Yemeni coffee chain, birria taco spot approved for vacant Centereach plaza

A Yemeni coffee chain and a birria taco spot are set to move into a long-vacant commercial building on Middle Country Road in Centereach.

The Brookhaven Town Board has signed off on a façade change and site improvements to get construction underway at 1702 Middle Country Road, the former home of Saigon Casa and Blu Bar, town Councilman Neil Manzella confirmed.

“The once double vacant site where Blu Bar was will officially begin to see work being done on the site, following the approval of a façade change and site improvements at our most recent Town Board meeting,” Manzella shared on Facebook.

“I am hoping the community is as excited as I am to see vacant buildings getting filled, and to see eyesores in our community receive the facelift they deserve,” he added.

The two incoming tenants are Qahwah House, a Yemeni coffee chain with more than 30 locations nationwide, and Talkin’ Tacos, a fast-casual Mexican concept that got its start as a South Florida food truck.

Qahwah‘s founder, Ibrahim Alhasbani, launched the first location in the Detroit suburb, Dearborn, shortly after immigrating to the U.S.

The name itself is a nod to the drink’s origins — qahwah is the Arabic word for coffee, and Yemen is widely regarded as the birthplace of coffee culture, the Cornell Daily Sun reported last month.

The chain says it sources its 100% organic Arabica beans directly from family farms in Yemen, where coffee cultivation dates back eight generations, and roasts them in small batches in the United States.

The menu features traditional and specialty coffee drinks — many spiced with cardamom and ginger — alongside pastries and Yemeni desserts.

Qahwah House is part of a broader wave of Yemeni coffee chains that originated in the Arab-populated Detroit area and have rapidly spread across the country, often taking root where there are significant Middle Eastern and Muslim communities.

The brand has become a go-to “third space” (a social gathering place outside of home, work and school) for customers seeking a welcoming late-night destination that doesn’t revolve around drinking alcohol.

Birria with a fast-casual twist

Talkin’ Tacos was conceived by two South Florida childhood friends, Mo and Omar. It launched as a food truck in Miami during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

Talkin’ Tacos has since expanded to brick-and-mortar fast-casual restaurants across several states.

The menu is anchored by the chain’s signature 12-hour braised beef birria and includes such inventive dishes as birria ramen, birria pizza, southwest chicken tacos and street corn in a cup.

Desserts such as dulce de leche churros are also served, as well as homemade specialty beverages. The chain says it serves authentic halal Mexican food and markets itself as the home of the birria taco.

The Centereach location would join an existing New York City outpost and a growing roster of locations stretching up the East Coast and into Texas.

Manzella first publicly floated the possibility of new tenants for the site back in November, when he described the proposed coffee shop as “a unique place I’ve never seen before with a new concept that is apparently a big deal.”

_{Top: Existing Qahwah House and Talkin’ Tacos storefronts (Facebook).}