“Dame un Break” by Rawayana fills the room as it plays through the speakers during rush hour at Amara Chocolate and Coffee. Families and friends sit at the tables, either waiting for their food or eating. There’s a warm and familiar feeling as soon as you enter the coffee shop.
Mike Aqleh, a regular customer, scrolls through his phone while he takes a sip from his Hot Aztec Mocha Latte, Amara’s own espresso with 70% dark chocolate and Chile Pasilla Cocoa, which is his usual order.
“I actually come here almost every Sunday. They know me, they know my drink,” Aqleh said. “They’re very nice, they’re all very friendly.”
Amara Chocolate and Coffee opened its doors to the public in March 2013. The idea started in Caracas, Venezuela, by Amara Barroeta, now co-owner with her husband.
Around 2010, in Venezuela, there was a strong trend towards reviving Venezuelan traditional flavors while elevating them, creating fusions between cultures through gastronomy. According to Barroeta, this created an innovation in the culinary world in Venezuela.
Barroeta grew up in Los Teques, Miranda, a small mountainous town close to Caracas. A few years after finishing her studies in food chemical engineering at Universidad Metropolitana in Caracas, Barroeta decided to pursue a Marketing certificate at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Barroeta said her goal was to go back to Venezuela and start her business there, but due to the sociopolitical events happening in Venezuela, Barroeta and her husband decided to stay in the United States.
“I saw in Los Angeles, and in Pasadena specifically, the opportunity to put up my business,” Barroeta said. “I began to see there was a great opportunity to do that here, it would have a bigger [cultural] impact.”
Barroeta said she was not aware of places that would sell Venezuelan food, and recognized that there was a need for the Venezuelan community in Southern California to have a space where they could connect with their culture through food.
For Valeria Cordero, Amara fills that space. Cordero came to the United States to pursue her college career and ended up moving to California soon after graduation. After being here for 18 years, Cordero has found a tight Venezuelan community in Los Angeles.
When she first came here, Cordero explained that there were not many Venezuelans, but the community has been slowly growing as the years passed, and Venezuelan migrants look for new places to establish themselves.
Cordero said she visits Amara Chocolate and Coffee quite often. For Cordero, all menu items are delicious, especially the arepas and the cachapas.
“I like the surroundings a lot. I like the attention. But the food is what is most delicious,” Cordero said. “Even the food that isn’t Venezuelan… Their food isn’t Venezuelan in theory, but it has Venezuelan sazón.”
The quality of service and attention to the client are important to Barroela, since she believes that there are a lot of good coffee places in Los Angeles. Barroeta said Venezuelans pride themselves on being attentive, which is why Barroela said it is important to personalize the customer experience, distinguishing itself and representing Venezuelan culture and traditions.
“Even though sometimes we may be very busy and we don’t have the opportunity of spending that much time with the customers, when people frequent our place, generally we like to, you know, get to know their names, if they close by… we try to make a connection with them,” Barroeta said.
Barroela said she aims to closely reflect not only Venezuelan culture but Venezuelan values, too.
“The different kinds of cultural food they have, and, you know, the specialties and the things that you can only really find here. I mean, nowhere else you can really go and find this stuff they make here,” Aqleh said.
For customers like Aqleh, a Pasadena local with no ties to Venezuela, Amara Chocolate and Coffee has become a place of comfort and routine. If you’re interested in visiting Amara Chocolate and Coffee, they are located at 55 S Raymond Avenue in Old Pasadena, CA.