"A Name, a Face, and a Place" for Every Cup—Meet Recreo Coffee
At Notre Dame, we are proud to serve farm-direct, single-origin Recreo Coffee in select on-campus retail locations, such as Decio Cafe and Charron Family Commons.
Farm-Direct means that this coffee is traceable to the exact farm it was grown in. Farm-Direct is an initiative begun in 2018 by Bob Fish, CEO of Biggby Coffee, and his wife Michelle. Together, they founded One BIGG Island in Space (OBIIS) as an entity that works on developing close relationships with responsible coffee farmers around the world, many of them with small family farms. They aim to ensure that producers can sell their coffee at fair prices that create financial stability for farmers, their families, and their communities while supporting a more resilient coffee supply chain. OBIIS has a rigorous process of vetting individual farm partners for their quality, sustainability, and labor standards, among other criteria.
El Recreo Estate is a family-owned farm in the mountains of Jinotega, Nicaragua. In 2019, it became one of OBIIS’s first Farm-Direct partners. It’s owned by Leana and Carlos Ferrey and managed by their daughter and her husband, Miriam and Hector Morales, who split their time between Nicaragua and Boston, where they own a cafe. The farm has produced premium coffee since 1972, with its roots in the civil war-torn community that it helped rebuild.
Recreo is a model of both social impact and environmental stewardship. They maintain their land’s health through soil and water management, reforestation and protection of their native ecosystem, and regenerative practices. They employ over 40 permanent families and about 200 seasonal workers, all of whom receive wages, free housing, and three shared meals a day. They ensure employees maintain a high standard of living, providing a school for children, a health center, and retirement housing. They constantly work to improve and expand available benefits.
Their Boston cafe, Recreo Coffee & Roasterie, is located in my own neighborhood of West Roxbury, only a short walk away from my house. The cafe has been referred to as the “living room of West Roxbury,” and for good reason. I remember spending afternoons here in high school and having the cafe be a popular meeting place for community organizations I was a part of. I was always so inspired by Recreo’s mission and the real ways they change people’s lives; my respect for them has only deepened as I’ve learned more.
The journey of Notre Dame’s Recreo Coffee looks a little different. Our beans are roasted just a few hours north of campus in Lansing, Michigan, at Paramount Coffee. This partnership helps shorten the supply chain by sending beans directly to the roaster, and ensures our coffee is always fresh.
The story of Recreo Coffee is one of hope, resilience, and community. We are honored to be a part of this story through our partnership with Paramount Coffee and are excited to see what the future holds for the Recreo family.
Call to Action
This week’s Call to Action is a simple one! Go and try Recreo Coffee.
Found at:
Charron Family Commons
Crossings
Decio Café
Originally published by at dining.nd.edu on April 15, 2026.