines are also available for short-term rental. Maintenance and repair services are also provided.

As manual brewing of coffee is gaining popularity, Frad Coffee also supplies vacuum pots for siphon brewing. Other barista tools and accessories include coffee grinders, coffee tampers, pitchers and shot glasses.

For aspiring baristas, Frad Coffee offers barista training courses at the premises. In each 4-hour session, participants are exposed to key aspects of manning a café. The course is sufficient for participants to start practicing on their own pace. Under normal circumstances, Frad Coffee takes up to 2 participants per session.

Frad Coffee is also a supplier of premium matcha (抹茶) from Niko Neko Matcha. Besides matcha latte, matcha powder is also used as flavoring for cakes and ice cream. The best matcha comes from Uji, Japan.

Matcha differs from typical green tea in two key aspects. Firstly, tea leaves for matcha are shaded from sunlight for 3 weeks before harvest. This alters the chemical compounds in the leaves. Secondly, the stems and veins of matcha leaves are removed before being ground into fine powder. This produces matcha with more concentrated leafy aroma and flavor. Houjicha (ほうじ茶), the roasted equivalent of matcha, is also available.

Frad Coffee stocks a variety of coffee syrups and fruit concentrate from Shott. These products are essential for making coffee, smoothies and other drinks in cafés. Produced in New Zealand, Shott's products do not contain artificial coloring and flavoring.

Soda Xpress is a popular brand of soda maker for home and commercial use. Using a pressurized canister, the machine injects carbon dioxide which dissolves in any drink. The resulting fizziness and slight acidity accentuate the intrinsic taste of the respective drink - juice, cocktail, wine or coffee. However, soda coffee has yet to enter mainstream popularity.

Name: Frad Coffee
Address: 2551, Jalan Song Ban Kheng, 14000 Bukit Mertajam, Pulau Pinang
Contact: 012-527-8168
Business hours: By appointment only
Website: https://www.facebook.com/fradcoffee
Coordinates: 5.35081 N, 100.45370 E
Directions: There is a Caltex gas station at Jalan Song Ban Kheng, just beside the main road between Pusat Perniagaan Maju Utama and Pusat Perniagaan Gemilang. Sharing the same premises as NH Coffee, Frad Coffee is located inside the Caltex building. There are plenty of parking spaces at the Caltex station.