‘With every sip, it starts a story.’ Yemeni cafe to open second Sacramento location
A Yemeni coffee shop in Sacramento is expanding to a second location in the region.
Qisa Coffee is coming to Natomas in approximately two to three months, according to Abdul Aziz, the business’s owner. He said the coffee shop, at its core, seeks to bring different and unique flavors to the Sacramento area.
“I love Sacramento. I love my city,” Aziz said. “The goal is to revamp the Sacramento scene,” Aziz said. “There are a lot of coffee shops that are popping in Sacramento, and I wanted to bring back what I experienced throughout my childhood back in Pakistan.”
The cafe will open at 2121 Natomas Crossing Dr., at the North Natomas Place shopping center, according to the business’s social media. Its original location in Curtis Park is at 2348 Castro Way.
Qisa Coffee is more than just a coffee shop, Aziz said. The business is also a coffee roaster and serves desserts such as baklava and Turkish delights.
“Initially, I started considering that to be a Yemeni coffee shop, with a taste of Peshawar,” Aziz said. “But then I realized, the people liked the authenticity of the city where I am from.”
Qisa Coffee serves a range of specialty drinks, espresso, teas and lemonades. Some of the signature drinks on the menu include an iced pistachio latte, an iced Turkish coffee and an iced rose latte.
The Natomas Qisa Coffee will be an upgrade of the original Curtis Park location, Azia said. From cardamom, pink chai and savory sandwiches—the new location will embody all the “flavors of Peshawar.”
Aziz immigrated to Sacramento from Peshawar, Pakistan in 2015. When he reminisces about his childhood, Aziz thinks about sipping chai tea and lightly sweetened green tea with cardamom. When he came to the United States, he wanted to bring the drinks of his childhood to the region, especially after experiencing American coffee culture.
“I like the community vibe from coffee shops,” Aziz said. “Within the time that I had those visits to the coffee shops, it increased my thirst for coffee.”
Aziz began researching coffee beans and traveling across California. He opened Baklava and Coffee in 2024, a pop-up at the downtown farmers market. Qisa Coffee in Curtis Park opened that same year.
The cafe was inspired by the Qissa Khwani Bazaar, a centuries-old marketplace in Peshawar famous for being the epicenter of community storytelling, Aziz said. Qisa Coffee is named after the word “Qissa,” which is Arabic for story. Aziz said he wanted to replicate the bazaar’s culture with his business.
“Anyone who has a cup of coffee here, with every sip it starts a story,” Aziz said.
