The Long Way Home: A DAK Coffee Story
There are some coffees you remember because they taste extraordinary.
Then there are coffees you remember because of the journey they took to reach you.
This is the story of our first international coffee shipment as a business.
Back in January 2026, we placed an order with DAK Coffee Roasters. There wasn’t a grand business strategy behind it or a detailed market analysis. It was simply a gut feeling. We wanted to explore coffees that inspired us and eventually share them with everyone who walks into Modernist Coffee.
What followed was something I could never have planned for.
I had absolutely no idea what it would take to import coffee as a business. Looking back, it feels like I unknowingly signed up for a six-month masterclass in paperwork, patience and persistence.
Most of my time during World of Coffee in Dubai wasn’t spent drinking coffee. It was spent chasing documents, making endless phone calls, waiting for OTPs, understanding regulations, filling forms and trying to figure out a process that was completely new to me.
It took nearly three months just to complete the paperwork.
And just when everything seemed to be falling into place, we received the message no one wants to read.
The shipment had been discarded.
Just like that.
Months of planning, a significant investment, and the excitement of everyone waiting to taste these coffees disappeared with a single update.
There wasn’t much left to do except accept it and move on.
So we did.
Then, out of nowhere, a few months later, emails started arriving again.
The shipment was being re-evaluated.
I didn’t want to get excited. After everything that had happened, hope felt risky. But then I thought, what do I really have to lose? The money was already gone, yet somehow the paperwork was still alive.
So I submitted everything again.
Predictably, more documents were requested.
Thankfully, a few friends stepped in, pointed me in the right direction and helped me navigate the process. A few weeks later, I finally received the board approval required to import coffee.
And then…
Silence.
Again.
No emails.
No updates.
We genuinely believed the story had ended for a second time.
Until the afternoon of 23rd June.
I was walking around the building lobby, trying to finish my daily step count, when the lift doors opened.
A delivery person walked out carrying a large cardboard box.
“Dhaval Mehta?”
“Yes.”
He handed me the box and walked away.
No signatures.
No OTP.
Nothing.
After six months of paperwork, approvals, customs and uncertainty, the delivery itself felt as casual as a Blinkit order.
I stood there for a moment wondering if this was actually real.
Then another thought crossed my mind.
What if the coffee wasn’t good anymore?
Nearly six months had passed.
Had we come all this way only to open stale coffee?
There was only one way to find out.
As soon as I cut through the tape, something happened that instantly erased every worry.
A familiar aroma escaped the box.
Cream Donut.
One of my favourite coffees.
The room immediately filled with notes that reminded me of a rich chocolate milkshake topped with cherries… almost like a slice of Black Forest cake with that perfect cherry on top.
That single aroma carried months of anticipation with it.
It reminded me why we do this.
Coffee isn’t just about what’s in the cup. Sometimes it’s about the stories behind it. The people who grow it. The roasters who shape it. The unexpected journey it takes before it reaches someone else’s hands.
This box reminded me that some things are worth waiting for.
And now, after six months, these coffees are finally here.
Soon, they’ll be dialled in as espresso at Modernist Coffee, giving you the opportunity to experience coffees from one of the world’s most exciting roasters without leaving Vadodara.
I honestly don’t have the words to describe everything this journey has been.
But I do know one thing.
You’re in for a treat this year.
More magic is on the way.
Check all the coffees out on our YouTube Channel – https://www.youtube.com/@modernistcoffee