Azura The Coffee Company finished runner up in the People’s Choice Coffee Awards. Customers praised the consistency of the coffee, the skill of the baristas, the warmth of the hospitality and the confidence that every visit would live up to the last.
Most coffee awards rely on expert judges. The People’s Choice Coffee Awards rely on the other experts. The ones who visit the coffee shops and spend their hard earned money on the coffee.
The customers.
When voting closed, coffee lovers from 45 countries had taken part. The Top 20 coffee shops represented 12 countries. Proof that that while coffee cultures may differ around the world, customers worldwide often value the same qualities.
The overall winner was Roasti Coffee Co. in Canada. The runner up was Azura The Coffee Company in Muscat, Oman.
Why customers voted for Azura
Reading through hundreds of comments, one key theme became clear: Azura delivered the same experience again and again. Consistency appeared repeatedly.
So did craftsmanship.
Customers praised knowledgeable baristas who genuinely enjoyed talking about coffee. They appreciated drinks that felt carefully developed rather than fashionable. They noticed attention to detail. Many described the café as somewhere they trusted without needing to think about it.
Marketing doesn’t build that kind of trust. Every customer visit does.
Building a coffee company from the ground up
Mohammed Behlim opened Azura in Muscat in November 2019. Three months later, he added a roastery.
He wanted direct control over sourcing, roasting and quality. Owning the roasting process allowed the team to refine profiles, respond to seasonal changes and train baristas to understand the coffees from the moment the green beans arrived.
The timing was tough. Soon after launching, the pandemic arrived. And like many hospitality businesses, Azura faced uncertainty, changing regulations and operational pressure.
But it was those early challenges that became part of the company’s culture. Instead of focusing only on growth, the team concentrated on building reliable systems, protecting quality and supporting one another.
Looking back, Mohammed sees those years as some of the most formative in the company’s history.
I wanted to dig deeper into how he thinks. So I interviewed him. And he was very generous with his reply.
Tell us the story of Azura. When you started the company, what did you believe was missing from Oman’s coffee scene?
When we started Azura in 2019, Oman’s specialty coffee scene was still young, but there was clear curiosity and appetite for something more. We saw customers becoming more interested in quality and provenance, yet few places connected the full story of the cup.
Visiting a specialty roastery abroad was a turning point. The transparency, the care for the origin stories, and how hospitality, décor and retail supported the coffee made me realize what was possible. The sensory experience mattered, but the story behind each coffee mattered just as much. I wanted to bring that level of craft and openness to Oman in a way that felt warm, accessible and rooted in our culture.
For us the gap wasn’t only about serving better coffee. It was about connecting the entire journey and highlighting the phases. From the farm, the harvest, the roast, the brew and the moment it’s served. Our first café opened in Muscat in November 2019 and three months later we launched our roastery. Looking back, that was one of the most important decisions we made. Investing in roasting early wasn’t about prestige; it was about control and learning. Sourcing green beans and roasting them ourselves let us refine profiles, respond to seasonal variation, support farmers directly and train the team so origin characteristics could truly shine.
Then, of course, the world changed. We were a very young company when the pandemic began. My main concern wasn’t only cash flow; it was the team. The hardest decision was pausing in-store service and reorganizing shifts to protect jobs while keeping the business viable. There were moments I wondered whether Azura would survive, but watching our roasters adapt to new roles, baristas handle deliveries and managers secure supply lines, stayed with me. Their solidarity taught us discipline fast and shaped our culture.
That period allowed us to look beyond the excitement of opening a café and focus on what would make people return: product integrity, sincere hospitality and a resilient team. The company we wanted to build then is still the one we’re building now. An Omani coffee company with strong technical foundations, genuine hospitality and the confidence to participate in the international coffee community without copying others. We’re proud of how far we’ve come, but Azura remains a work in progress, always learning and experimenting to do right by farmers, customers and our team.
The overwhelming reason people voted for in the People’s Choice Coffee Awards: “great coffee.” But people weren’t just describing flavour. They talked about consistency, craftsmanship, attention to detail and the feeling that every cup meets the same high standard. Building that kind of reputation becomes difficult as a business grows. What systems, philosophy or culture have you purposefully developed to ensure every customer receives the same experience on every visit?
A customer may visit us hundreds of times, but we have to remember that they judge us by the cup they are drinking today. We cannot tell them that the coffee was excellent yesterday or that the barista is usually better. The cup in front of them is the standard.
For us, consistency begins at the roastery and continues all the way to the counter. It starts with careful coffee selection and roast profiling, and runs through resting, water, equipment, recipes, calibration and tasting. We have documented systems for all these steps, but systems only work when people understand the thinking behind them. That’s why we pair strict procedures with hands-on learning: roasters, baristas and managers all taste and discuss coffee together so everyone knows why a recipe exists and when it should change.
We invest in the team’s palate first, then technical calibration. Before any service block the team calibrates their taste on the day’s coffees so everyone tastes the same notes and agrees on what acceptable extraction tastes like. This reduces subjective calls such as “this is good” versus “this is bad” and makes problem-solving collective and practical. Our training follows SCA standards and includes regular cuppings, extraction labs and service simulations. Machines and doses are checked daily and logged, we source only high-quality ingredients, and we develop in-house bases for signature drinks so core components remain controlled.
If a coffee is out of spec, we stop using that batch for service until the roast profile is adjusted or the recipe is adapted. The head roaster has the authority to halt a coffee from being served, and the head barista can pause café service on a shift if they believe a drink doesn’t meet our standard. Those checks are professional safeguards, not punishments.
We also recognize that coffee is a dynamic, time-sensitive product where flavour evolves with rest, ageing and storage conditions. A recipe that worked under one set of conditions may need adjustment the next week, so we don’t want baristas to follow instructions mechanically. We teach extraction theory, sensory language and critical tasting so staff can recognise when something is wrong and know how to respond. Culturally, we try to make “This is not good enough, let me make it again” a statement of professionalism rather than failure. Knowledge sharing is essential: we document processes, run shadow shifts and rotate responsibilities so skills live in the organization rather than with one person.
As Azura grows, the real test is whether we can scale without becoming less careful. The systems, training and rituals we’ve built, combined with a culture that values ownership and critical tasting, are how we protect that carefulness and ensure every customer receives the same high standard, regardless of who is behind the bar or which day they visit.
Craftsmanship was another recurring theme in the comments. People described your coffee as carefully curated, thoughtfully prepared and made with genuine care. In an industry where speed and efficiency are important, how do you protect that level of craftsmanship without slowing the business down?
I believe good craftsmanship comes from preparation, knowledge and repetition. If the team is organized, the station is designed properly, recipes are tested and equipment is calibrated, then working efficiently doesn’t mean compromising quality.
In fact, the best baristas often make difficult things look very simple because of the work customers never see. Before a drink reaches the menu there has already been extensive tasting and adjustment; before service begins, the team has calibrated; before a coffee reaches the café decisions have been made at the roastery. That end-result of calm, confident service is the payoff for a lot of invisible effort.
Consistency is key, especially with the need to replicate our experience across multiple locations, we manage recipe development so the preparation time at the bar is minimal while the craft behind it remains intact. Most of our signature drink bases are prepared in our kitchen and dispatched to locations, which shortens in-store assembly time without diluting flavor or technique. The challenge is to create a distinctive product that stands up in a competitive market while matching the turnaround time customers expect for any beverage order.
Of course, there is always commercial pressure in this industry. Rent, labor, ingredients and equipment all have a cost. A coffee company has to be financially healthy if it wants to continue investing in quality and people. The solution is intelligent operational design so efficiency supports craftsmanship rather than replacing it. This is by standardizing the right things, automating where it helps, and keeping human skill focused on the moments that matter.
Customers repeatedly described your baristas as highly skilled professionals. When you’re hiring, what qualities are you looking for?
When we hire, coffee knowledge is valuable, but it is not everything. We look first for attitude. Is the person curious? Are they observant? Can they accept feedback without becoming defensive? Do they care about small details when nobody is watching? And, importantly, do they genuinely like people? Technical skills like dialing in espresso, milk texture and brewing can be taught; caring cannot. That curiosity and humility are the raw material that allows a new hire to grow into the kind of professional our customers notice.
A clear example of this from our team is that we hired our team member Migma Lhamo, with only cashier experience but with an exceptional attitude. Eager, observant and hungry to learn. We put her through our foundational training, paired her with senior baristas for shadow shifts, and gave them incremental responsibility in both service and cupping sessions. Within a year she was competing in local barista events such as the HORECA Barista Competition, securing 2nd place. What we saw at recruitment, the willingness to be coached and the joy in tasting and discussing coffee, was what enabled that progress.
We train on two fronts: technical and cultural. On the technical side we teach SCA-aligned standards, sensory language, extraction theory and hands-on workflow practices so people can consistently produce great cups. On the cultural side we explain why each standard exists so staff don’t follow instructions mechanically; they learn to taste critically and make judgment calls when something isn’t right. Hospitality at Azura is not a scripted performance. A skilled barista reads the room: some customers want a deep origin story and tasting notes, others want a quiet cup before work. We train people to adapt their service genuinely rather than deliver rehearsed lines.
Growth is supported through mentorship, regular calibration sessions, documented procedures and opportunities to rotate between roastery and café roles. That rotation builds empathy for the whole coffee journey and embeds knowledge across the organisation so the experience doesn’t depend on one person. In short, we hire for mindset and cultivate craft and hospitality through deliberate training, shadowing and a culture that prizes curiosity and ownership.
Innovation came up again and again in the voting. Customers mentioned seasonal drinks, creative beverages and the fact that Azura is always introducing something new. Where do those ideas come from? How does your team develop new products, and how do you decide which ideas are worth pursuing?
Ideas come from everywhere. Sometimes they begin with a coffee. Sometimes with an ingredient, a season, a memory or something a team member tasted while travelling. The important thing is that we do not start with the question, “What will look good on social media?” Taste is our anchor. If a drink celebrates creativity, the coffee must still be present and balanced, it should never disappear behind sugar or decoration.
Take Orange Bloom as an example. The seed of the idea came after Jimson Albuena, our Head Barista & QC/R&D Specialist, returned from a competition with a concept pairing Colombian coffee and fermented citrus zest. The first version was bright but heavy on spice and texture, which masked the coffee. Over several iterations the team simplified the approach: we adjusted extraction and dose to reveal the coffee’s fruit notes, reworked the citrus mix to three complementary zests for clarity, and refined temperature and dilution so the drink stayed refreshing in our climate. It was developed collaboratively to ensure it met our standard for flavor, reproducibility and service speed.
Development is deliberately demanding. A drink that tastes good once isn’t automatically a menu item. We test balance, texture, temperature and dilution, and we check whether different baristas can reproduce it during a busy service. Relevance matters too. Oman’s climate, rhythms and tastes influence what will succeed here. Not every international trend translates to Muscat. That discipline means we often say no.
We also learn from ideas that don’t make it. In 2021 we introduced a specialty instant coffee, the first of its kind in Oman. These were high grade, high score specialty roasts that were brewed and freeze dried, not the commercial instant coffee most people expect. The product itself was excellent and we sold well, but the price point was higher than what the market associated with instant coffee and, at that time, the specialty sector here was still focused on extracted brew methods and ritual. The market wasn’t quite ready for it, so we paused the range. We’re revisiting the idea now with fresh insight into timing and positioning, which is exactly the kind of disciplined innovation we aim for.
There is also a lot of discussion within the team. I think some of the best ideas come when people feel they can contribute and challenge each other. My role is not to have every idea myself. It is to build a company where good ideas can come from different parts of the business and then be tested seriously. The final question is always: Does this deserve to be on the menu? We are comfortable saying no, even to ideas we personally like.
Looking back, what decisions or habits do you believe have had the biggest impact on building customer loyalty at Azura?
I think loyalty begins when a customer knows what to expect from you, but still feels that you notice them as an individual. Consistency is a large part of that. People return because they trust the coffee. But if I am being realistic about this business, coffee alone is not enough. There are many places today where you can have a good cup of coffee. The difference is how people feel. In Oman hospitality is not transactional. You welcome someone with your best, you pay attention, you remember names and orders. We’ve tried to bring that spirit into Azura in a contemporary, sincere way.
Our regulars have grown alongside us. They know the baristas, the team knows their orders, and they tell us when they love something and, importantly, when something is wrong. We don’t always receive dramatic complaints, but we do get dissatisfied customers from time to time about either coffee quality or the experience. When that happens, we attend to the customer personally, contact them to understand the issue, and invite them back for a redemption visit. Feedback is always taken constructively and discussed with the team so we can improve wherever we fell short. It’s a service industry with human interaction. Sometimes both parties are having a bad day, and that can reflect in the conversation. Customers give feedback because they care or because the feeling mattered to them. It needs to be heard and addressed correctly.
One lesson that has stayed with us is that loyal customers often notice subtle changes before we do. When a regular flags a drop in clarity or a difference in profile, we treat that as valuable quality control. We review the roast or extraction, retrain the team on dosing and procedures if needed, and follow up with the customer. Those moments, while uncomfortable, lead to genuine change and reinforce our standards.
We invest in small rituals that make people feel seen. Greeting regulars by name when the shift allows, noting preferences in a shared log so anyone can serve a familiar cup, and creating space for different kinds of visits, from quick morning coffees to longer, conversational afternoons. Equally important is not taking people for granted. It’s tempting to pour energy into acquisition while forgetting those who already choose you hundreds of times. Marketing can bring someone through the door once. The coffee, the people and the experience decide whether they return.
In short, loyalty at Azura is built on consistent product standards, genuine hospitality rooted in local culture, listening and acting on feedback, and simple human rituals that make each guest feel recognized.
If you could give one piece of advice to someone opening a specialty coffee shop today, what would it be? And is there one mistake you see new operators making again and again?
Today it’s relatively easy to create a beautiful café. Designers, equipment and endless inspiration are all accessible. But a beautiful space is not necessarily a good coffee business. The difficult work is less visible. Can you deliver the same product consistently? Do you understand your costs? Is your menu operationally sensible? Are you investing enough in training? Does the workflow behind the bar help the team or make their job harder? Can the business survive a difficult month?
I think one of the most common mistakes is overinvesting in what the customer sees on opening day and underinvesting in what will keep the business strong two years later. The second mistake is imitation. The specialty coffee world is very connected now, which is positive, but it also means that concepts can begin to look and sound the same. What succeeds in another country, or even in another neighborhood, may not be right for your customer.
Learn from the best, certainly. We do. But understand the principles behind what makes them good rather than copying the surface.
If I’m honest, one decision I’d approach differently was how little I understood the full scope of running a business when we started. As a fresh owner I underestimated the hours required, people management, cash flow pressures, technical breakdowns, regulatory and logistics work, and the responsibility of caring for staff. I wish I’d prepared more operationally and mentally, though the experience taught me invaluable lessons.
If there’s one thing building Azura has taught me, it’s that coffee rewards humility. There is always another origin to understand, another technique to learn, another operational problem to solve and another customer who will challenge your assumptions. Being recognized among the World’s 100 Best Coffee Shops in 2026 and second in the People’s Choice Coffee Awards is something we’re deeply grateful for, but the most important part is what that recognition represents. Years of work by a team in Oman and the possibility for an Omani coffee company to participate in the international conversation on our own terms. Recognition is a moment. The work continues the next morning when the doors open.
What can we learn from Azura?
The interview confirmed something the voting had already made clear. Customers don’t reward one exceptional visit. They reward consistency.
That idea runs through everything Mohammed shared. Careful roasting. Daily calibration. Rigorous training. Thoughtful product development. Genuine hospitality. None of it is glamorous, but together those small disciplines create the experience customers remember.
One sentence captures it perfectly:
“A customer may visit us hundreds of times, but we have to remember that they judge us by the cup they are drinking today.”
That’s why Azura finished runner up in the inaugural People’s Choice Coffee Awards. Customers don’t vote for potential. They vote for the experience they’ve had, again and again.
In the end, that’s what these awards recognise. Not one great performance, but the quiet discipline of earning a customer’s trust every day.
Frequently asked questions
What is Azura The Coffee Company?
Azura The Coffee Company is a specialty coffee roaster and café based in Muscat, Oman. Founded by Mohammed Behlim in 2019, the company roasts its own coffee and focuses on quality, consistency, training and hospitality.
Where is Azura The Coffee Company located?
Azura is based in Muscat, Oman, where it operates specialty coffee cafés and its own roasting facility.
Why did Azura finish runner up in the People’s Choice Coffee Awards?
Customers consistently praised Azura for its coffee quality, consistency, skilled baristas, hospitality and attention to detail. The awards recognise the cafés customers choose to return to, rather than those evaluated during a single judging session.
Does Azura roast its own coffee?
Yes. Azura opened its own roastery three months after launching its first café. That allowed the company to control sourcing, roasting and quality across its business.
How does Azura maintain consistent coffee quality?
The company relies on documented procedures, daily calibration, sensory training, recipe development and rigorous quality control from the roastery through to café service.
What advice does Mohammed Behlim give new coffee shop owners?
He encourages operators to invest in the systems customers never see, including training, workflow, financial discipline and consistency, rather than focusing only on creating an attractive café.
What are the People’s Choice Coffee Awards?
The People’s Choice Coffee Awards is an international competition where customers vote for their favourite coffee shops based on their real experiences. The awards recognise cafés that consistently earn customer loyalty through great coffee, hospitality and service.
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