Cáphê Roasters plans a second Philadelphia café

Cáphê Roasters, the Vietnamese-American café that opened in Philadelphia's Kensington neighbourhood in 2021, is opening a second location in South Philadelphia's Point Breeze in spring 2027. The new café takes over the ground floor of the Herringbone Lofts at 2501 Oakford Street, a site its founders call Cáphê Roasters South.

Thu Pham and Raymond John opened the original Kensington shop after three years of roasting out of MaKen Studios, a shared production space in the same neighbourhood. Pham, raised in Philadelphia's Olney section to Vietnamese parents, met John, a University of Pennsylvania graduate, while both worked in the city's food scene.

The new space measures 5,685 square feet with 80 to 90 seats, more than double the 2,345-square-foot original, which seats about 40. It will not house a roastery: beans will keep roasting in Kensington and travel south weekly, the arrangement that already supplies about 25 wholesale clients.

We're so excited to expand our offerings to South Philly.

A bigger room built for South Philly

Point Breeze and neighbouring Grays Ferry hold one of the city's largest Southeast Asian communities, and Pham says the move reflects that. "We're so excited to expand our offerings to South Philly," she said.

The South Philly café will open six days a week from 8am to 5pm at first, with plans to add a seventh day later. A larger kitchen and dining room will host public events and private buyouts, something the Kensington space cannot easily accommodate.

Design comes from CosciaMoos Architecture, led by Brittany Ewing and Telsa Love. Minh Tran becomes head chef for both sites, Phat Tang moves from Kensington to general manager, and Zoe DeLay takes charge of a new pastry programme.

From 300 pounds a week to a national following

Weekly roasted output has grown from roughly 300 pounds for about 25 wholesale clients to more than 1,000 pounds today, placing it among the roasters tracked by the Podium Index, with bags also shipped nationwide. The menu pairs specialty coffee with Vietnamese staples: egg coffee, matcha drinks, bánh mì made with Ba Le Bakery rolls, porridge and breakfast sandwiches.

Cáphê Roasters earned a James Beard Award nomination for Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program in 2025 and has featured on the New York Times' Best Restaurants in Philadelphia list since 2024. Pham and John are also developing a Vietnamese restaurant in the former Harrowgate Theatre, expected in late 2027.

No roastery is planned for the South Philly site, built in the shadow of record-price coffee swings that keep roasters like Pham watching their margins, and no funding details were disclosed. Pham says further locations are under consideration, though none is yet active beyond the two confirmed sites.