Sundays Cà Phê
(suhn-dayz kah-fey)
I’m a Vietnamese American woman who was born and raised in the Twin Cities. I remember craving cà phê sữa đá, only to find myself at a coffee shop chain ordering a concoction of cold brew with white chocolate – which is not even close to a cup of a rich and bold iced Vietnamese coffee with sweetened condensed milk. This was more than 10 years ago. Today, cà phê sữa đá is still scarce in the coffee shop scene. My goal with Sundays Cà Phê is to share my ideal cup of cà phê sữa đá with coffee lovers in the Twin Cities and more importantly, shine a spotlight on Vietnamese-grown coffee.
— Erica Dao, owner
Why Sundays?
My dad introduced me to phin-brewed coffee at a young age and I’ve been hooked ever since. He left Vietnam by hopping on a random helicopter as American troops were evacuating the country during the fall of Saigon April 30, 1975. He left his entire family behind with no time to say goodbye with all the chaos. Fast forward to after he married my mom and had me here in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As a way to stay connected with his friends who all experienced diaspora and to basically just relax, he would meet them for coffee every Sunday. And this is what inspired the name of my pop-up.