Up until 2002 the Java Kaffee shops were part of Hamburg’s cityscape. Established in 1931, the company roasted coffee beans in Hamburg’s former warehouse complex. Branches were mainly set up in Hamburg and northern Germany. In the 1990s, the Hertz family sold the Java Kaffee brand to MOST AG.

When MOST Schokolade was taken over by Roman Maria Koidl, the Java Kaffee brand went to the businessman as well. Koidl, who founded the first coffee shop chain in continental Europe in 1996, is planning to relaunch the old-established Hamburg brand.