The National Coffee Association found that 66% of Americans drink coffee daily. But where in the country can you get the best brew? Many may first think of Seattle, home to one of the most popular chains, Starbucks. Wallet Hub ranked Portland as the city with the best cup in its ranking last month.

But the city of Dearborn is challenging those opinions and fighting for the title “Coffee Capital of America”.  In Dearborn, drinking the beverage is a huge part of the culture.

Take it from Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud, who had this to say in the documentary short called “Dearborn: The Coffee Capital”: “We gather around coffee, we laugh around coffee, we share stories, pass down memories and build community.”

Dearborn is home to more than 45 coffee shops in its 24 square miles and could be considered the birthplace of a Yemeni coffee shop revolution. Brands like Qahwah House, Qamaria, and Haraz have been popping up across the country—and they all started in Dearborn.

With over 80 locations combined nationwide and more than 50 planned expansions within the next 6 months, Yemeni coffee shops are quickly expanding. The popularity has grown in a space that lacked a late-night, alcohol-free third space for people to gather.

What defines Yemeni coffee?

Yemeni coffee has an earthy flavor profile with notes of chocolate and dried fruit. Cardamom is often added to the coffee grounds to create blends such as ‘sana’ani’, Yemeni’s version of black coffee. Add milk or cream and you get ‘mufawar’.

Yemen is also where we get the term ‘mocha.’ While today the term refers to coffee and chocolate syrup, Mokha is a port city in Yemen which once served as a major hub for coffee exports.

With each new outlet opening shop owners are taking back the culture of coffee.

“Our slogan is: ‘discover coffee’s origin.’ And it’s almost like taking a road trip through Yemen,” said Qamaria founder Sanad Mashgri.

Dearborn has the largest Arab American community in the country. Yemeni residents are the second largest Middle Eastern population in the city, according to the 2020 census.

Yemeni history, global economy

Yemeni coffee shop owners are hoping to educate java enthusiasts about the region’s history with the bean. They say Yemeni monks were the first to brew coffee.

“At one point, 100 years ago, Yemeni coffee was the backbone of Yemen’s economy, and they exported coffee all over the world,” said Hamza Nasser, CEO and founder of Haraz.

“And since we started exploding with all these coffee shops, whether it’s Haraz, Qahwah house, you know Qamaria, you know Jabal, everyone, hand in hand, you know, we’re all working together to revive this economy in Yemen, bringing it back,” Nasser said.

Many cafes in Dearborn import their coffee directly from Yemen. Nasser says he does this to help end the cycle of poverty in his family’s home country. He says his company alone imports nearly three million dollar’s worth of raw beans each year.

“That $3 million you have over 500 families living out of it,” Nasser said. “I now big corporations here buy coffee for $1 a pound, you know, I wish that was the case for us, but we knew we had to pay a fair price to our farmers so they can have a better life, and not just, you know, surviving.”

Coffee culture

Shop owners are not only working to educate Metro Detroiters about the history of coffee. They are also sharing their culture around coffee.

In Dearborn, a cup of joe is more than just a drink to start your day. Coffee shops can stay open as late as midnight and have become a third space for residents. And for many in the area, coffee and community are synonymous.

“We don’t really have a lot of bars or places you know to drink alcohol in the city anymore, so I think coffee shops have really taken over,” said Ali Bakri. He is the owner of Bakri Coffee,  a shop that serves Yemeni coffee among other blends.

“We are a very diverse Muslim community, and I think for us, it’s kind of a good way to get out and mingle and talk and without, you know, committing what we say haram, in the sense of, you know, drinking alcohol or something like that,” Bakri said.

Hamza Nasser says coffee shops in Dearborn are new hotspots.

“A lot of women in our community, they didn’t have much options to go and hang out, you know. It was a lot of hookah shops and many people didn’t feel comfortable caught in in hookah shops,” Nasser said.

And Nasser says that the coffee shops have even become the perfect place to find love.

“There’s nothing much better than meeting your future spouse at a coffee shop. Because there’s a 100% chance of you meeting somebody that’s either they’re working or educated.  You’re not going to meet somebody drunk, you’re taking home like at a bar. So, we call coffee shops now ‘the halal bar,’” Nasser joked.

But, many Dearborn residents agree.

“They just come to sit and have a good time. And this is what coffee shops are offering for people just to come,” said resident Neda Albuabsi. She said she would sometimes come to a coffee shop and not even order a drink, but to meet up with friends.

Resident Ali Komeiha frequents Qahwah House during his workday, but he also enjoys being able to meet people from all walks of life at the shop.

“To meet new people and different cultures. This is good. This is healthy for this community,” Komeiha said.

Caffeine is a part of our daily routine. From that morning cup of Earl Grey to an evening espresso, days are stimulated by cups of coffee and tea. Over the past year, getting that fix is roasting your wallet.

At Detroit Sip, a coffee shop in the city’s Bagley Neighborhood, owner Jevona Fudge has lent out the space for a campaign kickoff event. She and two employees are working to keep everyone happy and caffeinated.

Fudge says business has been a little inconsistent.

“My God, it’s up and down, to be honest, just trying to find creative ways to bring people in,” Fudge said.

“Everybody loves coffee.”

The National Coffee Association says two thirds of American adults drink coffee at a clip of 3 cups per day.

Fudge, whose day job is as an assistant Macomb County prosecutor, says money is tight.

“I don’t really know I’m going to try to make it through the end of the year. I have a job that helps fund the dream, and I need to keep my employees happy,” Fudge said. “So really, just trying to do a balancing act.”

There’s a lot of that going around within metro Detroit’s coffee community, and the industry as a whole.

Craig Batory, owner of Craig’s Coffee in Detroit’s resurgent Chinatown neighborhood, feels that way. He says prices are up 25-50% over the past year.

“Yeah, I’ve had to raise prices a couple of times in the last year, and that’s just been sort of reflective on the rising cost of coffee,” Batory said. “And that’s not even talking about the tariffs, right?”

About those tariffs, the biggie for coffee drinkers is a Trump Administration levy on imports from Brazil. The South American country is the leading provider of coffee beans in the U.S.

Batory says he’s covered—for now.

“I still have inventory from Brazil, but when that runs out, we’ll have to either figure out a different sourcing option or set our prices accordingly, based on the cost of the coffee rising by 40% the last year and the 50% tariff,” Batory said.

“So you’re looking at potentially a 90% increase.”

Not just tariffs

Coffee prices were rising before the on-again-off-again tariffs.

Frank Lanzkron-Tamarazo moves about 60,000 pounds of beans each year through Chazzano Coffee Roasters in Berkley. He’s spent years developing relationships and sourcing his beans directly from farms.

“So the tariffs really aren’t the problem, and they’re only a temporary problem,” Lanzkron-Tamarazo said.

Turns out there are a bunch of factors that go into that cup o’ joe.

“There are not enough truck drivers, there are not enough workers in in warehouses. There are not enough people picking coffee beans, and there are not enough containers to put the coffee beans in,” Lanzkron-Tamarazo said.

That’s on top of changes to growing conditions due to climate change and changing political climates in coffee growing nations. At Chazzano, that’s translated into a $2-3 per pound increase.

Lanzkron-Tamarazzo says after 15 years in the business he’s used to the ups and downs.

“I lived through a time when coffee prices were unnaturally low, just maybe like three or four years ago, where it was so low that I was worried about the farmers, whether they’re doing well enough during that time, it was so incredibly low,” Lanzkron-Tamarazo said.

So while the tariffs aren’t the focus for rising coffee prices, Craig Batory says there is some concern about the levies changing the habits for coffee growers and importers.

“Tariffs have made certain countries sort of shift where they’re selling their coffee. So a lot of countries like Brazil might start shifting their sales from the United States to China, because a lot of Asian countries are starting to consume more coffee.”

Those Asian countries also consume a lot of tea—which has largely avoided the price increases.

Though there’s one big exception according to Jeff Urcheck, a Detroit-based importer of high-end teas for restaurants and coffee shops.

“The past few years have really skyrocketed matcha, in particular, into everybody’s social media algorithm because it’s been such a huge trending health and fitness focused product as an alternative to coffee,” Urcheck said.

Through his company, Hamtramck-based Noka Imports, Urcheck says the politics—even outside of tariffs—hurts his business.

“So it’s not really viable for us to deal with tea from China, because there hasn’t been an administration in the past like, well, frankly, during my entire lifetime, who’s been amenable to non-aggressive foreign policy when it comes to China,” Urcheck said.

Urcheck says America First attitudes don’t work for things that won’t grow in the U.S.

“If you’re having a bunch of inconsistent—and frankly maladaptive—trade agreements that are just there to be some kind of a bullying flex on a market that is increasingly reliant on globalization and global trade, you’re kind of putting yourself in a losing position,” Urcheck said.

“We can’t get or make a lot of stuff here. We don’t have the climate for it. We don’t have the natural resources for it. So we are we have to import a lot of stuff.”

So while the initial impact of seemingly arbitrary and constantly changing tariffs isn’t the biggest driving factor for prices it’s still having an impact.

“Smaller businesses, including the ones that I work with… just everybody’s been really kind of stalled and nervous about how these tariffs are going to affect the consumer demand, but also the longevity of their own businesses,” Urcheck said.

Getting creative

Even through this time of higher prices, there’s a thought that independent roasters and importers can provide something that chains like Dunkin’ and Starbucks cannot.

“I think that consumers are going to start being a lot more thoughtful about how they’re spending their money. So the focus right now is to provide a good quality bean, a good quality cup of coffee. And, you know, focus on what our messaging is like. We provide sustainable, traceable coffee, we roast it with care, and we want to make sure that our consumers are have something that’s enjoyable for them to drink,” Batory said.

At Chazzano, Frank Lanzkron-Tamarazo ships out coffee beans to every state in the nation. He feels like he’s threading the needle when it comes to prices.

“There’s an axiom that if you raise your prices and everyone complains, then it’s too high, and if you raise your prices and and no one complains, then it’s too low, and a couple people complain then it’s perfect. And unfortunately for the consumer, no one has complained.”

Back at Detroit Sip, that’s something Jevona Fudge has been thinking about even as she’s been hesitant to adapt to the current coffee market.

“I haven’t raised my prices really like I need to, because I have to balance my customer base and what’s happening in terms of inflation, the increased prices, the tariffs, hoping that they will reach some sense of normalcy before, you know, passing that cost on to the customer. So for right now, I’m eating it,” Fudge said.

Since the pandemic, consumers have been eating the cost of higher food prices too making this rise in coffee prices even tougher to swallow.