Today we get to talk with a pillar and foundational member of the specialty coffee community, Phoung Tran of Lava Java For 20 years now Phoung Tran has been the owner/operator of the famed coffee shop, Lava Java in Ridgefield Washington. There she discovered a passion for coffee that led her to not only craft the shop into a beacon of hight standards in the beginning of the 3rd wave of coffee, but she also became inspired to begin competing to in barista competitions as a way to improve. She won the U.S. title in 2005 and amidst the notoriety of the win simply continued to run a great cafe and teach coffee to her staff and through the SCA.  I am lucky to consider Phoung a friend who I have known since back in 2006 or so. I have been inspired by her consistency, focus, values, and the simplicity with which she runs her shop and crafts her life.  Today we get to explore her story from buying a business, discovering specialty coffee, and taking on new challenges - to competition, teaching, and advice to other owners from her extensive experience.  I hope you really enjoy this one! We cover:  Beginning coffee as an owner  Buying an existing shop Learning the industry and taking on challenges Changing and refining things at the shop Establishing standards and finding specialty coffee Motivation for Competition   Winning the U.S. Title Scaling to a 2nd location Choosing simplicity Self care and balance    Links: www.lava-java.com   Recommended Episodes: 305 : Founder Friday! w/ Andrew Sinclair of MadLab Coffee, Los Angeles, CA Founder Friday! w/ Adam Obrátil of Industra Coffee, Brno, Czech Republic 252 : Founder Friday w/ Klaus Thompson of the Coffee Collective, Denmark 232 : Founder Friday w/ Blew Kind of Fanny Lou’s Porch   Visit our awesome sponsors! Ground Control : Revolutionary Batch Brew Coffee! www.groundcontrol.coffee   The Barista Series: Best Plant Based Beverages on Earth! www.pacificfoodservice.com