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Updated on Aug 18, 2025
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Behind the Brew: Ricardo Daniel of Friend or Foe in Bern
Friend or Foe represents a happy accident that became a specialty coffee destination. The Colombian founder Ricardo Daniel opened this underground café with his wife Anna Guzman in April 2024, after six years in Switzerland that began with two years delivering food as a bike courier and later brewing in every specialty coffee shop on the Berner map.
“My wife and I had been looking for a café for a while, but not in a very intentional way. It was always our dream”, Daniel explains while preparing a Rwanda anaerobic from La Cabra. When the Marktgasse space became available, initial skepticism about the below-street location quickly gave way to a vision. “We came to see it two or three times, and every time I came, I could visualize it more. I could see the coffee shop in my head – full of people.” Six months of applications and negotiations with authorities preceded getting the keys in March 2024. The following month and a half involved intensive DIY renovation.
The early months brought the expected mix of tourists from Marktgasse and the gradual discovery of local customers. “The harder months were around August and September, when you start to see who your real customers are, the ones who seek you out.” The evolution from tourist-heavy to a balanced mix validated their quality-focused approach. Perhaps Friend or Foe’s most distinctive feature is its complete absence of sugar, making it something of a unicorn in Bern. “Actually, at first I just forgot to buy it,” Daniel admits. “But eventually we decided that our product should taste sweet and balanced enough on its own.” This sugar-free policy has become a great conversation starter.
Coffee sourcing follows a weekly rotation system. “I order 5–6 kilos from each roaster, put it in the grinder, and once it’s gone, it’s gone.” The selection balances traditional and experimental profiles based on personal connections. “I don’t do blends. No classics. I always have one traditional process and one more experimental – floral, fruity, or something unusual.” In terms of brewing methods you’re spoiled for choice: “We have Origami, Hario, and also flat-bottom brewers. We’re a bit crazy, we don’t have just one way of making coffee. We’re always open to trying, failing, testing different methods based on what the coffee wants to express.”
The name of the coffee shop sparks curiosity, which was always the intention. “I didn’t want a simple one-word café name. I wanted something more complex and meaningful.” In specialty coffee, particularly in traditional Switzerland, reactions tend toward extremes. “You always have people who either love it or hate it. I’ve always liked navigating between those two camps. But also in general we have friends and foes in life. Both are important. Friends lift you up. Foes shape you. You can’t only have friends. That’s not real.”
