Ben Craig and Simon Johnston founded Root & Branch in 2016, opening a permanent site on Jameson Street before settling into their existing premises at the top of Ormeau Road. The pair built Belfast's first dedicated specialty coffee micro-roastery, sourcing green beans directly from growers and paying above fair-trade prices. Johnston previously worked in the charity sector before turning to coffee full time. The Irish Times named Root & Branch the top coffee shop in Northern Ireland, and the roastery went on to open a second site inside the converted Ormeau Baths co-working building. Beans are packaged in nitrogen-flushed aluminium cans rather than foil bags, a detail the founders point to as evidence of their focus on freshness over branding.
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