Proud Mary Coffee

Nolan and Shari Hirte started Proud Mary in Melbourne, Australia in 2009, and Nolan brought the brand to the United States for the first time when the Alberta Street cafe opened in 2017, a milestone moment for Australian coffee culture stateside. Nolan grew up in a remote mining town in Western Australia's Pilbara region before winning the state barista championship in 2006 and moving to Melbourne to build the Proud Mary roasting business.

He designed and helped build many of the handcrafted details inside the Portland cafe himself, with help from his parents, and the space now runs a full Melbourne style all day menu alongside espresso, cold drip, V60, and Aeropress coffee. The dog friendly patio and walkup window draw a steady Alberta Arts District brunch crowd, and Proud Mary later opened a second US cafe in Austin in 2022.