Salvadoran coffee, the purple fad fruit ube and Cuban cheese rolls are all part of the thinking for Saints Coffee, a cafe under construction at 1726 Massachusetts Ave. near Porter Square in Cambridge.
Saints Coffee is a literal side project for Luis Morales Jr., who in the spring of 2023 opened Chivo Taqueria, a Mexican restaurant next door at 1728 Massachusetts Ave., and his wife, Sara. The cafe would operate independently.
They’re working toward launch before the end of the year in what was Smoke Shop Cambridge – one of three retailers within a two-block stretch for vapes, e-liquids and nicotine pouches – until a closing in July.
“Coffee shops are tricky. You have to have great coffee, great food, great pastries,” Luis Morales said – which is why he is excited to bring his own family’s award-winning coffee beans from El Salvador and focus on pour-overs, lattes and matcha. “My wife and I want to really show what our Latino roots are about,” he said. “There’s so much great coffee coming out of Central America, from Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, but there’s not really a lot of representation of El Salvador’s coffee.” He credited the roaster George Howell with being another promoter and importer of beans from the county.
The Moraleses also plan to make their own pastry, leading with Cuban-style rolls with cheese, cheese and guava and cinnamon – now being tested and perfected. “We are going to be competing with other coffee shops, and we want to bring an element that’s different,” Morales said. He’s also excited to set Saints apart by working with the Asian fruit ube (“very known in Los Angeles,” he said, but “something that hasn’t been brought to Cambridge yet” and still often confused with taro, another purple food).
There are cafes and coffee shops not far away, especially if Simon’s becomes the daytime operator within the former Dear Annie restaurant space at 1741 Massachusetts Ave. while its own building undergoes redevelopment. Simon’s closed Aug. 31 to make way for demolition and prepare for a slow move across the street; the Moraleses formed their Saints Coffee LLC on Aug. 17.
The property where Saints is being built is under the management of Rachna Balakrishna, who represents building owner Raj Dhanda and his Harvard Square Holdings LLC.
Despite fears that businesses along Massachusetts Avenue would be devastated by the loss of parking as bike lanes were installed, the area has several success stories, at least among sellers of food and drink. Among them: The Violette Bakery took over a bigger neighboring space in 2024, taking advantage of the closing of the Upper Crust pizzeria; Bagelsaurus acquired the storefront next door the same year, turning what was once Cambridge Clogs into a 500-square-foot expansion; the Black Ruby restaurant has packed in diners since opening in January 2025.
Chivo also expanded – adding a food truck this year that served at World Cup watch parties in Boston.
With the Page & Leaf Cafe not too far to the north at 1815 Massachusetts Ave., and a Pavement Coffeehouse not so far to the south at 1663 Massachusetts Ave., opening Saints is a vote of confidence in the area, Morales said.
“One thing that I’ve learned, three years in with Chivo, is that the local community is what drives support for small businesses. It’s what keeps us pushing through. People keep just coming,” Morales said. “There’s so much foot traffic of people exploring the Cambridge-Somerville line, and and I’m just grateful, 100 percent grateful from the bottom of my heart to the local community that literally brings mom, dad and the family every single day to the restaurant.”
“We want to bring that with the coffee shop as well,” Morales said.
