A coffee shop that uses its waste barista milk to make ricotta for its omelettes has been declared one of the world’s “most popular” independent cafés.

Staff at Ozone Coffee Roasters – which has two cafes in Hackney – demonstrated how they make the “delicious” cheese in a viral TikTok that has amassed more than 600,000 views.

Its social media impressions - including TikTok views, Instagram hashtag use and average annual Google search volume – suggest it is the fifth most popular independent café in the world, according to analysis by online gambling site Betway.

The coffee shop brand, which also has eateries in New Zealand, says it is aiming to produce 0% food waste, and its methods have proved a hit on social media.

In the café’s viral video, a worker explains that to make the “house ricotta”, staff take the waste barista milk “left in the bottom of the jug”.

He says: “Once we have enough collected, we will bring it to a certain temperature, when it hits that temp[erature], we add acid to it – a lemon juice and some salt.

“The acid basically splits it…into curds and whey. It’s kind of like making cheese.”

This is then drained and hung out overnight, ready to be whipped into a ricotta dressing for the café’s omelettes.

@ozonecoffee_official Turning barista milk into delicious ricotta 🥛 #SustainableFood #LondonFood #LowWasteRecipe ♬ original sound - Ozone Coffee

Many TikTok seemed to approve of the idea, with one commenting: “Zero waste, love it.”

Another asked if the café also re-used alternative milks, and not just “full cream milk”.

Ozone Coffee said: “We also create a delicious caramel from leftover oat milk”.

Other TikTok videos under the tag #ozonecoffeeroasters show just how popular its London cafés are.

In one clip, the poster says: “This must have been really popular amongst the locals because there was such a long queue, we actually waited in the rain for 20 minutes.”

They added: “We ended up ordering three mains to share between two of us and it was worth the wait, 100%.”

@stacygw98 ♬ pink plus white - ✿

According to Betway’s analysis, Ozone Coffee Roasters’ tag has 2.6 million TikTok views and has been used more than 14,000 times on Instagram.

It has two Hackney shops – one in Shoreditch and one in London Fields - open seven days a week for food and drink.

Shoreditch – 11 Leonard Street; open Monday-Friday – 7.30am-4.30pm; Saturday-Sunday – 8.30am-5pm

London Fields – Emma Street; open Monday-Friday – 7.30am-4pm; Saturday-Sunday – 8.30am-5pm

  • At both shops the kitchen is open until 3pm on weekdays and 4pm on weekends