Residents and workers on the western stretch of Hastings-Sunrise will soon be getting a caffeinated kick in their collective butt with the coming of Pallet Coffee Roasters. The new coffee outfit is landing at 323 Semlin Dr. just off East Hastings, courtesy of coffee wonks Sharif Sharifi and Shane Dehkodaei. Sharifi learned the trade working at Caffe Artigiano, the Cafe for Contemporary Art, Prado Cafe, and Rocanini Coffee Roasters’ roastery in Mt. Pleasant, while Dehkodaei used to own the Zodiac art cafe in Yaletown some 15 years ago (he’s been in contracting and construction ever since).

Pallet will be a roastery as a well as a fully fledged cafe; the bean-to-bag (and cup) process being visible from the cafe floor through a matrix of steel framed windows. The 2,000 sqft space used to house a fish packaging operation, so it took some time for it to be cleaned up to the presentable point that I saw it the other day (they took possession in February). It’s an interesting building inside and out. Dig the wooden pallet hanging from the ceiling!

Pallet will seat 16 people and serve mostly single origin coffees; five roasts and one espresso. They’ll have drip coffee for quick relief, a slow bar for pour overs, etc, and they were just unpacking their La Marzocco “Strada” espresso machine when I arrive the other day, so it’s clear they mean business. They’re still in the process of nailing down the extent of their food program, but they do have a small kitchen, so customers will have the option of getting fed. Opening day is set for mid-July.

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