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An independent coffee-roasting company is now open in Georgetown.
The overview
Katï Coffee, founded by Mirian Diop, sources coffee beans from around the world and prepares them for customers in-store using a Probat roasting machine.
Katï’s coffee beans are specialty coffees, meaning they’re farmed to a higher standard, and customers can purchase beans from:
Diop moved to the United States from Ghana in 2005 for her education. She received her bachelor’s in chemical engineering at Tufts University and a doctorate in chemical engineering at Northwestern University.
After falling in love with Georgetown, Diop and her husband, Dave, settled nearby. In February, Diop said she left her career of 10 years at ExxonMobil to try something new.
“I always knew that I wanted to build something that was community integrated,” Diop said.
Once Diop began roasting her own coffee at home, she realized how much she enjoyed using software to analyze changes in the beans’ temperature while roasting, she said.
“Coffee is an art, but it’s also a science,” Diop said. “I’m a scientist at heart.”
In a nod to her native country, Diop named her company Katï, which means "knowledge" in Lelemi, the native language of a village in Ghana. Knowledge applied well is wisdom, Diop said, which is also why she chose an owl as the company’s logo.
“I wanted to call it Katï because I wanted to bring back the idea of knowing what it is you’re drinking and knowing the elements behind what it is you’re drinking,” Diop said.
Looking ahead
In the future, Diop said she hopes to create an internship program with students at Southwestern University in Georgetown.
“I would love to engage with students around research with respect to coffee,” Diop said.
Diop said she envisions Katï Coffee growing with the community and looks forward to the possibility of co-branding with local partners.
