de Mello Palheta Coffee Roasters

De Mello was founded in Toronto in 2013 by Felix and Won Cha, who trace the company's origin to discovering specialty coffee in Australia in 2007 -- a formative trip that predates the roastery itself by six years. What started as, in the company's words, 'a small cafe and roaster in midtown Toronto' has since grown into multiple Toronto locations -- The Well, Castlefield, Broadway, and Bloor Street East -- plus an international cafe in Seoul, South Korea, alongside the roastery operation. Current single-origin offerings include lots like an Ethiopia Alo, grown at 2,400 metres and processed with anaerobic fermentation, reflecting a program built around named, traceable lots rather than anonymous house blends. The roastery describes its sourcing as relationship-driven, working 'closely with producers we trust -- often year after year -- to build consistency, share knowledge, and support quality from the ground up,' language that points to repeat purchasing from the same growers rather than one-off lot buying. The current site does not surface a specific Brazilian-coffee specialty, despite the 'Palheta' name's Portuguese root, so that particular claim can't be confirmed from the source as it stands today; what is confirmed is the 2013 founding, the Australian origin story, and a present-day footprint spanning four Toronto cafes and one in Seoul.