State College’s Coffee, Hemp and Tea combines couple’s dreams, offers ‘community atmosphere’

In downtown State College, Coffee, Hemp and Tea combines owners Angel and Nia Rodriguez’s dreams, backgrounds and talents, and the result is a community-focused space offering authentic Puerto Rican eats and beverages made with fine attention to quality.

“It was always my dream to own a coffee shop,” Nia said. “When we were in Puerto Rico ... anywhere that I went, the coffee was just amazing. I came back to the States and ... there’s a huge difference.”

However, Angel was able to replicate Puerto Rico’s traditional café con leche at home, to what Nia called “delicious” results. She made a comment that they should open a store and sell the drink, he agreed and Coffee, Hemp and Tea followed, opening in April 2023. Now, that café con leche is the coffee shop’s top-selling drink. As Nia described, the drink is a mix of coffee and scorched milk (“scorched to the point that it’s sweet — not burnt — just lightly sweet,” she clarified), and lightly sweetened with brown sugar.

While this is the couple’s first foray into the food and beverage space, they are no strangers to running a business. Angel co-owns a hemp farm in Mill Hall, and the two moved to Centre County to open Nature’s Medicines, on North Atherton Street, in 2018. Nia also works as a plasmapheresis technician, but mentioned a prior role working in a coffee shop as one of the best jobs she’s ever had, enjoying the fun, low-pressure atmosphere and making people smile.

The Rodriguez family strives to make Coffee, Hemp and Tea stand out from the other coffee shops in State College in a few ways. They don’t rely on a drip system, but focus on pour-over coffee and espresso. They don’t use pre-ground beans, and order their beans from just three providers, one in Pittsburgh, one in State College and one in Puerto Rico. Each cup of coffee is made to order, and Nia makes most of the syrups and similar flavorings herself, from scratch.

“I try not to feed my family artificial flavors. I’m not saying I’m the healthiest in the world, but if I can take out preservatives, I do,” she said. “For example, if I’m making a strawberry syrup, I use a simple syrup base and fresh strawberries ... I try my best to do everything in-house.”

However, as mentioned, Coffee, Hemp and Tea is far more than just coffee. Hemp-infused drinks are also available, as are specialty and rare teas, and, more recently, Angel has used the business to channel one of his personal dreams as well, expanding it to offer food on select days.

“My husband always wanted to cook, and his dream was to own a restaurant,” Nia said. “Mine was to own a coffee shop. State College is a little expensive, so we couldn’t really afford to get a big place, so we found this cute little nook on Foster Avenue. It’s just big enough for the coffee shop, but my husband still said he would love to cook.”

Now, every Saturday, Coffee, Hemp and Tea offers a rotating, a la carte menu of Puerto Rican classics, including the best seller and crowd favorite, pernil, or Puerto Rican roasted pork shoulder; jerk chicken; and sides like collard greens or red beans and rice. Without fail, Nia said, they nearly always sell out. The success has inspired them to begin planning to open a food truck.

Throughout the last year, the Rodriguez family — three of the couple’s children work in the coffee shop, including Erin, Nico and Phoenyx — has drawn a corner of the community to Coffee, Hemp and Tea, thanks to the coffee shop’s personal focus and comfortable atmosphere.

“We’re not your average, come-get-your-coffee-and-leave (café),” Nia said. “We offer conversation. We offer advice. We offer a community atmosphere.”

As an example, she pointed to the recent Thanksgiving holiday, during which they invited those who didn’t travel away for the holiday to spend it at the café. They celebrated with about 30 community members, coming together and bringing food and fellowship.

“It was probably one of the best Thanksgivings I’ve ever had,” she said.

Coffee, Hemp and Tea is located at 313 W. Foster Ave. in State College. Keep up with Coffee, Hemp and Tea, on Facebook, or on Instagram, at www.instagram.com/coffeehempandtea.