Heretic Coffee Co., SE Portland's Nonprofit Cafe in Portland

Exterior entrance to Heretic Coffee Co. in SE Portland, Oregon. — The exterior of Heretic Coffee Co.—the logo is a variant on the “wolf in sheep’s clothing.”

I was recently made aware of a little cafe in SE Portland called Heretic Coffee Co. Its intriguing name definitely caught my eye and made me want to learn more, so I was happy to head down and check it out last week. Bonus: I got to chat a little with Josh White, who started Heretic.

Heretic Coffee Co. is located on SE 28th Avenue just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Reed College, and is adjacent to the Wimbledon Square & Gardens apartment complex. Their space used to be home to Ardent Coffee; Heretic opened up shop there in April 2023. This building is home to other small businesses, including the Mosaic String Academy.

There’s not much in the way of other coffee options in at least a quarter-mile radius of the cafe; the coffee at Reed is considered unremarkable by many, so they are well-located for those who want a good cup of coffee and a pastry (they get theirs from Jen’s). Probably their best competitor is Portland Cà Phê (a third of a mile away), but their style of coffee is very different from Heretic’s.

Seating in the front of the room at Heretic Coffee Co. in Portland, Oregon. — Comfy seating in the front of the room.

Heretic also has a unique business setup: aside from Josh and one other person, the staff works on a volunteer basis. In fact, the baristas who made my iced latte were working there as volunteers. The coffee shop also serves as a nonprofit, sending any profit to their Common Good Program, an incubator that “helps start local businesses and nonprofits in Portland.” They like to support “organizations that make the world a better place,” and their goal is to start fifty new businesses over the next decade.

What’s Up With That Name, “Heretic”?

This was one of my first questions: Why “Heretic”? Josh explained to me that the word means “to challenge” or to push back. This has to do in part with pushing back against the institution of coffee consumption. To work outside the box of capitalism that he found so problematic, and nurture a different approach.

Alcove seating at Heretic Coffee Co. in Portland, Oregon. — Seating in a little alcove.

Community is very important to him, and he works to create and cultivate that at Heretic. Origins of this ethos came from his time in faith spaces, where he was able to separate the metaphoric chaff from the wheat and take with him the positives he experienced there. At Heretic they make an effort to get to know their customers—both their regular drink order and through what the customers share about what’s going on in their lives.

A Bit About Josh

As I mentioned above, Josh has had his time with faith spaces (starting in his early years in a conservative evangelical church). But when he was a teenager, he split from his small town to the SF Bay Area. Later, he fed his artistic and creative needs through filmmaking, a podcast, and now with Heretic.

He is a deep thinker and dedicated to bring and spread good work into the world—as well as diving into difficult discussions and challenging assumptions about one’s spiritual life and the world.

More About Volunteering at Heretic Coffee

At Heretic, volunteers learn to operate the equipment as a way to gain experience and progress into working in the cafe/coffee shop world. On their Volunteer page they write, “Getting into the Portland coffee scene is hard. Most (if not all) 3rd wave coffee shops in Portland require two years of experience. We’re helping disrupt that metric by giving you the best training possible for the coffee world.”

Looking toward the back of the space at Heretic Coffee Co. in Portland, Oregon. — A wider shot of the back of the space.

When we were talking about the volunteer aspect of Heretic Coffee Co., I was reminded of my own volunteer barista-ing at a now long gone community cafe in Astoria, Queens called Freeze Peach. I was able to learn to operate a commercial espresso maker and more, earn a little cash for me and donate some to a charity of my choice.

If you’d like to volunteer at Heretic, you can answer the questions in this Google form they’ve set up.

About the Coffee at Heretic

Heretic Coffee roasts their own beans, which are sourced in Colombia and Ethiopia via Genuine Origin. This is an importer that is dedicated to “creating safe working environments, keeping coffee beans away from harsh chemicals, and making sure each farmer has ample pay for their labor.” Paying a fair wage to the coffee farmers is very important to Josh and his crew.

Going to the side yard at Heretic Coffee Co. in Portland, Oregon. — The way outside to the side yard.

And on top of buying coffee drinks in their cafe, you can buy beans by the bag. Their store is on their website.

Here’s a look at their cafe menu. I really enjoyed my iced latte.

The cafe menu at Heretic Coffee Co. in Portland, Oregon. — The cafe menu.

Heretic Coffee Co. is such an interesting and wonderful mix of things: a chill third space with great coffee drinks; an incubator for emerging entrepreneurs; a welcoming place for budding baristas; and a positive force in this world. I encourage you to stop by and check it out.

Heretic Coffee Co.
5120 SE 28th Avenue, Portland
https://hereticcoffee.com | Instagram