A coastal family roaster since 1991
From a Tomales kitchen table to Bay Area shelves — the same organic standard, batch after batch, for thirty-five years.
Quick answer
Coast Roast Coffee was founded in 1991 in Tomales, California by Jane Healy and Richard Oppen. What began as a family roasting beans on a Diedrich roaster grew into a small organic roaster supplying Bay Area grocers and cafés for 35 years — always USDA-certified organic, fair trade, and roasted in small batches.
| Founded | 1991, Tomales, California |
|---|---|
| Founders | Jane Healy & Richard Oppen |
| Roasted | ~21 tons / year, small batches |
| Certifications | USDA Organic · Fair Trade · OCIA |
| Origins | Peru, Guatemala, Sumatra, Ethiopia, Indonesia |
It started with a roaster. In 1978, Jane Healy's father, Jack, brought home a Diedrich coffee roaster — and a few years later, that same machine gave Jane and her husband, Richard Oppen, a way to support their three young daughters. In 1991, working out of a two-story house in the coastal town of Tomales, they founded what would become Coast Roast Coffee.
From the beginning, the rule was simple: roast only certified-organic, 100% Arabica coffee, and treat the people who grow it fairly. Jane imported single-origin beans from Peru, Guatemala, and Sumatra — certified by the Organic Crop Improvement Association — roasting roughly 21 tons a year in small batches and trucking them back to Tomales.
Rather than chase the trends of the café world, Coast Roast earned a quiet, durable place on Bay Area shelves — Mollie Stone's, Good Earth Natural Foods, Petaluma Market, and for years, Whole Foods. In 2018, after 27 years, Jane and Richard passed the roaster to Ryan & Jennifer Lindsay, who carried the same standard forward.
“You can't chase every dollar and every good idea,” Jane once told the Point Reyes Light. It's a philosophy you can still taste in every bag.
The road so far
Thirty-five years, one standard
Jane's father, Jack, buys the Diedrich roaster that would start it all.
Jane Healy & Richard Oppen found Coast Roast in Tomales — certified organic from day one.
Coast Roast becomes a staple at Bay Area natural grocers, roasting ~21 tons of organic beans a year.
After 27 years, the Lindsays take the reins — same beans, same small-batch care.
Coast Roast is roasting again — organic, fair trade, and proudly of the California coast.
What we stand for
Six things we don't compromise
Organic
USDA-certified organic, ethically sourced 100% Arabica — exclusively, always.
Family
Family-owned and operated, choosing quality and community over scale.
Memorable
Farm-to-cup coffee worth waking up for, in every setting.
Community
Reinvesting in growers and in Tomales — equipment for farms, scholarships at home.
Diverse
A culturally inclusive workplace that welcomes everyone.
Preferred
Earning trust one cup, one customer, one morning at a time.
Read more about organic certification at the USDA National Organic Program.
Start your morning on the coast
Taste thirty-five years of practice.
Every bag carries the same standard we started with in 1991.