At Mocha Point Coffee on Historic St. Charles Main Street, visitors will find a unique daytime and late-night cafe experience anchored by centuries of Yemeni coffee culture and culinary traditions.
According to Ali Othman, who opened the cafe with his brother, Addel, in March 2024, Yemen is credited with the birth of the coffee industry, which began in remote Sufi monasteries over 500 years ago. “Yemen is the first country to produce the drink of coffee,” he explains. “The beans grew in Ethiopia naturally. The Yemenis took the bean and turned it into a drink, and that’s how coffee came to be.”
The brothers were born and raised in St. Louis and spent some time living in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, at a young age. “Aside from how we were inspired by our cultural influence, we’re very entrepreneurial minded,” Ali says. “What we saw is a gap in the market and we understood that being from the birthplace of coffee, we had something beautiful.” The Othmans’ concept gets its name from Mokha, or Mocha, a port city on the Red Sea coast of Yemen that once served as a principal port known for its coffee trade in Sanaa.
For starters, Ali recommends one of his personal favorites from the cafe menu: the Yemeni latte, which features vanilla, cinnamon, and cardamom with a touch of honey. Mocha Point Coffee’s signature Adeni chai, a traditional drink that has been perfected by the Othmans’ father, Ahmad, is made from a loose leaf black tea sourced from the Middle East. “The aroma and the taste of the balance between bitterness to sweetness is really good. It’s light as well.” Ali says. “It’s something most people have never experienced and most people come here just for that.”
The cafe offers two varieties of coffee beans sustainably sourced from the rich coffee-growing regions of Yemen: Ansi, known for a smooth profile with rich chocolate notes and Harazi with a vibrant acidity and fruity undertones. Additional beverage options include fruity refreshers and matcha available with rose, vanilla or mango.
For something sweet to eat with your drink, Ali recommends honeycomb bread, which the cafe has become well known for. He describes the sweet and savory traditional Yemeni pastry as a fluffy ball with cheese inside. Pistachio croissants are another fan favorite, along with a rotating variety of cheesecake slices in flavors such as tres leches and baklava.
Everything is on offer from daytime until the evening, when the space becomes more of a social gathering place – one steeped in generations of longstanding cultural traditions that provides a fresh experience for coffee lovers. “The market is very saturated and needs a new revolution,” Ali says. “We wanted to bring the utmost best espresso items and top of that show the Yemeni touch to people as well.”