Coffee shop meets sandwich bar at Ways Coffee
Stefan Iannace of Cheeky Grin Coffee has teamed up with David Girolamo of Diaz Homes to bring Hampstead Gardens’ latest community spot.
For Stefan Iannace, the owner of Cheeky Grin Coffee, opening a second store was always in the pipeline.
“It’s always been on the cards for me. It’s just having the right opportunity, the right location and the right partner to be able to do it with,” Stefan says.
“So Cheeky was something I did myself but always knew that whatever came next, I wanted someone to bounce ideas off of.”
David Girolamo of Diaz Homes has been coming in as a regular “pretty much from the beginning” when Cheeky Grin opened its shop in 2020.
“It’s a funny story, actually, because I always say to people, ‘I met my wife making her coffee’, and now I’ve met my business partner [making him coffee],” Stefan says.
“I’ve had Cheeky for about five years…[and we] just developed a really good friendship and relationship over the years.
“Dave had a fascination about the industry, and we just started talking and decided let’s see. If something comes up, let’s give it a crack. And fortunately, it has.”
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David says it was the “challenge” that attracted him to the hospitality industry, coming from a building background.
“I know Stef has been in [hospitality] a long time, and he’s very experienced in it,” David says.
“So I thought, if I’m going to give it a crack with anyone, it’d be him.”
The idea behind Ways Coffee is a “balance between a coffee shop and a sandwich bar”.
“We’ve got some fresh focaccia, some really nice toasted [sandwiches]. [Our manager is] doing house-made aiolis,” Stefan says.
“We’ll have some weekly specials, which is just some funky stuff, different ideas and different recipes.
“The coffee itself is award-winning Willow Bend coffee. So people in the area are expecting great, strong, bold coffee… pastries are from Prove Patisserie.
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“We’ll constantly try and change the menu so that people are always staying intrigued and interested and engaged in what we’re about and what we want to bring forward.”
When asked how they will stand out in a city flooded with sando stops, Stefan replies: “I will put it down to our service”.
“I think a lot of the sandwich shops now, they are very busy, which is fantastic. But we want to really provide a heavy, heavy customer service and [form] strong relationships with people and being in the community, we can do that,” he says.
The community connection is what Stefan is all about at Cheeky Grin Coffee, which he hopes to replicate at Ways Coffee, which has developed “super loyal” since opening three weeks ago.
“With Cheeky, you develop relationships – like Dave and I, we’ve met through a coffee shop, and now we’re opening one – so, things like that I think play a massive factor in the day-to-day service for people as well,” Stefan says.
“It’s not just a matter of a coffee. You’re a counsellor, a best friend… you [wear] a million hats when you’re making someone’s morning brew.
“And I think being in the suburbs, that’s a massive, massive thing you need to be able to do… so much can come out of it.”
Stefan’s partner, Rhianna Iannace, led the “modern but retro feel” of the shop.
“We found not a lot of places use your retro [colours like] chocolate browns. We’ve got some stainless-steel bench tops… beige but textured walls,” Stefan says.
“We just wanted to do something that’s, again, not the run of the mill, so clean cut, but gives a bit of a warmer feel to it”
“And then obviously having Dave, that’s his area of expertise. So we could come to him with the vision, and he can implement his side of things and get it going for us.”
Ways Coffee is located at 1–19 Ways Road, Hampstead Gardens and is open from 7am until 2pm from Monday to Saturday, then 7:30am until 1pm on Sundays.
Connect with the business on Instagram for more.