One thing we know, is that America loves coffee, and no Downtown would be complete without a ready supply of coffee for the scores of people getting up to work in the morning, and the volume of visitors. While there might be several places to choose when it comes to caffeine, the Kaffa Coffee Shop offers fresh pastries, made in-house.

Co-owners and sisters, Itzel Ayala and Jaritza Ayala have always wanted a café. Itzel studied as a pastry chef for three years graduating from Centro Culinario Ambrosia in Mexico City before collaborating with her sibling, Jaritza, a UTEP graduate with a bachelor’s in education to open Kaffa in Downtown El Paso’s Las Plazas Arts District on Franklin Street.

Its important to note that the organic coffee beans are sourced from Oaxaca, Mexico with the roast being done in Mexico City, and all syrups are made in-house. With a pastry chef as a co-owner and operator, the pastries are also made in-house with care and sell quickly. The house favorite, croissants sell-out within ah hour after opening each morning. Other pastries include, palmiers, cookies and cupcakes.

The café also sells beer and wine, and remains open until midnight, Thursday through Saturday with live music on Saturday nights. So, if you’re in Downtown on the weekends and looking for a place to take a breath, “have a coffee and share the vibe,” a tagline from the café. Everyone else, if you work in Downtown, we’ll see who gets the last of the daily croissants.

Not only is Itzel a professionally trained pastry chef but a musician as well. Her instrument of choice is the saxophone, played perhaps on Saturday nights when the café schedules live music. The café is a purposefully eclectic in design, a nod to a pair of internationally traveled siblings with a broad view of the world. The café is both minimalistic and stylish with hints of a musical influence on the wall, local art and rustic mid-century design.

  • 500 N Oregon St Ste E
  • Special Hours: Thurs-Sat open till Midnight
  • Live Music Saturday nights
  • All syrups made fresh in-house
  • All pastries made fresh daily in-house
  • Roasted coffee beans are organic
  • Beer and wine available

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