SUNNY GEORGE is a neighbourhood café in the centre of Kyoto, run by Chris and Junko, with influences from the Pacific Northwest, Northern Europe and Japan. It roasts its own coffee, bakes its own bread and pastries and makes its food from scratch, and the kitchen is entirely plant-based.

Junko began baking seriously in Seattle and later worked as a chef and baker. Back in Kyoto she founded Our Sunny Workshop, where she taught cooking and baking and explored fermentation, plant-based cooking and rice koji. The bakery starts from a house-cultured koji starter, used in cinnamon rolls, cardamom knots, country bread, focaccia and brioche, and there is a Danish-style rye rugbrød to order. Chris, a product designer, designed the room and built much of it himself, from sculpting the stone counter to applying the shikui plaster walls, and designed the furniture, lighting and cups with craftspeople around Kyoto.

The coffee is roasted in a shared roasting space down the street. The team looks for coffees that are clear, sweet and expressive, including origins such as Mexico that appear less often on Japanese menus. The bar serves espresso and cappuccinos, and the hand-brewed coffee goes through the BIRD, the immersion brewer Chris invented with Weber Workshops; he also designed the Slayer espresso machine. House drinks include the SG Dirty Coffee, espresso with fermented amazake, and the Sunshine, espresso with apple juice and lime, and the chai is brewed in-house from whole spices. The coffees are also sold wholesale. The current retail range is listed below with the roaster’s own tasting notes.

Coffee on the shelf

Photograph: SUNNY GEORGE