{"id":546159,"date":"2026-07-12T17:07:19","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T17:07:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/546159\/"},"modified":"2026-07-12T17:07:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T17:07:19","slug":"a-is-for-andytown-the-belfast-barista-bringing-a-piece-of-home-to-san-francisco-the-irish-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/546159\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018A\u2019 is for Andytown: The Belfast barista bringing a piece of home to San Francisco \u2013 The Irish News"},"content":{"rendered":"

For those who grew up along the Andersonstown Road in west Belfast,<\/a> there was a distinctive sign that represented home: a giant red \u2018A\u2019 that hung above the local leisure centre. <\/p>\n

A centrepiece of the community, the Andersonstown Leisure Centre<\/a> has long been a place to exercise, connect and, during the Troubles, find a temporary escape. <\/p>\n

The \u2018A\u2019 stood above it all for years, before eventually making its way to an unlikely new home \u2013 a beachside cafe in San Francisco, California. <\/p>\n

Andytown holds a very different meaning for the people of San Francisco.<\/a> To them, it\u2019s one of the city\u2019s most popular coffee companies. To Michael McCrory, it\u2019s home. <\/p>\n

\"Orange<\/a>\"PSNI<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWe lean into our roots because we\u2019re proud of them, but I\u2019ve done my time in Irish bars that veer towards the \u2018Plastic Paddy\u2019,\u201d Michael says over a steaming cup of tea whilst sitting outside Andytown Coffee Roasters on a foggy San Francisco afternoon. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe Irishness of it is the recipes and the hospitality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"InsideInside Andytown Coffee Roasters. PICTURE: SAMANTHA BRANCATO <\/p>\n

Andytown Coffee Roasters is known for serving some of the best drinks in Northern California, but on the pared back menu you can also find homemade scones, potato farls, sausage rolls, and Lyon\u2019s tea. <\/p>\n

It can take a few visits to notice the Irish connection. There are no shamrocks on the walls, no green anywhere in the branding. <\/p>\n

The only giveaways are the baked goods, tea, and Michael\u2019s accent, if you happen to spot him. But for those from west Belfast, the name of the company is a dead giveaway \u2013 as is the giant \u2018A\u2019 that hangs from the ceiling.<\/p>\n

Irish hospitality <\/p>\n

Michael moved to the U.S. in 1997 and founded Andytown with his wife and business partner Lauren Crabbe in 2014. <\/p>\n

Having met while working as baristas, the couple decided to take a leap when a lease for a tiny cafe opened up near their home. The goal was to serve craft coffee without the fuss and to do so in a warm, welcoming way. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou can teach anyone to make the best coffee, but you can\u2019t teach people to be kind,\u201d says Lauren, a photojournalist turned coffee and business operations extraordinaire. <\/p>\n

\u201cAs an American going into a pub or a cafe in Ireland, you feel taken care of, and that to me is Irish hospitality. That\u2019s what we try to bring to Andytown.\u201d<\/p>\n

Andytown had just opened the doors of its tenth location on the day I first spoke with her and Michael. Today, they employ over 100 people and are one of the most respected coffee roasters in the region. <\/p>\n

It roasts all of its own coffee at a standalone roastery near its original cafe, and the company operates a major retail business, selling its beans online and in local supermarkets. <\/p>\n

In the typical Irish fashion, Michael tends to downplay his success. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt just kind of started building. We came from the world of specialty coffee at a time when things were switching from that older \u2018buy cheap and burn it\u2019 model, and we just kind of hit it at the right time,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n

Even though they both exude California cool, when you speak to Lauren and Michael for more than a few minutes, it\u2019s clear that timing wasn\u2019t everything. <\/p>\n

\u2018No one else was doing it\u2019<\/p>\n

The couple met while they were both working as baristas in San Diego. <\/p>\n

Michael had sought the calming waves of the Pacific following a hectic few years in New York City, leaving his career as a bartender behind in favour of a slower-paced life. Lauren, a San Diego native, was spending some time at home after graduating from college in San Francisco. <\/p>\n

\"AtAt the opening of the most recent cafe at 66 Kearny with San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie. PICTURE: SAMANTHA BRANCATO <\/p>\n

After a few years riding his beach cruiser around and learning how to surf, Michael found himself yearning for the buzz of a city again. <\/p>\n

Lauren brought him back north and they eventually settled in the Sunset District, a sleepy beachside neighbourhood with a strong Irish contingent. <\/p>\n

They were both working in new coffee spots when they saw the \u2018For Lease\u2019 sign down the street and thought, \u201cwhat if?\u201d. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to roast coffee out here because no one else was doing it. We were travelling across the city to get the style of coffee we liked and we got tired of it,\u201d says Michael. <\/p>\n

\u201cSo we took a little bit of a risk and with all of the education I had paired with Lauren\u2019s experience, we opened this up.\u201d <\/p>\n

Though they\u2019re not quick to boast about it, Lauren and Michael didn\u2019t get lucky or crack some code. They worked hard to grow their business, opening nine cafes and a roastery in just 12 years, all while raising two children and keeping their relationship intact. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was, honestly, a really scary decision,\u201d Michael adds.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t have any money. We carried credit card debt for years but we just kept going, investing everything back into the company. And I think that was our saving grace for a lot of the challenges that have come up over the last decade.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t need to overstate the ups and downs everyone has experienced over the past few years, especially as a small business. <\/p>\n

\"AndytownAndytown Coffee Roasters roast all their own coffee in-house. PICTURE: SAMANTHA BRANCATO <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a slog but we kept the heads down. We were focused on growing this company and not necessarily on things like buying a house. We wanted to build the team we needed and create the spaces for them, and do it the right way. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe looked up 10 years later and we had established ourselves in an amazing city that\u2019s looked at for specialty coffee.\u201d <\/p>\n

Building careers<\/p>\n

Lauren and Michael both credit their team for a lot of Andytown\u2019s success and they take pride in the fact that many staff members choose to stay with the company for long periods of time, which isn\u2019t typical in the U.S. <\/p>\n

\u201cUsually you\u2019re lucky to get someone for maybe two years here. There\u2019s a whole different mentality at home about that type of work where people make a career of it, becoming managers and opening up their own places,\u201d says Michael. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe found that we\u2019ve been able to create those types of jobs and a lot of people have grown within our company. We have a fantastic team of dedicated professionals that love what they\u2019re doing, and that\u2019s because people can see that we\u2019re not just throwing money at something and hoping to capitalise on it. We created a place where we wanted to work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"InsideInside the roasting part of the business. PICTURE: SAMANTHA BRANCATO <\/p>\n

Michael isn\u2019t a fan of the word \u201cfamily\u201d in business, but it can be hard not to feel that way. <\/p>\n

Together, the team at Andytown have created an institution that attracts visitors from all over the world. Their coffee has been featured everywhere from industry magazines to The Wall Street Journal, and the company is still growing at an impressive rate. <\/p>\n

There are plans for more locations on the cards and the bakery continues to grow. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve become an institution,\u201d says Michael. \u201cIt sounds cheesy but it really is a beacon for a lot of people.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Andytown \u2018A\u2019<\/p>\n

There is a wall of photos in the original Sunset District location depicting Andytown\u2019s journey so far. <\/p>\n

Among the frames are images of early construction of the first cafe, beaming staff members posing with their families, and Michael and Lauren at work behind their various counters, sometimes with kids in tow. <\/p>\n

There are snapshots of parties and celebrations too, as well as baristas wearing masks or Santa hats. Hanging above it all on the ceiling is that giant red \u2018A\u2019 that was shipped all the way from Michael\u2019s hometown. <\/p>\n

\u201cAndersontown was a very heavy space with everything going on from the \u201860s right up, and that sign was legendary,\u201d he says of the plywood, ring-encased letter.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up under it. It was where we hung out, where we went to meet up when we got home. There\u2019s been people murdered under it, married under it. It\u2019s seen and felt all of those pieces. I heard it was going in the dump and wanted to rescue it. There was too much history there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Andytown\u2019s logo is modelled off the iconic sign, so when the news broke that the leisure centre was being demolished in 2017, Michael had his mother head to the site back home and inquire about the plans for it. <\/p>\n

The builders handed it right over and it was restored, broken down, and rebuilt over 6,000 miles away. <\/p>\n

Today, countless customers from around the world pass beneath it every day, most without realising they\u2019re standing beneath a piece of west Belfast history. <\/p>\n

\"TheThe ‘A’ sign at Andytown Coffee Roasters. PICTURE: SAMANTHA BRANCATO <\/p>\n

\u201cOur mission was to build something approachable like your granny\u2019s kitchen was,\u201d Michael says. \u201cI don\u2019t think people always necessarily remember the coffee, I think they remember the moment and the space and we\u2019ve worked to create something really special.\u201d <\/p>\n

But part of that growth Michael keeps talking about is learning to recognise and trust his own success. \u201cYou know you come out here and give something a shot\u2026I only turned to Lauren last year and said, \u2018I think this coffee thing is working out\u2019,\u201d he says with a laugh. <\/p>\n

\u201cAs Irish people, we are our own worst critics. We beat ourselves down and hold ourselves to such high expectations. The Belfast in me is still waiting for the other foot to drop, and I have to let myself be okay with it working out.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For those who grew up along the Andersonstown Road in west Belfast, there was a distinctive sign that…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":546160,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[231536,72,61,60,231535,10679,103152],"class_list":["post-546159","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-andersonstown-leisure-centre","tag-business","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-irish-america","tag-san-francisco","tag-west-belfast"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/546159","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=546159"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/546159\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/546160"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=546159"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=546159"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=546159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}