Interview with Keegan Street, Co-Founder of Rooftop Coffee Roasters
Can you tell us what the slogan “Good coffee for everyone” means to Rooftop?
We were the first to bring specialty, third-wave coffee to our town, and at first, we came on a bit strong. Light roasts and single origins only, with a heavy focus on manual brewing. While a lot of people were excited, it probably wasn’t the most accessible approach. Our “good coffee for everyone” mindset represents our shift to meeting people where they’re at, a change that coincided with opening our café. This ethos doesn't mean abandoning the style of coffee that got us into this in the first place; it just means offering more open doors. That’s the service and roasting side. On the sourcing side, it means being good partners by extending consistent purchases year after year, maintaining clear communication, and paying equitable prices.
Sometimes specialty coffee carries a bit of an exclusive reputation. What’s the biggest barrier you’ve had to break down to make your coffee feel like it’s for everyone?
Purism. I feel like this is starting to dwindle now, but when I got started in coffee, it wasn’t uncommon for specialty shops to suggest a customer try their coffee black before offering sugar or cream. How is that attitude meant to make people feel? Should it matter how someone enjoys our coffee?
I think our most impactful shift was reframing our outlook away from this kind of purism. Shifting away from prioritizing our tastes as coffee professionals, and instead focusing on providing people with the best possible version of what they love. Whether that’s a vanilla latte, a dark roast batch brew, or a black, SL28 pour-over.
Between your “Rooftop Run Club” and the recent “Books + Brews” collaboration with Polar Peek Books, you guys are deeply woven into the Fernie community. Can you
Fernie has an incredible collaborative spirit for a town of 5,000 people! We started our run club in 2024 when a barista wanted to bring trail running into our culture. Now, folks meet for a casual jog that ends with a dozen people chatting over flat whites on the patio. It’s a wonderful weekly bright spot for newcomers and locals alike. Our "Books + Brews" partnership felt just as natural. Polar Peek Books is a 30-year Fernie institution that recently moved next door. Coffee and books are the ultimate pairing, so we teamed up for Independent Bookstore Day with a cross-shop raffle. They’re the best neighbours ever.
Looking down the road, we want to keep leaning into these partnerships. We’re discussing a new cocktail collaboration with Fernie Distillers, working with local ceramicists, and planning a patio "maker’s market" to showcase a textile artist on our barista team. We love finding new ways to meet people where they're at and support the community that supports us.
Looking ahead, what is your biggest hope or vision for how Rooftop will continue to shape and grow the community in Fernie and beyond?
Within Fernie, I want Rooftop to grow into a core community space. My favourite compliment is when people tell me our cafe feels like a community pillar. It goes beyond having tasty coffee and treats. If people feel like they can be completely comfortable and themselves in our space, we’ve done something right.
That comes with hosting more collaborations and creative events to engage with folks. We love coffee-focused events like cuppings or coffee-and-wine nights, but also non-coffee initiatives like our run club, pop-ups, and live music. Outside of Fernie, I want Rooftop to bring that same laid-back community feel to the rest of the country and beyond. Being known for quality is a big part of that, but the dream is to bottle up the vibe of our café and our idyllic mountain town, sending it everywhere our coffee goes.
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