In 2024, Walter Haas joined the company as a partner. He is a sixth-generation San Franciscan with a deep personal connection to the city’s history. Haas’s vision for Graffeo is to expand its reputation as an ultra-premium standout among coffee drinkers through strategic placements, partnerships with retail and hospitality locations nationwide, and forward-thinking e-commerce campaigns.
His background is uniquely suited for this task. The drive to build a great American brand is in his DNA, drawing from his family’s multigenerational ownership of Levi Strauss & Co. since 1853. He is a graduate of Stanford University and earned an MBA from Harvard University. His career has spanned consumer technology, media, and retail — expertise he is now applying to the art of the bean.
Together, Luciano and Walter are upholding Graffeo’s dedication to the science and art of roasting the world’s finest coffee, preserving traditional methods, believing that the perfect cup of coffee is not so elusive after all while supporting the renaissance happening in San Francisco.
“Graffeo is a legacy product. It has been around for many years, and over those years the product has remained flawless. Also, the customer service is always so friendly and deliveries arrive promptly. Graffeo has a long-standing reputation and history in the Bay Area. We know that with every order the product will always be the same and dependable. Why did you choose it for your clientele? Consistency in every cup that is brewed. Our guests have often complimented our coffee’s taste and finish.” — Kim McArdle, The Girl & The Fig
(Sonoma, CA)
“Why Graffeo? Because it is the best espresso I have ever had. The third-wave hipster kids will hate this, but their espresso is generally under-roasted and does not capture the visceral, timeless espresso profile that Graffeo does. The roast is dark and sultry without being burnt. It’s soft, creamy, and luscious. It’s been my gold standard since first having it years ago. We chose it for Left Door because it is a San Francisco institution; it has history in our town. Why for an espresso martini? The flavor is bold enough not to wash out with the booze and water, and its creaminess makes for a beautiful frothy head on the cocktail.” — Scott Baird, Left Door (San Francisco, CA)
“At our restaurant, every detail matters, including the coffee. That’s why we partner with Graffeo Coffee Roasting Company. We don’t treat coffee as an afterthought — it’s part of the experience, whether you’re having a simple cup or an espresso martini. From morning until late night, we want every sip to feel intentional and elevated.”— Raquel Duarte, Bar Americano (Los Angeles, CA)
I am a sixth-generation San Franciscan. I’ve run startups, marketing departments, and worked at big companies like Levi’s. It’s my life goal to build the next great American heritage brand, and it just so happens that in my hometown, the greatest coffee roaster in the world, Graffeo, has earned the right to grow after 90 years of focused craftsmanship.
What makes Graffeo great, aside from its longevity, is the unbelievably high-quality bar for roasting, which my co-owner Luciano has perfected over 40 years. Luciano built nine roasting machines, each one becoming increasingly calibrated to Graffeo’s signature Dark, Light, and Decaf. Our intention is to keep that quality front and center by, most importantly, not changing the roasting process at all.
In a world trying to over-optimize everything, I believe people are yearning for the classic approach and for the things that don’t need to change because they were built on integrity and quality. We’re going to keep roasting Luciano’s way. We’re also going to make sure the story is told well so that more people around the country can discover this gem.
We have been fortunate to maintain all of our longtime customers, such as Bryan’s Market, Mario’s Bohemian, Zuni Café, and Parkside Café, while also growing with new partners, including:
- The San Francisco Ballet, where we are a coffee partner
- The Huntington Hotel, another San Francisco icon that is re-emerging
- Yellowstone Club, which came to us through the support of Ming Tsai
- Corporate partners like NVIDIA
The idea for the Ferrari Café came from Luciano. On my first day of work, I found a closet full of Italian car magazines. Luciano casually mentioned that he used to drive Ferraris in his youth. Of course he did. So, we came up with the concept of putting an espresso machine in the back of an ’80s Ferrari, like the one Luciano drove. Sometimes the best ideas are silly, but when you take them seriously, they work.
The concept went viral, and to this day we drive the Ferrari around, pulling shots for people on the street. It’s a fully functioning espresso machine that happens to be housed in the Magnum P.I. Ferrari.
San Francisco’s renaissance will come from many things: better governance, the economic energy fueled by technology, and a renewed belief in the city itself.
Legacy businesses have an important role to play in that future. They need to do more than survive. They need to thrive. By building up Graffeo and sharing this gem of a company with more people, we hope to remind people why homegrown institutions matter. They give San Francisco its sense of place and its heart.
Graffeo has always bridged generations naturally. Many of our customers first discovered us through their parents, then became devoted customers themselves. We have also become much more active about introducing Graffeo to new customers through social media. When we bought the company, Graffeo had no real social media presence.
Since then, we have created brand moments that feel true to us, like the Ferrari Café, where we fitted a vintage 1980s Ferrari with a working espresso machine. We chose that car because it’s similar to one Luciano once drove — and it’s a Ferrari.
That project captured Graffeo perfectly: old school, but with just enough innovation and mischief to make every generation pay attention.
Learn more at https://graffeo.com/
