Aussie Longshot Espresso a regular on Hollywood’s hottest shows
A personal barista is the latest morning perk for busy stars on the sets of Hollywood’s hottest TV shows. Owner of Longshot Coffee, Mark Baird and his crew of baristas have become regular fixtures on the set of The Mentalist, House, Chuck and other top-rated shows.
Baird’s unique Australian roast, with its subtle mocha flavors has caught on in Hollywood in a big way. The Longshot mobile espresso bar was a hit at the star-studded G’Day USA Gala event in January and the Longshot team served caffeinated beverages on the red carpet at the 82nd Academy Awards® departures lounge on March 7.
In search of a more sophisticated espresso, notable Australian actors, including; Simon Baker, Jesse Spencer from House, Anthony LaPaglia, and Yvonne Strahovski from Chuck, are enthusiastic supporters of ‘Longshot’ espresso, introducing it to their crews and co-stars.
Simon Baker, the lead of award-winning CBS drama The Mentalist, is only happy with a “flat white” made personally by Baird and says, “Longshot is the best coffee in the northern hemisphere outside of Italy. Seriously.”
Baird is passionate about converting drip coffee drinkers to a more sophisticated espresso culture. In 2007, Baird farewelled his native Sydney to launch Longshot Coffee in Los Angeles and Bruce Willis was one of his first converts.
“Bruce Willis was surprised when I told him I do not serve drip coffee because 80 per cent of American coffee drinkers prefer it. He was genuinely interested to learn more about espresso and comically said, he thought Australians were only passionate about beer,” said Baird.
Due to strong demand from studios, Baird’s business has grown to a fleet of 10 mobile espresso bars catering for corporate events, private parties, retail outlets, and film and television sets across the city. Longshot coffee is stocked at select LA cafés and is available online at www.longshotcoffee.com. Baird has also opened his own barista school in LA.
“In the U.S. Australia is known for its fine wine, beaches and laid-back lifestyle. I am excited about creating awareness in Los Angeles about how great the experience of drinking good Aussie espresso can be. It is time Australia’s thriving, vibrant espresso culture is put on the map,” said Baird.
Speaking from experience. The coffee really is excellent in Australia. The beer really sucks though. Anything in Europe and USA is so much better. I’m not really sure how people started thinking of Australia as a beer mecca for the world. What you can get there is rather limited and pretty much everything tastes somewhat the same. Just my opinion, but it seems to be shared by many people I have talk with from the US and UK.