Kyle Chang, 24, left his Liberal Arts diploma behind to become a full-time barista and doesn’t regret a moment of it. He serves exquisite coffee ready to become the best part of your morning routine in the heart of Midtown, on West 25th Street, in a little café named Perpetuum. From need for a job to a true passion, Chang takes his coffee journey seriously.

“The interaction with people, the creation of this beverage that people desperately need on a daily basis and just hearing ‘oh this is delicious,’ makes everything wonderful,” shared Chang, mixing frothy milk with an espresso shot. “It’s about getting to know each person and their personality and how they want their drinks made.”

Chang became a barista six years ago, when he was 18 and decided it was time to part with his mama’s casa. In need of a job he applied with no prior experience in serving coffee to Whole Foods Market. He was miraculously hired for his first barista gig.

Chang started working at Perpetuum in Fall 2015, hoping to soon become a shareholder of the business when the current owners open a new location.

The cafe itself if hidden in the concrete jungles of Midtown, with a small coffee sign on the sidewalk guiding you toward it. Small, cozy and with free wifi, the space offers seating for no more than six people. However, most take to-go.

Coffee stops being about coffee, it elevates into a community full of story-telling and smiling. Chang noted how every Tuesday a mother comes with her daughter and they always get a latte for her and a hot chocolate, not too hot, for the little girl.

“Once you get past their order, you get to share stories and experiences, coffee related and not coffee related,” said Chang. “I see being a barista as a day time bartender, minus the getting drunk and becoming a hot mess part.”

Change however was never a fan of chain coffee, even though he believes in its convenience, “Starbucks needs to disappear. They’ve created this thing, the misconception of coffee and then smaller shops have to try and reinvent themselves. We just tried experimenting with a siphon. This tastes like a pour over, just takes a lot longer,” Chang said with a chuckle, showing how it works.

Chang believes that New Yorkers will learn to appreciate better coffee and brewing techniques by training their palette to recognize flavors and understand how many layers there are to a good cup of coffee. Once they will keep exploring new blends, coffee shops and stepping out of their comfort zone is when they will.

“Its an art. It’s a craft,” said Chang, handing me a lavender infused honey milk latte.