Seems like coffee and pastries are becoming a battle-ground for start-ups:<p><a href="http://www.eater.com/2015/4/20/8456861/tartine-bakery-merger-blue-bottle-coffee-expansion-new-york-los-angeles-japan" rel="nofollow">http://www.eater.com/2015/4/20/8456861/tartine-bakery-merger...</a><p>"San Francisco's beloved Tartine Bakery, which was founded in 2002 by baker Chad Robertson and pastry chef Elisabeth Prueitt, has merged with Blue Bottle Coffee, the Bay Area-based roaster and retailer.
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The news comes just over one year after Blue Bottle Coffee — which was also founded in 2002 — raised more than $25 million in investment funding. In 2012, the coffee company raised $20 million to focus on expansion."<p><a href="http://recode.net/2014/01/29/blue-bottle-coffee-gets-caffeinated-with-25-75-million-in-funding-from-internet-stars-and-morgan-stanley/" rel="nofollow">http://recode.net/2014/01/29/blue-bottle-coffee-gets-caffein...</a><p>"Blue Bottle Coffee, the specialty roaster that has become a favorite of hipster techies in the San Francisco area, has raised $25.75 million from a range of high-profile Internet players and also Morgan Stanley Investment Management.<p>Blue Bottle said it will use the funding to “expand retail operations, improve internal training programs and further develop its quality control department.”<p>This is Blue Bottle’s second round of funding, having previously raised just under $20 million in late 2012 from a range of high-profile entrepreneurs and VCs. Those include Google Ventures, Index Ventures and True Ventures, as well as Instagram’s Kevin Systrom, Twitter and Medium co-founder Evan Williams, investor Chris Sacca and skateboarding star Tony Hawk."