If you haven’t had the chance yet to visit Tandem Coffee’s cafe and roastery in East Bayside, starting Saturday you’ll be able to sample their coffee menu at Gelato Fiasco in the Old Port.

Tandem’s owners, Will and Kathleen Pratt, will be setting up a Tandem Pop-up Shop in the gelato store at 425 Fore St. that will be open from 7 to 11 a.m. daily through the end of March. Will Pratt said they’ll be selling Tandem’s two single-origin coffees and all of their espresso drinks.

Tandem has been bringing its mobile set-up to the popular local Pocket Brunches, Pratt said, but this is the first time the company has set up a regular operation in a restaurant-style situation.

It’s also a first for Gelato Fiasco, said Josh Davis, one of the co-founders of the gelato company. He said they came up with the idea one day when he was in Tandem’s cafe at 122 Anderson St., talking with the Pratts over a cup of coffee.

“Basically it was just one of those things we decided to do based on the symbiotic nature of our businesses,” Davis said. “We have this space in the Old Port that’s available every morning. Our friends at Tandem have a product that we’re excited to team up with them on. We’re not using the space in the morning to sell anything, and they don’t have a space in the Old Port. Over coffee one day, we were just talking about it and thought it would be a fun way to team up and do something creative and something fun with a business we respect.”

The Pratts will be working in the gelato shop, selling their coffee themselves, during the pop-up period, but they have already been training the Gelato Fiasco staff to take over.
“We’re going to hand them the reins at the end of it,” Will Pratt said.

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About the Author

Meredith Goad has harvested oysters on the Chesapeake Bay, eaten reindeer in Finland and sipped hot chai in the Himalayas. She writes the weekly Soup to Nuts column and enjoys a good cocktail.

Meredith can be contacted at 791-6332 or mgoad@pressherald.com
On Twitter: @meredithgoad

Susan Axelrod's food writing career began in the kitchen; she owned a restaurant and catering business before turning to journalism more than a decade ago. To relax, she bakes, gardens and hikes with her husband and their two dogs. A newcomer to Portland, she is an online content producer for the Press Herald.

Susan can be contacted at 791-6310 or saxelrod [at] pressherald.com.
On Twitter: @susansaxelrod

Wendy Almeida and her family have a smattering of livestock and a summer garden. After 10 years of her kids being involved in 4-H, she's finally accepted the term "hobby farm" to describe her family's work at sustainable living. These days her morning starts with milking a goat before heading into the office for her day job as an assistant editor for features.

Wendy can be contacted at wea [at] mainetoday.com or on Twitter @wea1021.

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