Meet Miel & Curtis Herrera

Today we’d like to introduce you to Miel & Curtis Herrera. Them and their team share their story with us below:

We opened Café Corazón in the Fall of 2019. For years we had discussed the need to give the coffee bean a voice. Coffee shops vary rarely give any credence to the places in the world in which coffee and yerba mate is grown. We formed a plan to create a coffee house where the flavors and ingredients of the drinks mirrored the cultures where the coffee is grown. Also, to introduce Kansas City to Yerba Mate. Our cultures are what really inspired us to take raise our hands and say, “Hey, this bean, this yerba has a culture connected to it. And it’s our culture. It’s a rich and beautiful variation of cultures that stem from Spain to all of Latin America. Miel is a first-generation American whose father hails from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Curtis’ grandparents come from Guadalajara, Mexico on one side and Mesclero Apache from New Mexico on the other. We created a drink menu inspired from our upbringings, gatherings, and the spriit of our family and friends. Today, Café Corazón has the first location on Westport Road and we are in the process of opening the second location in the Crossroads.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road at all. To start with, we spent one and a half years looking for a place to rent. Our business plan was air-tight, we had our life savings in hand and we dealt with systemic racism the whole way. Of the 12 previous locations that we looked at and wanted to lease before we found the Westport location, the door was shut in our face in every place but the last. Once we said “Latin Coffee House”, we were told that they weren’t interested, or more often simply not called back. We were so eager and it really hurt. After growing up in New Mexico, it was a real slap in the face for me to see how racist the Midwest can be to people of color. Where Miel comes from, Latinos are the majority and she had never faced that sort of disrespect. Curtis wasn’t as surprised after growing up in Western Kansas but was equally heart sick. Finally though, we met our current landlord and 12 was the charm, as he liked our concept and was a huge cheerleader in helping us to open.

The second challenge, we opened just six months before COVID-19 really hit KC. We closed for two months to quarantine and tried to figure out how to proceed as a new business during the pandemic and luckily when we re-opened our neighbors and KC in general really stepped up to support small businesses like ours.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
We are very proud of our drinks, our community connections, and our ability to be a safe space for people of color and also to be a space where ALL people can come in and connect to the vibe, flavors, and beauty of Latin coffee and yerba mate. We strive to take our experiences, our world and make them more accessible to anyone who is interested. In some way, we are striving to make KC more diverse, more inclusive and more colorful. It is a lovely city and we are so proud to be part of it. Previously Miel studied Flamenco dance in New Mexico and Spain and had flamenco companies and dance schools in both Taos and KC. She currently puts her creative energy into the Cafe’s drinks and vibe. Curtis had a building company for years and built many beautiful homes. He even built us a beautiful adobe home in New Mexico. He continues to be the creative force behind the design of the shop and hand makes all the tables from reclaimed woods and metals.

So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters to us most is that we are all operating from the same playing field. Our hope is that through diversity and love that we can all acknowledge each other and mix and co-exist. Hence, Café Corazón. Corazón means heart and we want the warmth of our upbringings to help to make KC and even more an awesome place. We hope that a little of that road can be traveled well-caffeinated with Latin Coffee and Yerba Mate.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.cafecorazonkc.com
• Instagram: @cafecorazonkc
• Facebook: cafecorazonkc

Image Credits
All food phots by Anna Petrow Mural photo by Itzel Sanchéz pic of Curtis and Miel by Megan Engels