PHOTOS BY DENISE CATHEY
Local coffee spots serve up perfect cups of ahhhs
There is something special about a truly excellent cup of coffee. Whether you’re of the flavored-syrup latte crowd, an espresso purist or just have strong feelings about your pour-overs, there’s nothing better than finding the place that gets your preference just right.
So it should come as no surprise that these days the Rio Grande Valley is absolutely hitting it out of the park when it comes to coffee. Where once Starbucks served as the most popular coffee chain, bringing espresso and frappes to the people, in recent years a slew of local-owned coffee spots has popped up in cities across the Valley to provide new and varied takes on this age-old beverage.
Armed with highly trained and capable baristas, these three temples of espresso represent just a few of the many excellent places to explore for that perfect cup.
SEMILLA COFFEE LAB
Husband and wife team Daniel and Cynthia Hermosillo opened Semilla Coffee Lab in 2017 at its current space on North 10th Street in McAllen.
Decorated in a Wes Anderson style, a favorite director of Daniel and a fellow Texan, this coffee spot offers a singular take on coffee that you won’t find anywhere else.
Choices range from the floral Last Word Latte — which features rose petals, dates, sage and nutmeg, to the Tragos, the shop’s tea and coffee-based “cocktails” like the Tamarind, which mixes espresso with the refreshing taste of tamarind and juniper berries over ginger ale.
While the owners offer a variety of experimental flavors, their espresso and the beans that make it are part of their larger mission with coffee.
“For us, what we envisioned and wanted was to focus on specialty coffee. We are very focused on educating people about the relationship between coffee and farmers because we have a direct relationship with our farmers and our roasting process,” Daniel said.
According to Daniel, specialty coffee is coffee that scores above 80 points for quality and taste. This coffee is also known as single-origin coffee due to not being blended with beans from other producing countries.
Cynthia is the roaster for Semilla and uses its on-site coffee bean roaster to turn the green beans the couple travel to obtain and source, directly from farmers in coffee-producing countries, into the final product for the Hermosillos’ shop and wholesale business.
Often behind the counter, manager and barista Samuel Oakley, known as Oakley, has worked at Semilla for nearly three years. He said his work involves constant learning, like about the various coffee farms and what creates certain flavors in their beans.
His favorite drinks to make are cappuccinos and flat whites because they let the flavor of the coffee and the work that Semilla Coffee Lab is doing shine through.
“I want people to learn here what coffee really is. We associate coffee with the harsh black, burnt liquid we drink in the morning to wake up a lot of the time, and coffee is at its essence a lot more than that,” he said.
BANDERA COFFEE CO.
Walking around downtown Harlingen, it is inevitable that eventually, you’ll find yourself at Bandera Coffee Co. on West Van Buren Avenue. While this coffee hotspot features a relaxing atmosphere, its coffee is serious business.
Opened in 2018 by husband and wife coffee aficionados Thomas and Ashley Garcia, Bandera is a multi-roaster café featuring beans from several roasters, such as Superthing Coffee Roasters out of Austin and Edison Coffee Co. in Flower Mound.
The menu features classics like the cappuccino and cortado while highlighting third-wave coffee techniques like pour-overs and cold brews. The shop also features a rotating seasonal menu of drinks with unique flavors outside of what it offers routinely.
The idea is to keep it simple and let the coffee speak for itself.
“We do like to see the coffee be the highlight of the drink and that whatever other flavors or ingredients added are only raising the flavor of the coffee,” Ashley said.
When you stop in, the familiar face you’re sure to see is that of barista Jen Valdez, who’s been working behind the counter since November of 2021.
Valdez has been in the coffee industry on and off since 2008 and sought a job at Bandera to help further her plans for making coffee a career.
While the staff members are constantly brainstorming new drinks using all kinds of ingredients for their seasonal menu, Valdez admits that her favorite drink to make is cappuccinos as it gives her a chance to showcase her latte art skills for customers. However, Valdez believes the most fundamental feature Bandera’s baristas offer customers is the concerted effort they make in preparing every drink.
“We put a lot of care and attention into details, even if you do not notice it. If you order something with a lot of ingredients, you might not taste all the nuance of the coffee, but regardless of that, we are going to make sure that it is a perfect espresso shot and a perfect drink,” she said.
SOVEREIGN COFFEE
With its flagship location having opened in 2020 on East Alton Gloor and this year’s addition of a drive-thru on Price Road, Sovereign Coffee is an up-and-comer on Brownsville’s coffee scene.
Sovereign is the brainchild of Kenneth Atkinson, who previously owned Beethoven’s Café in Los Fresnos. After meeting Austin-based coffee guru Gregory Alford, the head trainer at Houndstooth Coffee, in 2014, Atkinson was inspired. He packed up and lived in Austin for four years to train with him before coming back to the Valley in 2020 to open his own coffee shop.
Daniela Bochas is one of Sovereign’s baristas. The 24 year old from Edinburg started training there in May of 2021 and is a graduate of Atkinson’s intensive two-month training required for all staff. Bochas is the mastermind behind one of Sovereign’s unique beverages, Bochas’ Mimosa. The drink combines orange juice, espresso and seltzer water for a refreshing yet caffeinated take on a mimosa.
One of the shop’s first staff members, Bochas likes that coffee is more than just a beverage; it’s a field of study.
“I enjoy most how much it can give you in terms of knowledge,” she said. “From the history to the flavors, there is just so much there.”
Using coffee beans from Dallas-based Tweed Coffee Roasters, Atkinson and his talented staff apply a scientific approach when creating coffee. From its ever-popular agave latte to the surprising flavors of its seasonal offerings, Sovereign Coffee is committed to providing coffee that satisfies.
“We want our coffee to be delicious on its own without having to add anything,” Atkinson said.
