With a reputation as one of the most challenging competitions in the coffee industry, Arjem from Costa Coffee Qatar demonstrated his pride and passion to be crowned as 2016 regional winner of the annual Costa Coffee Barista of the Year competition. This accolade secured Arjem a place in the prestigious Champion of Champions final and will see baristas from all over the world compete to claim the ultimate Barista of the Year 2016 crown and win the prize of a trip of a lifetime.
Having fought through opposition from fellow baristas across the Middle East and North Africa, this accolade recognises 25-year-old barista as one of the most skilled coffee connoisseurs in the region, and amongst the top Costa Coffee baristas globally.
Participants are challenged in a series of qualifiers, starting in-store then progressing to area heats, before being selected as the best barista in their country. Ten talented barista succeeded to make it to the regional final held in Dubai, which is where Arjem was crowned as the regional winner.
He has worked for Costa Coffee for the past one and half years and wowed the judges by creating a full-range of Costa’s core hand-crafted coffees. Challenges included the espresso race, crafting the distinctive and notoriously difficult Flat White to perfection and a timed demonstration of his own speciality drink, Nutty Guava, to impress the judges. Contestants were marked on precision, creativity, speed and personality across the heats. But the fight is not over yet, with the final and fiercest stage of the competition is yet to come. Arjem will be flown to London to compete in the Champion of Champion Final on January 12 in a bid to be crowned the best Costa Coffee Barista in the world.
Tom Edgar (Head of Franchise) from Costa Coffee said: We have approximately 2,500 baristas in the MENA Region working across more than 370 stores so for Arjem to be crowned the best in MENA is a huge achievement and something he should feel incredibly proud of.”
