The Human Bean

January 21st, 2009 · No Comments · Coffee

At first glance, I assumed The Human Bean must be a non-franchise joint, but it turns out that they started out Oregon and have since branched out into other states. As of now they have about five privately owned franchises in the Phoenix valley. This one is located in Mesa, AZ on Country Club and Main.

Notice how the phrase “Human Bean” sounds like “Human Being.” Also notice the shape of the steam on their logo:

clever, huh?

The manager told me about The Human Bean’s efforts to use as many human-friendly options as possible, including using syrup that is made from real sugar cane:

He also explained how they purchase coffee at a higher market cost to ensure the quality of their beans and to promote a truly “fair trade” market in the countries where coffee growers are hardly paid anything.

He also mentioned the all-natural decaffeination process the Human Bean uses, called the Swiss Water Process. This involves using only water (no chemicals) to extract the caffeine from the beans. It is more expedient and thus more common for coffee producers to use chemicals such as Methylene Chloride or Ethyl Acetate to extract the caffeine from their coffee beans.

Most Human Beans do not have a lobby, but this one does:

Human Bean punch card.

The menu: