East Side’s New Destination: Where Life Begins With Haraz Coffee

Photos by Cherrie Hanson

A dream come true for Mehdi Hassan to open his own coffee shop, inspired by the joyful environment it cultivates.

In recent years, several Yemeni coffee shops, primarily based in Dearborn, Michigan, have regionally expanded operations into the Milwaukee area. Haraz MKE, located at 2900 N. Oakland Ave., is the first to be situated on the city’s East Side, opened recently in March at one of the busiest intersections in the neighborhood. Located just a couple of blocks away from the UW-Milwaukee campus, Haraz has quickly become a haven for college students to enjoy an authentic cultural coffee experience while getting work done.

Manager Mehdi Hassan recalls being a student at UW-Parkside, commuting to Kenosha from Franklin, struggling to find a suitable place to study and hang out late into the evening. “I never found a place, so I would always just go back home, but a lot of times after that 45-minute drive, man…I was tired. You were never ahead of the game.”

Approximately 30 Yemeni coffee shop chains now exist in the U.S., and Haraz has become one of the largest. Hassan resonated most with the Haraz business model because it is flexible with each area it caters to. “Every single location is family-owned,” he mentions. “It helps the customer find what they’re looking for.”

Hassan has been a coffee connoisseur since his youth. “I was sneaking Turkish coffee behind my parents’ backs,” he remembers. “It’s always been a dream of mine to open a coffee shop.”

Haraz pastries, tarts, cakes, savory pies, and edible chocolate cups, are all sourced from local bakeries.

Having previously worked in restaurants, Hassan aspired to work in coffee for the joyful environment it cultivates. Haraz is located in a modernized strip mall that also houses Cousins Subs and Buffalo Wild Wings. When the space became available, Hassan saw an opportunity to fulfill his dream of having a coffee shop open until midnight seven days a week.

“I wanted to cater to the East Side,” he explains. “The South Side already has some destinations, but on the East Side, most coffee shops close around six o’clock or so.”

The Haraz motto is “Life Begins With Haraz Coffee.” Hassan interprets that as Haraz striving to be the first destination one goes to grab coffee in the morning.

Customers can purchase varieties of Haraz signature coffee beans.

The shop’s interior is an authentic cultural experience decorated with Arabic calligraphy, mosaic tiling, and artificial plants. Around the corner from the counter is a mural of a Yemeni farmer in front of a mountainous landscape where the coffee beans are harvested.

Haraz coffee beans are imported directly from Yemen and are for sale by the bag. The shop uses medium roast coffee beans for its lattes. Dark roast beans are used for their Turkish coffee, which is served in a copper cup set.

The company’s name comes from the region in Yemen where most of their beans are sourced. The bold taste of Haraz coffee has attracted customers from quite a distance. “We’ve had people come from Lake Geneva, and places over thirty miles away,” Hassan attests.

According to Hassan, the Adeni, made with black tea, spices, and cream, is the most popular Haraz drink thus far.

The Qishir, which is coffee husks, ginger, and cinnamon, is also a favorite. “It’s the closest thing to a decaf,” Hassan mentions about the Qishir. “If you look into the coffee husk, it has a lot of health benefits.”

Traditional and specialty coffee and tea drinks are featured on the Haraz menu. A Sana’ani is black coffee spiced with cardamom. A Jubani is black coffee with cinnamon and ginger. The Saffron Latte is made with a double shot of espresso and honey. Matcha Lattes can be flavored with any syrup of one’s choice.

Hassan’s personal favorite, the Pistachio Latte, contains gourmet pistachio sauce and a spice blend unique to Haraz. Medium pots of coffee or tea serve four, while large pots serve six. Customers waiting for their drinks to be made can watch on a television screen to the right how Haraz crafts each of its alluring specialties.

Iced refreshers and frappes on the menu are ideal choices for the hot summer days to come. Refresher flavors include Strawberry Lemonade, Pomegranate, Dragon Fruit, Blush, Pink Coconut, and the Pineapple Mango Smoothie. Strawberry Dubai Cups, crafted from layers of fresh fruit, chocolate, and pistachio sauce, are another recent, revitalizing addition.

Haraz pastries, which include danishes, tarts, cakes, savory pies, and edible chocolate cups, are all sourced from local bakeries. The signature “Bee Bites” are cream cheese-filled bread pieces with a honey or syrup drizzle. “We keep customer favorites, but we always sneak in something new for people to come in and try,” Hassan notes. “People will come in late at night at like eleven o’clock, and will grab a couple of pastries.”

Hassan anticipates that while business might slow a bit over the summer due to school being out, the many festivals and community events happening weekly in Milwaukee will keep customers coming. “We’re looking into launching some new drinks sometime next month and bringing more and more people into our store,” he affirms.