We had the good fortune of connecting with Reyes Perez & Esmeralda Arellano and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Reyes Perez & Esmeralda Arellano, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Before opening the coffee shop we had a cellphone business that we had opened since 1996 but after the closures during the pandemic of COVID-19 it began to decline and we knew it was time for the next chapter in our business careers. Through all those long days what sustained us through it all was looking forward to our coffee breaks, we use to drive to different cities just for a really good coffee and as we got older and were faced with this obstacle of our business ending we thought why can’t we be the coffee shop people drive far to go to.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
It has been such a journey to get to where we are today, we’ve been working towards this for years through different businesses that we have owned. Now heading towards our 50s we’re finally doing something that brings us joy in life. We get to be creative and have fun. We’re most proud of our Hibiscus Coffee Cold Brew it’s the perfect balance de una agua de jamaica with coffee. That being said throughout our life what has sustained us and helped us through the never ending obstacles of what it means to own a business is even when it feels like it’s over it never really is, having perseverance to keep going and being more consumed in finding solutions then dwelling in our problems is what has us here today.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
When coming to LA you have to check out all the street venders, that’s the heart of Los Angeles to us. We’d start our morning of at Carnitas Pachukin for the best tacos in Boyle Heights, go across the street to our coffee shop for our signature Hibiscus Coffee Cold Brew. Next up is checking out the flea market that takes place in Pierce College in Woodland Hills. Following that we have to get a boba at Bon Bon Tea House in Northridge. Once we’ve relaxed, we’d go for a hike at Griffith park observatory for the view and once night time hits we’ll be back in Los Angeles for some tortas from TortaMovil.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

When we first started our business 27 years ago in cellphones, we were in our early 20s just freshly out of our teens. We didn’t have support, mentorship or encouragement we just had each other and the motivation to be someone in this life. We did came across one man who gave us an in, in that business without even knowing us, we’d say he got the ball rolling. Since then being parents has been the biggest motivator for us, we wanted to provide for our children, and show our children that anything is possible. The biggest supporters now having transitioned into a coffee shop has been our children, our family, our friends we’ve made through the years in Boyle Heights and most of all each other.

Instagram: https://instagram.com/acurrucamecafe?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==

Yelp: https://yelp.to/vY0L3BTtRx

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