Durban - Hillcrest barista, Kgune Dlamini, is fluent in sign language - and has just won Barista of the Year award for the second year in a row.
The two go hand-in-hand, as his passion for communication skills sees him focusing not only on making a great cup of coffee, but also making his customer's day that little bit better.
Dlamini works at Lineage Coffee in central Hillcrest and said this week that he first learnt sign language in 2011 from a former girlfriend who was deaf.
"I went to many deaf parties and events, I just fell in love with the deaf language and culture and I'm passionate about the inclusiveness of people," he said, adding he also enjoyed the arts and recently hosted a show, Silence : A Love Untold, which enjoyed a full audience, at the coffee shop.
"I wanted to share my story.
“Coffee is an expression of an art form and taste is a language we all speak.
“We can also use our body as a form of sign language and I wanted to combine these," said Dlamini.
Born and raised in Durban, he said knowing sign language made him more aware of how people were feeling.
"Everything I learnt from the deaf community, I have used in my career as a barista and in my art.
“It has helped me to see my customers, whether their shoulders are down. The eyes are windows and it's hard to lie in silence.
"I'm using a cup of coffee to change your day," he said, emphasising that true sincerity was also vital to communicate with customers.
"We want to bring something more to the coffee industry and sincerity is important.
“We want to be more than just a coffee shot, we want to be where people meet up," he said.
This year’s award was from Coffee Magazine, and last year’s was Scasa (Speciality Coffee Association of SA) KZN Barista of the Year.
Craig Charity, owner of Lineage Coffee which has three coffee shops in Durban, won his first KZN and SA Barista of the Year titles in 2013 and was placed 15th in the World Championships in Italy – still holding the highest rank for a South African barista.
He said Dlamini's success as a barista came from "his love for people outweighs his love for coffee“.
“The interaction with a person is the end goal and Kgune facilitates that really well," said Charity.
Independent on Saturday