Podcast 335 – Building Community in Dunwoody at Crema Espresso Gourmet – Roey Shoshan

Podcast 335 – Building Community in Dunwoody at Crema – Roey Shoshan

Thirteen years ago, a group of friends turned an old butcher shop on Mount Vernon Road into Crema Espresso Gourmet, and it’s become one of the most beloved gathering spots in Dunwoody, Georgia. Roey Shoshan, one of the founding owners, joined me on the podcast to talk about how that happened and why the coffee shop still feels like home today.

In This Episode

• Crema Espresso Gourmet opened in 2013 in a former butcher shop on Mount Vernon Road in Dunwoody
• Founding owner Roey Shoshan sold his stake in 2014 to current owner Erez Inbal and business partner Udi Goldstein
• Crema has no drive thru by design, a choice meant to get people walking through the door
• Roey Shoshan works at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta (MJCCA), a 52-acre campus that recently completed a $37 million renovation
• Crema supports Dunwoody High School, the Dunwoody Police Department, and the annual Dunwoody 4^th of July Parade

From Missing Israeli Coffee Culture to a Dunwoody Coffee Shop

Roey moved from Israel to Dunwoody fifteen years ago to work at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta. Coffee is a big part of Israeli culture, he told me, a reason to sit, talk, and convene with people. Dunwoody didn’t really have a place like that yet.

So Roey and a small group of friends went looking for a spot. They found an old butcher shop space and saw potential in it. In 2013, that space became Crema Espresso Gourmet. Roey was part of the original founding group, and the vision from day one was simple: create a community place where people could grab a cup of coffee and something to eat, styled a bit like a French brasserie.

Running a coffee shop is demanding work, though. It’s time consuming, and Roey had a full time job at the JCC pulling him in another direction too. After about a year, he and the founding group made the call to sell their shares.

Handing Crema Off to Erez Inbal

In 2014, Erez Inbal and his business partner Udi Goldstein took over Crema. Roey is quick to give Erez the credit here, not himself. He told me Erez took the original vision and ran with it, turning Crema into the community hub it is today.

That’s an important distinction. Roey helped start something real, but it’s Erez who has shown up every day for the past eleven to twelve years to build it into what Dunwoody knows now. Erez’s wife, Shirley, runs the kitchen and menu, working full days. It’s genuinely a family business, and you can usually find Erez or Shirley at the table near the back, ready to say hello.

Why Crema Feels Like Dunwoody’s Version of Cheers

Roey compared Crema to the old TV show Cheers, the place where everybody knows your name. He’s not exaggerating. The staff at Crema doesn’t just remember your order, they greet you by name and make you feel like you can stay as long as you want. No pressure, no rush.

That vibe shows up in who you’ll find there on any given day. Groups of women playing Mahjong. People with laptops taking a work meeting. Roey told me he does most of his own meetings there too, partly because he loves the atmosphere and partly because he wants to support his friends.

I’ve felt this myself. Crema is where I first met Roey, actually, before we ever sat down for this podcast. It’s the kind of place that quietly becomes part of a lot of people’s relationships in Dunwoody, not just Roey’s.

The Coffee Shop That Never Added a Drive Thru

Here’s a detail that says a lot about Crema’s whole philosophy: there’s no drive thru, and there never has been. People ask about it constantly, since it’s a coffee shop and drive thrus are the norm now. Erez has looked at it, and construction on the site makes it tricky anyway. But Roey believes the real reason runs deeper than logistics.

Erez wants people walking through the door. That’s the whole point of a coffee shop, Roey said. If you have to park, walk in, and pick up your order, you’re going to say hello to somebody. You might get a smile back. That’s how you build a relationship between customers, owners, and employees, not through a car window.

Crema has adapted in smaller ways instead, adding designated pickup parking spots for mobile orders through their app. But walking in and connecting with people is still the point.

How Crema Stayed Open When Dunwoody Shut Down

COVID tested every small business in Dunwoody, and Roey said Crema handled it better than almost anywhere else he saw. Instead of closing, Erez’s team completely changed how they operated. They moved the register outside so people could order without coming in. They built out mobile ordering through their app. Their whole family, including their three kids, pitched in to keep the place running.

People noticed. Crema gave the community somewhere to go and something normal to do during a genuinely hard stretch. Roey thinks the way Crema came out of that period stronger says a lot about who Erez and Shirley are, and about how much Dunwoody needed a place like Crema to stay open.

That kind of consistency, showing up when it would be easier not to, is exactly the theme I keep coming back to on this podcast. It’s what turns a small business into a landmark.

The Espresso Machine Behind Every Cup

When Roey and the founding group were setting Crema up in 2013, the single biggest expense wasn’t rent or furniture. It was the espresso machine, a La Marzocco, which Roey calls the Rolls Royce of coffee machines. It’s an Italian company, and the machine didn’t just arrive in a box. A technician came in person to assemble it piece by piece and fine tune it on site.

Thirteen years later, that same machine is still running. Roey says it’s part of why people always comment on how good the coffee at Crema is. Beyond the espresso, Crema bakes most of its own croissants and pastries in house, and sources some bread from local Dunwoody businesses. The chicken salad and the farro salad get mentioned a lot too, according to Roey.

More Than Coffee: Crema’s Role in the Dunwoody Community

Crema shows up for Dunwoody in ways that go past the menu. Roey pointed to the book clubs and Mahjong groups that meet there regularly, and Dunwoody Police Department officers who get together at Crema once a week. Crema also partners with Dunwoody High School on spirit nights.

During last year’s Dunwoody Parade, Erez let the Parade team and random walkins use Crema’s bathrooms, parking lot, and space to set up a tent, even with limited parking available. Roey called it typical Erez, generous without being asked twice.

Crema also installed a multimedia system for watch parties, including a recent World Cup showing that packed the place. Between the events, the regulars, and the staff who’ve stuck around for years, Crema has become one of those staple businesses that makes Dunwoody feel like a small town inside a growing suburb.

Why Dunwoody’s Coffee Shop Scene Has Exploded Since COVID

When Crema opened in 2013, there wasn’t much competition. Starbucks was really the only other option, and it’s a completely different model. Since around 2021 and 2022, Roey has noticed a wave of new coffee shops opening around town, including Valor Coffee and Lucky Goat Coffee.

Roey’s take is that COVID reminded people how much they need to be around other people in person. A coffee shop gives people an excuse to gather, even if they don’t drink much coffee themselves. As more families keep moving to Dunwoody, that demand for places to connect keeps growing too. Roey sees the competition as a good thing. Crema was first to create that kind of atmosphere here, and other shops are following that same model now, each finding their own geographic niche around town.

What Roey Shoshan Does at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta

Roey’s day job is at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, known locally as the JCC or MJCCA, where he’s worked since moving to Dunwoody. The current building has been around since the early 2000s, and Roey wanted to clear up a common misconception: you don’t have to be Jewish to be a member. Around 70 to 75 percent of members are Jewish, and the rest are not.

The JCC recently wrapped up a major renovation, backed by close to $37 million in investment, on its 52-acre Zaban Park campus. That project touched nearly every part of the facility, including the pools, the tennis courts, the gyms, and the fitness program, plus roughly a hundred new parking spots. The JCC’s Eva G. Lipman pickleball complex now has 15 courts, and the Zalik Outdoor Aquatic Center gives Dunwoody families a resort style pool setup most neighborhoods don’t have. The JCC also put about $10 million into Camp Barney Medintz, its overnight camp in the North Georgia mountains.

MJCCA CEO Jared Powers has said his goal is for the JCC to be the true town center of Dunwoody, and membership has grown noticeably since the renovation wrapped. If you want the full breakdown of those numbers straight from Jared, check out our earlier episode covering the JCC’s $37 million transformation. Roey and I are already planning a separate episode focused entirely on his work at the JCC.

Looking Back on Thirteen Years of Crema

Most people who sell a business don’t stick around afterward. Roey is the exception. He still treats Crema as his spot, the place he brings his own meetings and introduces people to. He’ll casually mention he helped start it back in 2013, and people are always surprised.

That pride comes through when Roey talks about what Crema has become. He told me he loves seeing something he helped build thirteen years ago still packed with regulars today. Erez has about opening a second location someday, maybe in Sandy Springs or Alpharetta, once the right spot comes along. For now, Roey said Erez and Shirley are staying focused on making the Dunwoody location the best version of itself.

What stands out most to Roey isn’t the paint on the walls or the new multimedia system, it’s the people. Running into a familiar face, catching a local business owner on the phone, watching two strangers strike up a conversation over coffee. That’s the part of Crema Roey is proudest of, and it’s the part that made this conversation worth having on the podcast.

Connect with Crema Espresso Gourmet

Crema Espresso Gourmet is located at 2458 Mount Vernon Road in Dunwoody. Download their app to order ahead, earn rewards, and use the dedicated pickup parking spots. If you want to meet Erez or Shirley, look for the table near the back, they’re usually around and happy to say hello.

Want to check out the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta for yourself? Visit whatsupdunwoody.com/jcc to learn about membership, or whatsupdunwoody.com/jcamps for camp information, including Camp Barney Medintz.

What Is What’s Up Dunwoody?

What’s Up Dunwoody is a local media platform created by REALTOR® Matt Weber, focused on living in Dunwoody, moving to Dunwoody, and staying connected to the community. It began as a podcast and has grown into social media content, local guides, and two of the largest Dunwoody-focused Facebook groups where residents share recommendations and stay in the loop. Matt has expanded slightly outside of Dunwoody and now covers the entire top end of the Perimeter through his Top End ATL channels.

Matt is a Dunwoody REALTOR® who helps people navigate buying, selling, and moving in the area. Stay in the loop with local updates, listings, and insights by signing up here: whatsupdunwoody.com/email

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