Yemeni cafes surge across Chicagoland
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Dubai chocolate cup and Adeni chai from Haraz Coffee House in Niles. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios
Move over, pumpkin spice latte. The hottest new coffee trend comes from Yemen.
The buzz: In recent years, Yemeni-American cafe chains — including Qahwah House, Matari Coffee, Shibam Coffee Co, Qamaria, Arwa and Haraz Coffee House — have percolated out from suburban Detroit to the Midwest and the rest of the country.
- Last year, the number of shops increased by 50%, making them the fastest-growing coffee sector in the nation, according to Technomic, which listed three Yemeni chains in a recent "Future 50 Growth List."
Zoom in: Chicago now hosts at least 27 Yemeni chain cafes along with another dozen independent shops.
- And while most operate in suburbs with strong Muslim and Arab populations, new locations are opening this year in Logan Square and Lakeview as well.
Why Yemen? The Middle Eastern country is considered the birthplace of coffee and still supports small growers, many of whom export coffee to relatives who run U.S. cafes.
- The word mocha even comes from a Yemeni port city that was once a center of coffee trade.
Big draws: Pastries (some laced with Dubai chocolate), elegant interiors, a vibe that invites lingering and late hours, often until 10pm or midnight.
Why the proliferation: "Arabs like to socialize late, but we don't tend to frequent clubs or bars. So we hang at cafes. It's very cultural to drink coffee after dinner," Chicagoan Meha Ahmad tells Axios.
- "Then go to 2023 and 2024, and there's this big Starbucks boycott. So a lot of folks rushed to fill the void."
What to order: Traditionalists go for honey-drizzled pastries with strong, spiced Adeni chai (named for the Yemeni port of Aden) or jubani and qishr, brewed from dried coffee husks and spices.
- But the cafes also offer iced and hot lattes, matcha, cappuccino, espresso and more, along with cookies, cheesecake, cinnamon rolls and elaborate confections that include large fruit-shaped pastries filled with fruit, cream and cake.
What's next: Yemeni coffee entrepreneur and Haraz founder Hamzah Nasser told Bon Appétit he expects Yemeni cafes to be as ubiquitous in the U.S. as Starbucks by 2030.