The slightly ridiculous tragicomic odyssey of one Joe Perk, a young man alone: inarticulate, simple-hearted and naive; a humble coffee-jerk with a unique talent, as he travels from small town Oklahoma to New York City in order to realize his dream: to become a world champion coffee barista. Along the way he stumbles in and out of the lives of Cliff, his cruel half-brother who delights in stealing Joe's girls; Miguel, a farmhand with a secret bean; Cappuccino, the lovely coffee shop owner in love and in trouble; a crazed homeless man who drives an office chair, quotes movie dialogue and wants to kill Joe; Lou, the diner-owner with dyslexia; Graydon Froth, a coffee mogul with a serious inferiority complex; Macchiato, reigning barista champ and prize chump; and Shakes, the mysterious man who imparts to Joe a secret knowledge that will possibly make him a star.