Sam Burns and Max Neve co-own Barrio Coffee Collective with Dan Zivkovich. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Who are you?
Sam Burns, one of the owners of Barrio in Braddon.
Tell me about Barrio.
We’re a small neighbourhood coffee shop that doubles as a toastie bar and hot sauce pantry.
How did you get involved in the hospitality industry?
When I was 18, I went backpacking through Europe, and I was really taken by an Italian cafe. So, through university, I started working in cafes and became totally addicted to coffee from then on!
Barrio collaborates with local producers and businesses for Unscripted Fermentation, their impressive range of hot sauces. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
If you weren’t in hospitality, what would you be doing instead?
When I was 17, I thought I was going to move to the coast and just surf every day! But now, if I were going to do something different, it would be counselling.
What is your coffee or food philosophy?
They’re both pretty similar. It’s just fresh, fresh, fresh. Fresh coffee, freshly roasted. For food, I’d say fresh and local, and good quality. It’s hard to beat that.
What is your favourite ingredient when cooking?
Fresh herbs. I’ve always got a selection growing at home. Depending on the time of year, it will change, but at the moment, oregano and thyme are my favourites. We’ve just moved house, so in the springtime, we’ll put some more effort in and get a bigger vegetable patch going, but I always make sure to have some herbs in pots.
What’s an underrated venue that you love?
Cork Street Cafe at Gundaroo. We love going there as a family for pizza. It’s a bit off the radar, but it’s so good.
Sean McConnell (L) is the chef at Rebel Rebel in Acton. Photo: Rebel Rebel, Facebook.
Who do you admire in the Canberra food scene?
I’d definitely say Sean McConnell from Rebel Rebel. I watched him when he was first cooking at Mocan and Green Grout 11 or 12 years ago. He was doing rustic stuff, but it was clever and intricate. Seeing how his food and family have grown over the years has been really great.
Who is your dream dinner party guest, and what would you make them?
The American surfer John John Florence. I’d invite him over and cook tacos with slow-cooked chicken and a big array of salsas. With coriander in every salsa, of course!
What is your current food obsession?
I’ve been playing a lot with risotto at home. Getting into making the stock, so it’s basically a really tasty broth with a European chicken stock base but with ginger and coriander root, too. I’m probably making it once a week at the moment and loving how you can really drill down into the detail of it.
The menu at Onzieme changes frequently, depending on seasonal availability. Photo: Lean Timms.
What’s a food that reminds you of your childhood?
I’ve got really good memories of eating pancakes sprinkled with raw sugar and lemon juice squeezed on top. It’s quite fragrant.
When you’re looking to treat yourself, where do you eat?
Onzieme in Kingston, and I just order whatever is on the menu at the time, and hopefully thats the potato galette!
What’s a venue you’re looking forward to visiting?
Scott Brewer, who has been working with us at Barrio, is opening up a place in Griffith called Recess. While we’re sad to see him go, we are stoked to see him set up his new shop.
Tell me about your recent travels.
We just went on a family adventure to Bali, which was awesome. Ubud was just stunning. Travelling with four kids is quite a handful, but it was a lot of fun. We really enjoyed all the different tropical fruits. And I got really into the raw cacao and coffee.
Sam even loves the winter cold in Canberra. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
What do you love about living in Canberra?
I love the seasons. I love the absolute depth of winter and the height of summer. I love the fact we get it all. I think it’s good for health and conducive to living a healthy life.
What TV show are you watching right now?
This is embarrassing, but my older daughters have been watching Vampire Diaries and I get suckered into watching that. After about 15 minutes, the storyline will be so bad that I have to leave the room!
What do you have for breakfast?
Two scrambled eggs on sourdough with the WASP seasoning that Dan makes at Barrio. WASP stands for Weird-Ass Salt and Pepper!
An easy one to finish – what’s your go-to coffee order?
I love coffee in every way. But my preference is black filter coffee with a washed process Ethiopian bean. I feel like it’s just a really beautiful expression of what coffee is: it’s got all these different characteristics in one cup, but it’s really clean and drinkable.
Barrio Collective Coffee is located at 59/30 Lonsdale Street, Braddon. It’s open Monday to Friday from 7 am to 2 pm, and on Saturday and Sunday from 8 am to 2 pm.
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