For many people, the taste of coffee is rather ordinary, while for others it seems sour or bitter. But for hearing-impaired barista (听障咖啡师) Zeng Zheng and his colleagues in Chongqing, coffee presents a rich and pleasing variety of taste experiences.
There is even some variety in the different forms of sweetness, according to Zeng, with some hitting the palate from the start, while others initially seem bitter but finally resolve into sweetness. To some extent, this reflects Zeng’s life experience. Together with several hearing-impaired colleagues, he works at a coffee shop named Yijiao Cafe, which located at Songshan General Hospital. It is one of two branches with the same name, which translates as One Corner Cafe. The name was inspired by a famous children’s book called The Missing Piece by Shel Silverstein. The moral of the story is that one can find happiness by accepting one’s personal quirks and imperfections.
Zhu Jiayun, head of a charity for people with disabilities in Chongqing’s Yuzhong district, founded the brand in May 2022. In September 2022, Yijiao launched a free-of-charge barista training program for the hearing-impaired. The program attracted Zeng and others who used to scrape by (勉强维持生计) with various low-skilled jobs. Four out of the 15 trainees were then employed by Zhu after a strict examination. In the same month, the first Yijiao Cafe shop, located in Yuzhong district, opened its doors.
In February this year, the second coffee shop opened in Songshan General Hospital. In just a month, the new coffee shop sold more than 3,700 cups of coffee. For every 10 yuan ($1.45) earned by the store, 0.1 yuan is donated to public welfare funds, said Zhu.
Zhu plans to open three more coffee shops this year. “I hope that Yijiao Cafe is more than just a coffee shop, and can also serve as a model space, where the healthy people and those with disabilities can make coffee, drink coffee, or live and work together,” Zhu said.
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