Since it opened in July, Cafe Tondo has quickly become a Los Angeles hotspot, offering conchas and coffee in the morning and drinks and dancing later in the day, beneath the glow of red neon lights. Co-founder Abraham Campillo owns another business in the neighborhood, the design company Mouthwash Studio, and had noticed local frustration at the lack of third spaces, despite the city’s “perfect weather,” he says. “Rather than complaining, we wanted to do something about it.”
Cafe Tondo is open most days from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., then until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. It hosts bolero night, jazz night, and DJs, with crowds partying on the sidewalk. Being open for 15 hours every day is logistically challenging, Campillo notes, but it’s essential for creating the kind of dynamic, welcoming community space that he wanted. The drinks at Cafe Tondo reflect that position, with just as much emphasis on coffee as on beer and wine. “It’s why you can still get a coffee at night at Tondo: We’re not just a bar and we’re not just a cafe,” Campillo explains. “We’re always both.”
Drawing on his Mexican upbringing, Campillo saw café de olla — a warmly spiced coffee drink — as an essential menu item. Unlike some café de olla recipes that call for dissolving piloncillo, an unrefined cane sugar with a richer flavor than regular brown sugar, in water with spices and then adding in coffee grounds, Cafe Tondo does not infuse the coffee grounds directly into the syrup, to decrease the risk of making the coffee taste burnt. “There’s some things about Mexican cuisine that you have to nail,” he says.
Campillo says he’s surprised by Cafe Tondo’s runaway success. To him, it’s a pleasant opportunity to highlight parts of Mexican cuisine that he loves. The café de olla, which he associates fondly with home, is “something we want to highlight more and give its moment.”
500 grams piloncillo (or 2 small cones, roughly chopped)
500 ml water
3 sticks Mexican cinnamon (canela)
6 whole cloves
2 whole star anise
6 allspice berries
Orange peel from 1 large orange (thick strips, no pith)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract (or ½ split vanilla bean)
1 tablespoon fresh ground coffee (optional for infusion)
Step 1: In a saucepan, combine piloncillo and water. Heat gently over medium heat until the piloncillo is fully dissolved, stirring occasionally.
Step 2: Add the cinnamon, cloves, star anise, allspice, and orange peel. Simmer on low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, uncovered, until reduced slightly and fragrant.
Step 3: Stir in the vanilla extract (or add the split vanilla bean). Let steep off the heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth. Discard the solids.
Step 4: Let cool and transfer to a clean bottle or squeeze container. Store in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Step 5: To serve, add 20 to 30 ml (1 to 1.5 ounces) syrup per 8-ounce cup of hot drip coffee. Stir well. Optionally garnish with a small orange peel twist or a dusting of cinnamon.
