Spanish specialty coffee group East Crema Coffee celebrated its fifth anniversary in October 2025. Here, Founder and CEO, Alberto Valverde, speaks to World Coffee Portal about how appreciation for specialty coffee in Spain has bloomed since 2020, as well as how East Crema’s approach to sustainability, store design, and growth is winning customers over from Bilbao to Seville
East Crema Coffee opened its first store in Madrid’s fashionable Justicia neighbourhood in October 2020 and has been riding the wave of Spain’s specialty coffee awakening ever since. The boutique operator now has 21 coffee shops across Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, San Sebastián, Seville, Valencia and Zaragoza – all supplied from its roastery in the Spanish capital.
It was during a trip to Japan that East Crema Founder and CEO Alberto Valverde was inspired by the architecture, store design and painstaking attention to detail found in Tokyo’s leading specialty coffee shops.
Today, the Madrid-based chain is as well known for its uncluttered approach to design as for its specialty drip coffee, which includes super-premium geishas from Panama, Peru and Colombia. East Crema also serves espresso-based beverages brewed with care and precision on La Marzocco Linea Classic S machines and offers a range of ceremonial-grade hot and iced matcha teas, complemented by a growing bakery and brunch menu.
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