Max Bruna was obsessed with the bright flavors and acidity of light roasts when he was getting his start in specialty coffee. After experimenting with roasts in his garage, he wanted to share that love with new customers at La Mulita, a coffee shop he and his wife Andrea opened in late 2019 in Rye.
“That sparked a lot of comments,” he said. “Not favorable ones,” Andrea clarified.
“But it was a great learning opportunity for me to not assume that what I like is what people are gonna like,” Max said.
Now, Max says that more customers are liking the light roast and its popularity is growing.
The Brunas have found ways to grow their business, especially during the pandemic. Since customers weren’t stopping by for their morning coffee on their way to work, they decided to start a free home delivery service within an hour’s driving radius of the shop. The bonus upside: it also doubled as practice hours for their sons to get their drivers’ license.
Since then, the coffee shop has “really become like a family gathering place, especially when there's special moments,” Andrea said.
For the couple, their shop brings childhood memories to the forefront. Max and Andrea often spent weekends in southern Antioquia in Colombia, watching mules coming up and down the mountains carrying burlap bags on their backs, helping farmers bring the coffee beans from the mountains to the city.
Mula means “mule” in Spanish, “so we decided to go with ita, a small mule, La Mulita,” Max said.
“Being able to bring a product from the country we grew up in and share it with the local community here in New England was a win-win because we're helping the farmers in Colombia where we grew up,” he said. “But now this is our home and we get to share with the community.”
