Family-owned coffee shop to open in Merced, offering Arabic culture and coffee

A family owned specialty coffee shop focusing on Yemeni coffee and Arabic culture will be opening in Merced later this spring while simultaneously opening a location in Los Angeles.

Wahab Muheyaddin, 22, one of the men involved with Sahara Coffee House, along with his cousin and owner Hammam Ali, and also co-owner of Smash Bros Burgers, said the coffee house will focus on Yemeni and Arabic style coffee, which is known for its historical roots. Muheyaddin said the coffee house aims to offer high-quality Arabic coffee beans as well as a culturally immersive experience combining both Middle Eastern and American influences. From the decor to the music, Muheyaddin said patrons will feel like they walked into a whole different country somewhere in the desert.

“We’re trying to bring the Arabic culture, the vibe, the beverages, the food and have it influence with the American culture,” said Muheyaddin. “When you come into our coffee shop you’re going to feel like you’re not in America no more.” “We want to bring that feeling, we want to bring that image we want you to feel like you’re not even in Merced anymore.”

The coffee house will offer a variety of beverages including standard coffee and espresso drinks using Arabic coffee beans, various Arabic drinks, Arabic tees and Turkish coffee. The location will also offer a variety of Arabic desserts such as Dubai Chocolate, Arabic cakes and honeycomb bread which is bread filled with cream cheese and topped with honey.

Muheyaddin said they want to make the shop a good place for people to meet and have fun while enjoying good coffee and exploring different cultures. Muheyaddin, said he spent a month in Africaexploring the Sahara Desert and learning what he could about the culture and how the coffee is grown and brewed.

“I wanted to bring the actual feeling, actually how it feels to be in the desert — the Arabic feeling,” he said.

Muheyaddin said the decision to open the coffee houses came after one of his cousins visited Saudi Arabia for about six months to learn everything he could about coffee. After returning to the states, he told Muheyaddin and his other cousins he wanted to open a coffee shop.

The family has been working to open the coffee house since last October, with physical work at the Merced location having started around the beginning of April. Once flooring and plumbing work is completed, Muheyaddin said they will start working on the coffee house’s decor.

The coffee house, which will be located at 1459 Martin Luther King Jr. Way Suite 9, is expected to open sometime in mid-May or early June in the same plaza as the family’s burger business. Muheyaddin said that as of right now, the hours of operation have not been determined.

The Los Angeles location is expected to open May 1.

This story was originally published April 12, 2025 at 5:30 AM.