Two families, one ritual, carried across the Gulf of Aden to a roastery in Livonia, Michigan.
Sam grew up in 1980s Mogadishu, where his grandmother roasted wild coffee from the Cal Madow mountains of Sanaag. Amal's grandfather left Yemen young and spent his life farming coffee in the highlands of Ethiopia.
Same plant, same slow morning ritual, two shores of the same sea. East African coffee is not a line on our menu. It is who we are.
When Sam and Amal met, they recognized something familiar in each other: the smell of green beans turning in a pan, the patience of a slow roast, the quiet way a cup gathers people. Their love story and First Light Roasters are the same story.
We roast premium East African single origins and signature blends to order in Livonia, then ship within 48 hours. Kenya is our Queen of Coffee. Ethiopia is the Asl, the origin. Other origins earn their place, but East Africa is always the story.
Their love story is a coffee story.Sam and Amal · First Light Roasters
Every coffee leads with its origin. The highlands of Kenya and Ethiopia are where we start and where we return.
Small batches roasted the day they ship, then out the door within 48 hours. You taste the difference freshness makes.
A Michigan roastery built by hand, with a cafe opening late summer at 37055 Industrial Rd.