The Best of Artisan Microbrewing, Plus a Show! Mostra Coffee
Written By: Allie Moreno Mostra Coffee
If you are just passing through North County, in the Carmel Mountain area, you won’t see any welcome signs or storefronts in any of the local shopping centers. Tucked away in an industrial park behind a Home Depot is where you’ll find Mostra Coffee. Mostra Coffee
Best friends, Beverly Magtanong and Jelynn Sophia had wanted to open a coffee shop in an area that seemed to lack locally owned options for coffee. Mike Arquines, Sam Magtanong, and RJ Ocubillo joined them in the founding of Mostra in 2013. In the early days, they had started by roasting their own beans and found that it took off into a more wholesale approach. They sold their coffee to local breweries like Alesmith and Karl Strauss who then used the coffee to make craft beers. This partnership with the local craft beer scene is where they found a niche. More and more breweries wanted in and even led one home brewer that used Mostra coffee to win a contest through Stone Brewing. The winning brew, Xocoveza Mocha Stout was so popular in 2014 that it was quickly re-released.
Mostra Coffee can be found in local restaurants like Cork & Craft (the head chef happens to be married to Jelynn) and Tender Greens. As Mostra grew in popularity, crowds began to show up at their small production facility in Carmel Mountain. The team realized that they had to do something and so one day they decided to allow customers into the facility and purchase coffee by the cup. Mostra Coffee continues this by holding retail hours only on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. But there, you can watch a staff member take a torch to your creme brulee latte or mix your cold brew with some homemade Horchata.
The word “Mostra” itself is Italian for a show or performance, a nod to Beverly and Jelynn’s creative backgrounds in opera and acting. Someone is always there with a warm welcome, as if you’re an old friend who just walked into their home. They take their craft seriously, knowing that coffee is a lifeline to so many in the community. If you’re already a fan, you’ll be happy to know that there are some exciting plans ahead—there may be more days open to the public and some form of expansion coming soon.
Mostra Coffee
12225 World Trade Drive Ste G
San Diego, CA 92128
858.304.0061
