‘A’ is for Andytown: The Belfast Barista Bringing a Piece of Home to San Francisco

London, United Kingdom Jul 12, 2026 ALN: For those who grew up along the Andersonstown Road in west Belfast, there was a distinctive sign that represented home: a giant red ‘A’ that hung above the local leisure centre.

A centrepiece of the community, the Andersonstown Leisure Centre has long been a place to exercise, connect and, during the Troubles, find a temporary escape.

The ‘A’ stood above it all for years, before eventually making its way to an unlikely new home – a beachside cafe in San Francisco, California.

Andytown holds a very different meaning for the people of San Francisco. To them, it’s one of the city’s most popular coffee companies. To Michael McCrory, it’s home.

“We lean into our roots because we’re proud of them, but I’ve done my time in Irish bars that veer towards the ‘Plastic Paddy’,” Michael says over a steaming cup of tea whilst sitting outside Andytown Coffee Roasters on a foggy San Francisco afternoon.

“The Irishness of it is the recipes and the hospitality.”

Andytown Coffee Roasters is known for serving some of the best drinks in Northern California, but on the pared back menu you can also find homemade scones, potato farls, sausage rolls, and Lyon’s tea.

It can take a few visits to notice the Irish connection. There are no shamrocks on the walls, no green anywhere in the branding.

The only giveaways are the baked goods, tea, and Michael’s accent, if you happen to spot him. But for those from west Belfast, the name of the company is a dead giveaway – as is the giant ‘A’ that hangs from the ceiling.

Irish Hospitality

Michael moved to the U.S. in 1997 and founded Andytown with his wife and business partner Lauren Crabbe in 2014.

Having met while working as baristas, the couple decided to take a leap when a lease for a tiny cafe opened up near their home. The goal was to serve craft coffee without the fuss and to do so in a warm, welcoming way.

“You can teach anyone to make the best coffee, but you can’t teach people to be kind,” says Lauren, a photojournalist turned coffee and business operations extraordinaire.

“As an American going into a pub or a cafe in Ireland, you feel taken care of, and that to me is Irish hospitality. That’s what we try to bring to Andytown.”

Andytown had just opened the doors of its tenth location on the day I first spoke with her and Michael. Today, they employ over 100 people and are one of the most respected coffee roasters in the region.

It roasts all of its own coffee at a standalone roastery near its original cafe, and the company operates a major retail business, selling its beans online and in local supermarkets.

In the typical Irish fashion, Michael tends to downplay his success.

“It just kind of started building. We came from the world of specialty coffee at a time when things were switching from that older ‘buy cheap and burn it’ model, and we just kind of hit it at the right time,” he says.

Even though they both exude California cool, when you speak to Lauren and Michael for more than a few minutes, it’s clear that timing wasn’t everything.

‘No One Else Was Doing It’

The couple met while they were both working as baristas in San Diego.

Michael had sought the calming waves of the Pacific following a hectic few years in New York City, leaving his career as a bartender behind in favour of a slower-paced life. Lauren, a San Diego native, was spending some time at home after graduating from college in San Francisco.

After a few years riding his beach cruiser around and learning how to surf, Michael found himself yearning for the buzz of a city again.

Lauren brought him back north and they eventually settled in the Sunset District, a sleepy beachside neighbourhood with a strong Irish contingent.

They were both working in new coffee spots when they saw the ‘For Lease’ sign down the street and thought, “what if?”.

“We wanted to roast coffee out here because no one else was doing it. We were travelling across the city to get the style of coffee we liked and we got tired of it,” says Michael.

“So we took a little bit of a risk and with all of the education I had paired with Lauren’s experience, we opened this up.”

Though they’re not quick to boast about it, Lauren and Michael didn’t get lucky or crack some code. They worked hard to grow their business, opening nine cafes and a roastery in just 12 years, all while raising two children and keeping their relationship intact.

“It was, honestly, a really scary decision,” Michael adds.

“We didn’t have any money. We carried credit card debt for years but we just kept going, investing everything back into the company. And I think that was our saving grace for a lot of the challenges that have come up over the last decade.”

“I don’t need to overstate the ups and downs everyone has experienced over the past few years, especially as a small business.

“It was a slog but we kept the heads down. We were focused on growing this company and not necessarily on things like buying a house. We wanted to build the team we needed and create the spaces for them, and do it the right way.

“We looked up 10 years later and we had established ourselves in an amazing city that’s looked at for specialty coffee.”

Building Careers

Lauren and Michael both credit their team for a lot of Andytown’s success and they take pride in the fact that many staff members choose to stay with the company for long periods of time, which isn’t typical in the U.S.

“Usually you’re lucky to get someone for maybe two years here. There’s a whole different mentality at home about that type of work where people make a career of it, becoming managers and opening up their own places,” says Michael.

“We found that we’ve been able to create those types of jobs and a lot of people have grown within our company. We have a fantastic team of dedicated professionals that love what they’re doing, and that’s because people can see that we’re not just throwing money at something and hoping to capitalise on it. We created a place where we wanted to work.”

Michael isn’t a fan of the word “family” in business, but it can be hard not to feel that way.

Together, the team at Andytown have created an institution that attracts visitors from all over the world. Their coffee has been featured everywhere from industry magazines to The Wall Street Journal, and the company is still growing at an impressive rate.

There are plans for more locations on the cards and the bakery continues to grow.

“We’ve become an institution,” says Michael. “It sounds cheesy but it really is a beacon for a lot of people.”

The Andytown ‘A’

There is a wall of photos in the original Sunset District location depicting Andytown’s journey so far.

Among the frames are images of early construction of the first cafe, beaming staff members posing with their families, and Michael and Lauren at work behind their various counters, sometimes with kids in tow.

There are snapshots of parties and celebrations too, as well as baristas wearing masks or Santa hats. Hanging above it all on the ceiling is that giant red ‘A’ that was shipped all the way from Michael’s hometown.

“Andersontown was a very heavy space with everything going on from the ‘60s right up, and that sign was legendary,” he says of the plywood, ring-encased letter.

“I grew up under it. It was where we hung out, where we went to meet up when we got home. There’s been people murdered under it, married under it. It’s seen and felt all of those pieces. I heard it was going in the dump and wanted to rescue it. There was too much history there.”

Andytown’s logo is modelled off the iconic sign, so when the news broke that the leisure centre was being demolished in 2017, Michael had his mother head to the site back home and inquire about the plans for it.

The builders handed it right over and it was restored, broken down, and rebuilt over 6,000 miles away.

Today, countless customers from around the world pass beneath it every day, most without realising they’re standing beneath a piece of west Belfast history.

“Our mission was to build something approachable like your granny’s kitchen was,” Michael says. “I don’t think people always necessarily remember the coffee, I think they remember the moment and the space and we’ve worked to create something really special.”

But part of that growth Michael keeps talking about is learning to recognise and trust his own success. “You know you come out here and give something a shot…I only turned to Lauren last year and said, ‘I think this coffee thing is working out’,” he says with a laugh.

“As Irish people, we are our own worst critics. We beat ourselves down and hold ourselves to such high expectations. The Belfast in me is still waiting for the other foot to drop, and I have to let myself be okay with it working out.”