Founder and co-owner of J. René Coffee Roasters, José René Martinez, has added a new night twist on his West Hartford coffee shop he calls Analog & Aroma.
Over the last three weeks, the new business has had a soft opening in the evenings on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and has added a food menu. This has been a concept years in the making for Martinez, and the co-owner said Analog & Aroma has been well received.
“I’ve been roasting coffee for the past 20 years and I call my coffee shop an artisanal place. So we took a morning component where we had live engagement. We had great coffee but I wanted to create an evening component that would have the same kind of experience,” Martinez said.
Martinez opened J. René Coffee Roasters in 2012 but has been roasting coffee in West Hartford since 2006. Marie Engel, the co-owner, has run the day-to-day operations at J. René since Day 1. The coffee shop always had hours from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Martinez said the idea to have evening hours were inspired from a trip to Melbourne, Australia.
“Their coffee scene was at a whole different level, and they really captured the coffee experience and artisan gastronomic experience,” Martinez said. “They had world class baristas, but they also had world class chefs. So we decided it was an inspiration for me to have something like that, but I needed to find the right partner who spoke to food just like I spoke to coffee.”
Courtesy of José René Martinez
From left, Analog & Aroma Chef Rui Correia and co-owners José René Martinez and Marie Engel at J. René Coffee Roasters at 320 Park Road in West Hartford. The coffee house has opened on Thursday through Saturday from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. with new food and drinks. (Courtesy of José René Martinez)
Chef Rui Correia, who has been in the Connecticut food scene for decades, came aboard last month to provide the culinary side of the business. Correia was previously the chef at Piri Piri-Q and also was the chef and owner at Douro in Greenwich.
Correia’s specialty is Mediterranean food. The menu includes salads, hummus, bufala mozzarella and Coppa, meatballs, flatbread and chicken empanadas, among other offerings. There are also three desserts on the menu including pane dolce with vanilla ice cream, expresso anise seeds chocolate biscotti and coffee icebox cake.
Correia moved to West Hartford two years ago and he and his wife were regulars at J. René Coffee Roasters.
“It was always the kind of place that I would like to own myself,” Correia said. “I backed out of another concept I was working on and I had nothing to do. A friend of mine introduced me to Marie and René. We organically hit it off, and this new concept happened overnight.
“I was very blessed and I was very happy that they would consider me to join their establish well-run business,” Correia added. “It was everything that I would want to do in West Hartford. It’s me alone in the kitchen, and I’ve never run a kitchen so small but its taking me back to my principles of rechecking myself before I made mistakes as a young entrepreneur, chef coming up, and I’m really enjoying cooking.”
Courtesy of José René Martinez
Some of the cuisine from J. René Coffee Roasters in West Hartford. Last month, the coffee house began opening on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening and are now offering food prepared by Chef Rui Correia. (Courtesy of José René Martinez)
Correia was born in Portugal. He said he loves preparing food from Portugal, Italy, Greece and other European countries.
“I cross the countries and use different seasonings and different dishes from each countries. I love Mediterranean cuisine,” Correia said. “I get inspired on my trips (abroad) and by other chefs. I explore different options, and the food we have made in West Hartford has been very well received. It’s simplicity on a plate. I don’t like to make food too busy or too fancy.”
Correia said this has been a positive development after receiving a Parkinson’s diagnosis several years ago. He said the J. René Coffee Roasters owners have been supportive, and this opportunity came at the right time.
“It’s not easy,” Correia said about coming to terms with the diagnosis. “Especially doing the job that I do in the kitchen and these two folks welcomed me in and said what can we do to make you comfortable. It was about who I was and not about what I had. That meant a lot. There was a point where I didn’t know if I could still cook professionally and hold up a kitchen, especially in a West Hartford market where people are used to good food.
“For me, it’s made me so happy. When I go home, my wife said, ‘I haven’t seen you look this happy in so long,’” he said. “I’m doing what I love to do with two people who love what they do and it’s almost out of a fairy tale. I thought Parkinson’s would have been the end of my career and it almost was. … I came in that one day and met these two people and it’s been heaven sent.”
Martinez said he is happy to have Correia aboard.
“He’s incredibly talented and he understands the ethos of creating this amazing gastronomic experiences with friends, with family, with the person that you just met in an environment that’s conducive for social engagement,” Martinez said. “So we’re not a bar scene. We’re at a restaurant. We’re kind of lodged in between. And we like it because it’s in an area that’s great for developing a beautiful, you know, a beautiful neighborhood in West Hertford and people who’ve really been very receptive to it.”
Featured desserts and a full expresso menu are available at Analog & Aroma. (Courtesy of José René Martinez)
Martinez said he’s one of the most credentialed coffee roasters in the state. He’s judged and participated in roasting competitions.
“There’s a lot of people doing great work in the state what we have is unique because restaurants offer great food, they offer great wines, but in the years that I’ve been doing this, their understanding of coffee is very small,” Martinez said. “Coffee is deceptively complex. A lot of people don’t even know that coffee is a fruit, to begin with, and it’s one of the few fruits that we consume the seeds. So it really takes it takes really, it’s taken all these years for me to really understand the impact of that coffee has. But it’s the same experience as it relates to food, as it relates to other beverages, as it relates to spirits.”
The full expresso menu is available at Analog & Aroma. Martinez said his selection of beverages is unique and prices right and “not to break the bank.”
“We have some really beautiful select wines, some artisan craft beers, bourbon and some small plates with a really cool, loungy vibe as far as music is concerned,” Martinez said.
Martinez said there could be a pianist, violinist or jazz performers depending on the night.
“The evening component has been so well received. People have loved the plates. Amazing pasta plates, amazing salad, other dishes,” Martinez said.
J. René Coffee Roasters is open daily from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Analog & Aroma is open from Thursday through Saturday from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Both are located at 320 Park Road in West Hartford.
Dining and Cooking