01/06/2026
Dear Manaia fans and coffee drinkers.
Graham Allen, the CEO, founder of Manaia Espresso and artisan roaster passed away on Sunday morning. He had pancreatic cancer. All the time he was ill, Graham was managing his business, training me to take over the paperwork and arranging new roasters (Mount Atkinson Coffee). Dean Yendall of Yendall Electrical is the man to contact about any coffee machine issues in Whangārei and the coast.
Graham was a lovely man. Stylish, intelligent, kind and skilled. He was an accomplished surfer, a great businessman and restaurateur. He had a feel for food, coffee and aesthetics. He was a good, good man with a cheeky smile. We have lost one of the best ones.
Please continue to support his legacy by ordering coffee through his website. It is made to his recipe, and packaged with his label.
Lauren Roche
