Left to right: Cà Phê Sữa in its classic form is made with sweetened condensed milk. Cà Phê Muối is usually a salted coffee, but this version kicks it up a notch with a salted caramel cold foam. Cà Phê Trứng is a strong brewed coffee with egg foam. Photos: Jeremy Lee Photography
Càphin serves up bold brews with a Vietnamese twist.
As second-generation Vietnamese Americans, husband-and-wife duo Savio and Jenny Nguyen grew up with a mix of modern Western culture infused with a deep appreciation for the Vietnamese traditions their parents brought with them to the United States. Among those traditions is the use of a phin, a Vietnamese coffee filter used to make delicious cups of robust coffee. They are now sharing that tradition with coffee lovers at their café, Càphin Minneapolis, at the intersection of 44th Street and France Avenue. “This is combining my love of coffee culture with flavors of my childhood. We are opening up our culture to people through flavors,” Savio says.
Càphin (pronounced like caffeine) Minneapolis opened in February 2024 with a built-in fan base thanks to regular appearances with its mobile café at the Midtown and Mill City farmers markets as well as several events over the previous year. There, they began introducing the public to the unique flavors of Vietnamese coffee, including the Cà Phê Sữa with sweetened condensed milk and the Cà Phê Trứng with whipped egg yolk mixture. “[Coffee and egg yolk] don’t feel like they should go together, but it’s not as scary as you think. It’s fun to see the surprise on people’s faces when they try it,” Savio says.
Latte art creates a cozy moment in a cup.
Enhancing the Local Coffee Culture
The Nguyens didn’t grow up with dreams of opening a coffee shop. “The idea started brewing—no pun intended—in 2021,” Savio says. He had long been a fan of the Twin Cities’ coffee culture, but it wasn’t until he and Jenny stumbled across a couple of Vietnamese-focused coffee shops in Seattle that they started to consider what they could contribute to their own local community. “It dawned on us that it was not niche but a growing trend. We saw a wave coming and jumped on it early,” he says.
The couple began selecting and perfecting their recipes, knowing that they wanted a mix of Vietnamese and American coffee options. “We really wanted to position ourselves as a coffee shop that happens to specialize in Vietnamese coffee,” he says. Then came time to dip their toes in the Minnesota marketplace. The Nguyens started small, investing in a trailer that they could easily sell if things didn’t work out. In 2023, they set up their mobile café at farmers markets and events around Minneapolis and started selling coffee, each cup featuring Vietnamese-grown robusta and arabica beans. Before long, they had amassed a following. “People were messaging us from places like Duluth and Waite Park to see if the trailer would be out before they started driving down. It was very validating,” Savio says.
But even with the validation, the duo didn’t immediately jump at the chance to set up a brick-and-mortar location. They waded through a full farmers market season and when a space at the border of Morningside and Linden Hills fell in their lap, they took the leap.
A Bold and Blended Menu
Càphin Minneapolis is designed to be a place where “tradition and innovation blend seamlessly,” according to its website. Not only will customers find Vietnamese and American specialties on the menu but also a selection of creative concoctions dreamt up by employees and customers alike. Savio says the most intriguing might be The Devon, which combines matcha, soda water and a pickled limeade. His personal favorite is the Cà Phê Lá Dứa, a specialty latte infused with house-made pandan syrup. “Pandan is a leaf extract that’s used a lot in Southeast Asian desserts,” he says, noting that they also offer the Ube Dream, a latte infused with the creamy flavor of the purple yam (ube), another dessert staple in Southeast Asia.
Step up your matcha game with Ube Matcha or Strawberry Matcha Latte.
“It’s a nice way to reconnect with our heritage, [and] highlight and give back to our parents,” Savio says. And what do their parents think? “These are people—our parents and other older Vietnamese—that are not afraid to say that something is bad. So, if you get a slight nod of approval, that’s good,” he says, proudly adding that they have received many of those nods, further validating their efforts.
That doesn’t mean they’re looking to create a coffee empire. “We’re pretty content with the one that we have here. We feel pretty lucky and don’t want to get caught up in the wave,” Savio says.
What they do plan to do is endeavor to make every visit to Càphin a memorable one for customers. “We want to continue to develop this café, fine tune the experience and give staff the creative freedom to develop their own drinks,” he says.
Càphin Minneapolis
4503 France Ave. S., Mpls.; 612.314.6124
Facebook: Càphin Mpls
Instagram: @caphinmpls
