After a 20 year career at executive level in community service organisations, Lawn Espresso owner Kaye Deeley saw an opportunity to transfer her customer service skills into her passion for great food and world class coffee.

“I spent a lot of time in the Disability, Mental Health and Aged Care sector and while it was incredibly rewarding, I was working under a lot of constraints and spending a lot of time getting on planes and being away from my family,” Kaye said. “When the opportunity came up for me to buy Lawn in 2017, I grabbed it. In another lifetime, I had worked as a restaurant cook and have always enjoyed the wonderful social aspects of using food to create a beautiful environment and build relationships.”

Kaye set about putting her stamp on the business and the first port of call, was the coffee.

“I was taught how to make coffee 30 years ago, by an Italian barista,” said Kaye. “We were working in the same restaurant and I was always pestering him to make espressos for me to use in the Tiramisu. I guess he got sick of it and taught me how to do it myself!

There is a chemical process that takes place when you are making coffee and I think that once you understand that, you are able to make consistently beautiful coffee. Quality control is so important and early in the piece, I made sure that every single cup that went out the door was a coffee that I would be willing to pay for. I worked hard with my supplier, Dancing Bean Roastery to develop the flavour of the coffee we use.”

Kaye’s dedication to the perfect coffee was recognised last year, when her coffee was recognised as the Best Coffee on the Sunshine Coast, in the Sunshine Coast Daily.

“It was all a complete surprise to me, to be honest,” Kaye said. “I had no idea I had even been nominated. It was only that a customer told me that I was winning that I knew I had been entered. By the time I found out about it, the polling had closed.  The Daily called me the next day and told that I had “overwhelmingly” won. It was gratifying for me and my staff because we were up against businesses from Caloundra to Noosa.”

Kaye then revamped the menu, with a mouth-watering range of sweet and savoury dishes that cater to a wide range of dietary needs. “My husband is a coeliac, so I really get how important it is to provide lovely food for people with these kinds of health issues. Our GF and vegan options are not only visually appealing, but delicious as well.”

During COVID, Kaye and her team worked through, having recognised that they had an important supportive role in the community.

“During lockdown, I quickly saw that there were many small ways in which we could comfort, connect and support people,” Kaye said. “People needed small treats and acts of kindness during a really unprecedented and scary time. We found lots of mums calling in for our coffees and little cakes. We knew that for many of them, it was the only adult conversation they had all day. We dressed up the shop and provided warm and friendly service. And we also encouraged customers to engage by putting down their names to deliver groceries, or pay it forward by buying a coffee for a front line worker. All of those small things united us and I really think gave everyone involved a sense that they were helping in a small but important way.”

The shop itself has also undergone a refresh and plays host each month to talented local artists who display their work there.

“This time has been really interesting to me, because what I have seen is that the most important difference between good coffee and the coffee shop, is the relationship with the customer. We have certainly proved that.”

• Lawn Espresso 1/18 Farrell Street, Yandina.