Exploring African coffee and the Atlanta locals championing it
The exact story of how coffee was discovered isn’t known for sure, but one popular legend says an Ethiopian goatherd named Kaldi noticed that when his goats ate from a red berry plant, they were infused with energy and stayed awake all night.
He followed his goats’ lead by trying the berries himself, and the caffeinated wonders of coffee were soon discovered by mankind as the plant, and the business of coffee, spread throughout the Muslim world.
Coffee is now grown in more than 40 countries, including in many African regions. Here are two Atlantans on either side of the coffee business highlighting African coffee.
Coffee Therapy
Tamar Telahun, who is Ethiopian and Eritrean, remembers the coffee ceremonies and routines her family and friends would hold while growing up in Ethiopia. They were community-focused gatherings where people might catch up, gossip or read the Bible together.
For many years, Telahun wasn’t much of a coffee drinker. If she wasn’t drinking tea, her mother might prepare her some steamed milk with just a dash of coffee, calling it Telahun’s “latte.”
Drinking coffee was always a very grounding experience, she said, and Telahun wanted to bring that same feeling into her Sagamore Hills cafe, Coffee Therapy, which opened last year with a focus on coffee from African regions.
One of her coffee grinders is always serving an Ethiopian coffee from rotating regions in the country, and a second grinder changes between beans from other countries in Africa, including Rwanda, Tanzania or Kenya.
She wanted Coffee Therapy to feel “like they were walking into my mom’s living room with the care and compassion and love, but also feel the vibe of the continent,” she told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It’s like bringing Africa into Atlanta in a modernized way.”
Telahun and her brother’s coffee shop was inspired in part by their late mother, Meaza Habtemichale.
When Telahun’s mother fractured her back, Telahun needed more flexibility to take care of her in Virginia. She and her brother closed the second bar and lounge they owned and shifted its resources to their other business. For the next several months, Telahun focused on caring for her mother in Virginia, and eventually Habtemichale moved to Atlanta and Telahun became her full-time caretaker.
When it came time to open a new business in the previous lounge space, Telahun kept trying to decide what kind of place would give her the flexibility to care for her mother. While she brainstormed, her mind kept returning to her motherland of Eritrea and Ethiopia.
“It’s like I keep going back to the continent of Africa,” Telahun said.
She spent the whole night sketching out a plan for a cafe, Coffee Therapy, while keeping vigil by her mother’s side.
Telahun sources the cafe’s beans from Radio Roasters in Atlanta and from a family member who is launching a coffee roasting business. In addition to coffee drinks, Coffee Therapy also offers matcha, smoothies, pastries, snacks and tea, including a traditional Ethiopian tea made with cardamom, cinnamon and cloves that can be caffeinated with black tea.
Telahun’s mother always loved and rooted for that space on Briarcliff Road, which Telahun has operated businesses out of for years, she said. Habtemichale called it her “good luck space,” Telahun recalled. Her mother was able to come see it while they were remodeling it into the cafe, but she wasn’t able to visit Coffee Therapy by the time it officially opened. Being in the cafe can bring bittersweet feelings for Telahun.
“After going through what I went through with my mom, and so much craziness happening in the world all at the same time, the chaos makes you really doubt a lot of things about life,” Telahun said. “We have to find a space that gives us the peace and the calmness, and that’s what I wanted to create here.”
3145 Briarcliff Road NE, Atlanta. coffeetherapyatl.com
Paraíso Roasting
Keith White Jr. and a group of his friends first traveled to Equatorial Guinea with the intention of opening Georgia-style barbecue restaurants for the large expatriate population living and working in the country.
Almost 10 years later, White has instead launched a coffee trading and roasting business — Paraíso Roasting — that works with coffee growers in several African countries to promote African coffee in the U.S. and support fair pricing for the products.
“Coffee became a vessel that we felt we could really make a difference and some change by importing the coffee, but (also) stewarding the coffee through to the end user,” White said in an interview with the AJC.
White comes from a long family history of farming in South Georgia, and his father retired from a 30-year career with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Farming and sustainability have long been at the forefront of White’s life, and he found his passion in bringing that experience to the coffee trading business.
Before ever promoting a farm’s coffee, White said the Paraíso team always travels to the place of origin where they talk to the region’s coffee and cocoa boards and strategize with the producers to understand what they want out of the partnership. They also investigate whether the producers can meet the necessary demand.
One example of Paraíso’s partnership is in Cameroon, a country not as well-known for its coffee region, White said, but it’s been part of many producers’ history to already practice sustainable coffee farming, like shade-grown coffee where coffee plants grow under the tree canopy, protecting the existing habitat.
By working directly with the farmers, Paraíso can help ensure the quality of the coffee is aligned with what buyers in the U.S. market are seeking, which then encourages the growers to demand fairer prices for these products.
“As a fifth-generation farmer and an African American from the South, I saw a tremendous opportunity to potentially close some gaps that have long existed,” he said.
White said it comes down to his team’s effort to deeply understand the producers, what they want for their future and what success would look like for them. Often, three of the most important things producers are looking for are price fairness and equal and respectful treatment for the work that goes into each bag of coffee.
“It takes all of these individuals to get this product from the farm to the bags to the ships for it to be able to get exported,” White said. “As more people realize and the respect for that grows, then there’ll be a greater appreciation, and I think that equity conversation will begin to flourish a bit more.”
White has found that African coffee can be underappreciated in the wider public and isn’t always showcased in the way that coffee regions like Colombia and Brazil are.
“For many African producing countries, you’ve not had many people who have taken the time to shed a spotlight, or you know, kind of give it the recognition that it deserves,” he said.
Paraíso Roasting is working to change that by making sure their coffee is producer origin-forward, meaning they lead with, “Here’s who’s producing it and, oh, by the way, it is amazing, and you’re gonna love it.”
To try Paraíso Roasting’s coffee, bags of beans can be ordered online for home brewing at paraisoroasting.com/shop. Otherwise, White said they’re focusing on the catering side of their business with coffee carts.
Cafe openings & announcements
Tuesdays Coffee + Shoppe, a local cafe located in Marietta Square, opened an expanded location after months of buildout. The new space is attached to its original cafe with indoor seating and a larger collection of retail products.
137 Church St., Marietta. tuesdaysinmarietta.com
Bake and Bite, a Malaysian cafe, bakery and restaurant, held its grand opening in Duluth on Sept. 28. The cafe is inspired by Malaysian kopitiam, community-focused cafes that serve a variety of desserts, drinks and comforting meals like nasi lemak, curry noodle soup, rendang beef and kaya butter toast. Find drinks like Malaysian white coffee and Kopi ‘O’ (black coffee served with sugar but no milk).
5150 Buford Highway NE, Doraville. bakeandbitecafe.com
Myth and Legend Coffee House has announced it will open a location in Kennesaw in November. It will join cafe locations in Cumming, Johns Creek and Clarkesville with a menu of espresso-based drinks using beans from Dawsonville roaster Because Coffee and housemade syrups. Also expect smoothies, sandwiches and pastries.
mythandlegend.coffee/pages/kennesaw
Muchacho, a taco restaurant, cafe and bar from the Electric Hospitality team, has announced its Decatur location will open soon but did not a provide a specific date. It is set to open in the Church Street building near downtown Decatur. It will join locations in Reynoldstown and west Midtown.
129 Church St., Decatur. muchacho.com
Lume Coffee has started hiring for its forthcoming cafe, according to a social media post. It is set to open in the Smyrna Market Village and will be sourcing its beans from Atlanta roaster Chrome Yellow. It has not yet shared an expected opening date.
2874 King St. SE, Smyrna. instagram.com/lumecoffeeco
Milk and Maple Coffeehouse is in its soft opening phase along the Eastside Beltline with a grand opening set for Nov. 1. The cafe comes from Rabbi Eliyahu Schusterman and his wife, Dena, of Chabad Intown. Guests will find coffee drinks, chai and matcha as well as some snacks.
730 Ponce De Leon Place NE, Atlanta. milkandmaplecoffeehouse.com
Pilar Coffee Bar, a cafe chain based in Florida, has signed on to open a location in Ansley Mall near the Atlanta Beltline’s Northeast Trail in early 2027, according to a news release. The cafe will offer espresso beverages, tea, pastries and breakfast and lunch items. Pilar Coffee Bar is in the process of expanding with 20 more locations in Georgia, Florida, New York and Colorado by the end of 2027.
Cafe events
Early voting deal at the Daily
The Daily Atlanta is mobilizing Atlanta voters by offering a free drip coffee or half off a 12-ounce latte for those who can present their “I Voted” sticker now through Election Day on Nov. 3.
Through Nov. 3. 763 Trabert Ave. NW, Atlanta. instagram.com/thedailyatl
The Chai Box Diwali Mela
The Chai Box will host its annual Diwali Mela at the business’ Marietta store this October. Diwali is a celebration held across India that “symbolizes the triumph of light over darkness and good over evil,” according to a news release. At the Chai Box, there will be local vendors with food and drinks, including chai from the Chai Box Cafe, gifts and handmade items, as well as cultural dances and musical performances. Tickets are free, but reservations are suggested.
4-8 p.m. Oct. 24. 811 Livingston Court SE, Marietta. thechaibox.com
Craft, Conversation & Coffee
The Museum of Design Atlanta will host an art workshop and guided coffee tasting with artist Amanda Banks, who is known for turning reclaimed coffee sacks and recycled yarn into fiber art. Banks will lead attendees in a workshop where they’ll learn latch-hooking and create their own small fiber art piece with coffee bags. There will also be a guided coffee tasting.
10 a.m.- noon. Oct. 24. $26.25 for members, $35 for nonmembers. 1315 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. museumofdesign.org/moda-events/coffee-conversation
Spiller Park Hooliween Market
Spiller Park’s Toco Hills location will host a Halloween market with local vendors, tattoo artists, tarot, costumes and plenty of coffee. Throughout October, $1 from every drip and $5 from every take-home coffee bag sold will benefit the Atlanta Community Food Bank, according to a social media post.
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Oct. 25. 2929 N. Druid Hills Road, Atlanta. instagram.com/spillerpark