A taste of David Mason

Manager of Rush2 David Mason

For a cafe manager who doesn’t have a Barista’s certificate, David Mason sure knows his coffee.

It’s 9.30am and David is well into the daily grind of running Rush2. A blend of staff and students have already been given their hit; and at the same time as grinding beans and serving, David explains the art of a good coffee: the particular tastes of different demographics and the advantages and disadvantages of different beans.

Just like a film has a target audience, the key ingredient of a good coffee is knowing the customer. David points out he is “serving students and academics so you’ve got to find a balance. The 28 to 40 year olds like a darker roast, while the 16 to 25 year olds prefer Arabica beans.”

Rush2’s great flavour has made it so popular that David has to keep his coffee supplier a secret. The coffee business is so highly competitive on campus that “you can make a great coffee but if it’s only once every few cups, or even one in every 2 cups, people are going to stop coming,” David says. “There’s a lot of competition between suppliers though, so they’ll give you what you want because otherwise you can just go somewhere else.”

Working in Rush2 isn’t David’s first experience of coffee politics however. David worked in a cafe in Thirroul for a while; and when asked how it compared, he said “it was Gloria Jeans, that’s how it compared.” On top of his job the 22 year old was also balancing two bands until just last month. While he is still the lead singer of the synth heavy dance-pop group Tainted Fist, he left rock group Forgetting Sundown because “if my heart’s not in it I’m wasting my time and their time.”

David has held strong to this mantra, travelling Western Europe and Egypt for four months after school, while he brewed over his future. “I’m not ready to study again, but I’ll probably have to go to uni eventually.” David is glad of the path he took, and says working at Rush 2 “opened my eyes to what uni is like.” From getting a job through a friend at the original Rush, to becoming the manager of Rush2, David’s coffee bean stained hands have carried the cafe. The job has taught David the intricacies of operating a cafe, and he hopes to run a coffeehouse much like Rush2 in the future.

“It’s a really cool culture, cafe culture. You have to live up to it,” David says. He says working in the university has particular perks “because you get to see the same people every day, you get to know them really well. You get them asking for interviews and stuff like that.” Working on campus has also enabled David to demand better equipment. “Working in the uni is very different to a street outlet, but it still requires all the elements you need if you want to run a cafe.”

“Coffee’s not just about what’s in the cup. It’s an experience as well. You’ve got to remember names, stories, what people like.”

The finished product- ready to go

“Of course coffee is a big part and we still make the best.”

Related articles

• Quest for the best coffee: Rush2 (uowfood.wordpress.com)