Coffee & Community

mom&pop 06

Cafeina is a coffee shop tucked away in City Heights San Diego. They serve Mexican-inspired coffee drinks like their Cold Brew de Olla and Marzapan Latte, not to mention they also have ice cream. I initially discovered Cafeina through Yelp when I moved to the area. It was a charming little space, and you got the feeling that the spot was rooted in community.  By chance, I became acquainted with the owner, Andrew, and got to learn a bit more about the shop.

Andrew, a City Heights native, opened Cafeina four years ago. After being inspired by seeing where his coffee beans were roasted he decided to open a shop of his own for the neighborhood that he grew up in. Opening up his own coffee shop was no easy feat, however, he's received a lot of support from the people of City Heights. During the pandemic, people from the community came together to help paint and build the patio in the back of the cafe. 

Cafeina was recently featured in the San Diego Tribune, where my photo was also published ☺️. Cafeina's success doesn't stop here. Andrew has future plans to begin roasting his own beans from small farmers in Honduras, and eventually open up a second Cafeina location in City Heights. If you find yourself in the area or are looking for new coffee shop to check out, support local and come to Cafeina! 

This is part of an ongoing passion project of mine called mom&pop where I talked to and photograph small businesses that I discover and love. This is an older post that I am transferring onto Substack. If you liked the story be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next one (-: