Creating Community Through Coffee at Café Modesto
Ediz Monzon has been serving Guatemalan coffee to the Rhode Island community for three years now from his coffee truck, Café Modesto. If you’ve ever strolled along the pedestrian bridge in downtown Providence between 9 am and 5 pm, you’ve probably seen his silver and blue truck parked on South Water Street.
It all started during the pandemic when Ediz and his wife, Isabel Alvarado, were both longing for the high-quality coffee from their home country of Guatemala, and wanted to bring authentic-tasting coffees to Rhode Island to share with others. Since then, they have created a culture of community, which is one of Ediz’s favorite parts of owning the business. It is a family-run business, but it is mainly Ediz who works at the truck, sometimes with the help of their son. Many regulars stop by weekly, not just for the delicious coffee but also for the conversation. Ediz greets every customer with a warm smile and a “How are you?,” always ready to listen attentively to the response. He says that he often sees the same people and knows many of them by name.
Café Modesto sources all their coffee beans from a women-owned Guatemalan coffee business called Chica Bean. They purposely chose Chica Bean as their producers to support the women and small communities in Guatemala. Chica Bean is committed to producing fresh, coffee in an ethical way, ensuring that the beans are cultivated in ideal conditions. The various blends at Café Modesto come from different regions of Guatemala, each producing a unique and specific flavor. With an abundance of drink options, the “Big Brother” is usually the most popular. This drink is a double shot of espresso mixed with sweetened condensed milk, and topped off with more hot coffee. The condensed milk gives it the perfect balance of sweetness without being overly sweet in the way that flavor syrups can sometimes be.
Ediz updates Café Modesto’s whereabouts on Instagram @cafemodestoprovidence. You can usually find him on South Water Street or at various city events if you want to stop by and have a coffee.
