This summer there is a new vendor at the Greenwich Farmers Market: American Dream Coffee.
The company was established in 2023 by Dhiman Raja, an immigrant from India, who described arriving in the US during the recession in 2008 with just $200 to his name.
"This country has been very kind to me," he said. "Thanks to all the opportunities Americans have given me, I feel like I'm living my American dream."
"I thought if I can build a platform to spread the message that the American Dream is still alive, and I can be an example of that, I can change and inspire lives," he said.
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Dhiman Raja and Alyssa Lalli at the American Dream Coffee tent at the Saturday seasonal Greenwich Farmers Market by exit 3 at Arch Street. Photo: Leslie Yager[/caption]
Today Mr. Raja has a home in Newtown and a family including a new baby and a full time job as a sales executive at TikTok.
As for his coffee journey Raja said he deliberately started very small and was prepared to fail. Last summer American Dream Coffee launched in the Newtown, Bethel and Danbury farmers markets, receiving very positive feedback.
"By God's grace we were welcomed with open arms in all those communities," he recalled. "Within three months we had three cafés in Newtown that wanted our product."
American Dream Coffee has an array of beans, from light roast to dark roast. Bags of coffee are priced from $16.99 to $19.99.
In fact, Mr. Raja had nine different roasts for sale. At the Greenwich Farmers Market he has sample bags of each roast that customers can breathe in to "sample."
"You can smell them and you can start deciphering what bean you want," he said.
The bags contain whole roasted coffee beans that customers grind at home.
"We've seen a market shift since Covid when people couldn't go out to their favorite coffee shop and get a nice cup of coffee," Mr. Raja said. "People started buying coffee, and as they bought ground beans they couldn't replicate that café experience. So, many people bought a grinder and moved to the whole bean experience."
"The minute you switch from ground to whole beans your coffee experience exponentially increases for the better," he said. "Now, why not, stick with the good coffee you can brew at home as opposed to going to the coffee shop and spending $4.00, $5.00 or $6.00 on a cup of coffee."
Also, he said people who prefer to make a single cup of coffee using reusable K Cups will also enjoy his array of roasts.
"I recommend getting the reusable K Cups," he said. "You can grind these beans and put them in the K Cup."
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Mr. Raja described the Wild West Sunrise light roast from Ethiopia as "fruit forward." Has said this roast has notes of raspberries and cherry, as well as a note of chocolate.
One medium roast is an organic roast called "The Dream," with beans from Peru.
"It has notes of bittersweet chocolate, some red apple, citrus and grapes as well," he said.
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Another medium roast with hints of fruit is called The Rough Riders, named after the legendary volunteer cavalry organized by Teddy Roosevelt in 1898 during the Spanish-American War.
"His battalion, the Rough Riders, was the only battalion that saw action and accomplished their mission in Cuba," Raja said. "I wanted to pay homage to Teddy Roosevelt and his leadership style – he led from the front. He was a strenuous man."
Independence is a medium-dark roast with beans from Bolivia that Mr. Raja described as versatile and ideal for the person who may be unsure how dark a roast to select.
"I can throw it in my espresso machine and it makes a great espresso. It's also awesome over ice and fantastic as a hot cup of coffee."
"You are smelling notes of milk chocolate – it's a heavy coffee," he said. "The way I describe this coffee is if you drink wine, this would be your Cabernet – fuller bodied, intense aroma."
Mr. Raja said not all the American Dream beans are organic, but most of the farmers he works with are "precise and meticulous when it comes to harvesting their beans, and don't use pesticides."
"Most of our coffee is Fair Trade," he said.
Fair trade coffee is coffee certified to have been produced and traded according to fair trade standards, ensuring that coffee farmers receive fair compensation for their labor and promoting sustainable farming practices.
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"The FAFO coffee, short for 'eff around and find out," is a dark roast from Columbia). Mr. Raja explained that it is not certified Fair Trade because, "some of the farmers don't participate in the certification process – but these farmers actually make 300% over the Fair Trade benchmark," he explained. "We do the work that matters and pay everyone in the value chain what they deserve."
Raja describes his FAFO coffee as a bold arabica roast from Colombia, with "a surprising punch of dark chocolate."
He said while the FAFO is a dark roast, it is not bitter.
Country Tough is a dark roast from an organic bean from Uganda.
"It has notes of cedar, baker's chocolate and molasses," Mr. Raja explained.
Warrior Gardener has notes of molasses, dried fruit and black licorice, "for a nice little kick."
Mr. Raja explained that coffee's name reflects readiness for adversity.
"It's better to be a warrior in a garden than be a gardener at war," he said. "If adversity happens to find you though, you're equipped."
Blend of Rights This blend is 50% FAFO and 50% Wild West Sunrise.
"It has the fruitiness of the light roast and also has the punch of a dark roast," Mr. Raja said.
Last but not least is the Red, White & Decaf, a decaffeinated coffee, a dark roast from Brazil, with notes of chocolate and brown sugar.
"The fangs are removed," Raja said. "The process of decaffeination is a water process, not a chemical process. That's why it's a premium bean.
Find Mr. Raja at his American Dream Coffee tent at the Greenwich Farmers Market on Saturdays from 9:30am to 1:00pm.
Dhiman Raja and Alyssa Lalli at the American Dream Coffee tent at the Saturday seasonal Greenwich Farmers Market by exit 3 at Arch Street. Photo: Leslie Yager[/caption]
Today Mr. Raja has a home in Newtown and a family including a new baby and a full time job as a sales executive at TikTok.
As for his coffee journey Raja said he deliberately started very small and was prepared to fail. Last summer American Dream Coffee launched in the Newtown, Bethel and Danbury farmers markets, receiving very positive feedback.
"By God's grace we were welcomed with open arms in all those communities," he recalled. "Within three months we had three cafés in Newtown that wanted our product."
American Dream Coffee has an array of beans, from light roast to dark roast. Bags of coffee are priced from $16.99 to $19.99.
In fact, Mr. Raja had nine different roasts for sale. At the Greenwich Farmers Market he has sample bags of each roast that customers can breathe in to "sample."
"You can smell them and you can start deciphering what bean you want," he said.
The bags contain whole roasted coffee beans that customers grind at home.
"We've seen a market shift since Covid when people couldn't go out to their favorite coffee shop and get a nice cup of coffee," Mr. Raja said. "People started buying coffee, and as they bought ground beans they couldn't replicate that café experience. So, many people bought a grinder and moved to the whole bean experience."
"The minute you switch from ground to whole beans your coffee experience exponentially increases for the better," he said. "Now, why not, stick with the good coffee you can brew at home as opposed to going to the coffee shop and spending $4.00, $5.00 or $6.00 on a cup of coffee."
Also, he said people who prefer to make a single cup of coffee using reusable K Cups will also enjoy his array of roasts.
"I recommend getting the reusable K Cups," he said. "You can grind these beans and put them in the K Cup."
Mr. Raja described the Wild West Sunrise light roast from Ethiopia as "fruit forward." Has said this roast has notes of raspberries and cherry, as well as a note of chocolate.
One medium roast is an organic roast called "The Dream," with beans from Peru.
"It has notes of bittersweet chocolate, some red apple, citrus and grapes as well," he said.
Another medium roast with hints of fruit is called The Rough Riders, named after the legendary volunteer cavalry organized by Teddy Roosevelt in 1898 during the Spanish-American War.
"His battalion, the Rough Riders, was the only battalion that saw action and accomplished their mission in Cuba," Raja said. "I wanted to pay homage to Teddy Roosevelt and his leadership style – he led from the front. He was a strenuous man."
Independence is a medium-dark roast with beans from Bolivia that Mr. Raja described as versatile and ideal for the person who may be unsure how dark a roast to select.
"I can throw it in my espresso machine and it makes a great espresso. It's also awesome over ice and fantastic as a hot cup of coffee."
"You are smelling notes of milk chocolate – it's a heavy coffee," he said. "The way I describe this coffee is if you drink wine, this would be your Cabernet – fuller bodied, intense aroma."
Mr. Raja said not all the American Dream beans are organic, but most of the farmers he works with are "precise and meticulous when it comes to harvesting their beans, and don't use pesticides."
"Most of our coffee is Fair Trade," he said.
Fair trade coffee is coffee certified to have been produced and traded according to fair trade standards, ensuring that coffee farmers receive fair compensation for their labor and promoting sustainable farming practices.
"The FAFO coffee, short for 'eff around and find out," is a dark roast from Columbia). Mr. Raja explained that it is not certified Fair Trade because, "some of the farmers don't participate in the certification process – but these farmers actually make 300% over the Fair Trade benchmark," he explained. "We do the work that matters and pay everyone in the value chain what they deserve."
Raja describes his FAFO coffee as a bold arabica roast from Colombia, with "a surprising punch of dark chocolate."
He said while the FAFO is a dark roast, it is not bitter.
Country Tough is a dark roast from an organic bean from Uganda.
"It has notes of cedar, baker's chocolate and molasses," Mr. Raja explained.
Warrior Gardener has notes of molasses, dried fruit and black licorice, "for a nice little kick."
Mr. Raja explained that coffee's name reflects readiness for adversity.
"It's better to be a warrior in a garden than be a gardener at war," he said. "If adversity happens to find you though, you're equipped."
Blend of Rights This blend is 50% FAFO and 50% Wild West Sunrise.
"It has the fruitiness of the light roast and also has the punch of a dark roast," Mr. Raja said.
Last but not least is the Red, White & Decaf, a decaffeinated coffee, a dark roast from Brazil, with notes of chocolate and brown sugar.
"The fangs are removed," Raja said. "The process of decaffeination is a water process, not a chemical process. That's why it's a premium bean.
Find Mr. Raja at his American Dream Coffee tent at the Greenwich Farmers Market on Saturdays from 9:30am to 1:00pm.