TOLEDO – Caffeena Coffee House is a Dearborn-based café that is expanding to the Glass City. Guests will have the opportunity to try authentic Yemeni coffee and enjoy fresh pastries at the several new locations that the company will be opening in the coming months. The Toledo location will be at 2903 Dorr St., near the University of Toledo campus.
Simon Saleh, managing director of Caffeena Coffee House and a real estate broker, came to the United States from Yemen when he was 11 years old. He got started in the coffee business by helping others open shops across the country. Now, he finally gets to open his own.
While coffee enthusiasts sometimes run into the same old concepts, Saleh says Caffeena will offer something different.
“What we do is in all of our coffee shops, we try to make sure that they look very presentable in a luxurious experience,” he said. “We put a lot of high-end stuff inside the coffee shop, such as nice finishes, tiles, marbles. When you walk in there, it’s going to look really nice.”
Depending on the square footage, the shops will feature conference rooms and meditation rooms that will be available for anyone to use for meditation, prayer, or private reflection.
Another way Caffeena seeks to differentiate itself from other coffee shops is through its focus on community needs. This means they’ll be partnering with nonprofit organizations.
The third, and possibly most important, difference between Caffeena and chain coffee shops is the coffee itself. Saleh says the coffee beans are grown in Yemen and sent directly to Caffeena. The coffee may be stronger than others because the beans are harvested by hand, sun-dried in the mountains, and not power-washed. When the beans arrive at a shop, the only step is to remove the leaves from the top of the beans, keeping them natural.
A brief history of Yemeni coffee
The word “mocha” comes from the port city of Mocha in Yemen. It is located on the Red Sea coast and has been known for centuries for its coffee trade. According to Saleh, Yemen began exporting coffee in the early 1700s. He said it has traditionally been transported from Yemen to the Middle East, then to Europe, before finally reaching the United States. It was not well known in the U.S. until Yemeni coffee shops began to open.
While the shop is located near the University of Toledo, Saleh says everyone is welcome.
“Our coffee shop is open for everyone, no matter what you want. Our audience [is] going to be the community.”
One thing that helps the company run smoothly is that Caffeena is an all-in-one business. The coffee shop has its own wholesale company to provide supplies and training for each new location.
Saleh can open so many locations at once because of the people he has partnered with.
“Once I became part of Caffeena, and we brought the whole team together. One of the first things that I did is I found people who had the same vision, who had the same mindsets, and wanted to do the same basic goal.”
That goal, he said, is to provide a unique coffee experience for customers. His team consists of friends, family, and colleagues. He said his brother-in-law is in Toledo and will manage the location.
The Toledo location is expected to open within the next couple of months. Check in on their website to check in on the grand opening, and to learn more about what they serve.
