Cypress Edition | August 2022

BUSINESS FEATURE Cafe ZunZun Coee roasters share passion for people, the planet C afe ZunZun is owned and oper- ated by Joel Castellanos along- side his wife, Pascale Petronin. According to Castellanos, the hum- mingbird was seen by ancient cultures of Central America as a god of life due to the life it brings through pollination. With the hummingbird in mind, they had their building designed to resem- ble the bird by a sustainability-driven builder from California. BY MIKAH BOYD

While they come from dierent parts of the world—Castellanos being Cuban and Petronin being French—they found both cultures share a culture of coee and community. “[If] you go to a Cuban community and you go into a house, the rst thing that [happens is] the people will give you coee without telling you anything,” Castellanos said. “You just go to the house, and they will prepare you a cup of coee and serve you a cup of coee. It’s paralleled in France; they have the same tradition.” After moving to the Houston area, Castellanos and Petronin found American fast-food restaurants and cafes limited people’s ability to socialize and enjoy coee and food. They also noticed a lack of environmentally friendly businesses in the area, which concerned the eco-friendly family. These observations encouraged them to make the changes they wanted to see in the community and go from selling their responsibly sourced coee at farmers markets in 2013 to opening Cafe ZunZun in 2021. “We want to set an example of sustainability in our community and lead the way in terms of what we would like to see more of, like reusable cups and less plastic straws and less waste,” Castellanos’ daugh- ter Mayra said. The family chose the name ZunZun to pay tribute to the endangered hummingbird species native to Cuba.

Joel Castellanos takes great pride in Cafe ZunZun’s focus on protecting the planet and helping the people he works with. (Photos by Mikah Boyd/Community Impact Newspaper)

Building on their goals of protect- ing the planet and putting people over prots, Castellanos said he carefully selects the sources of his coee beans. He visits producers personally to ensure the beans are produced without contributing to deforestation. He also works with small farmers in need of business and women-owned producers who are often overlooked or underpaid. “It’s another story about women because women, [they’re] usually a pillar of the community. They do the hardest work, but they don’t have the compensation,” Castellanos said. “So we decided, ‘OK, let me support women-owned farms, … because if we support them nancially, they will have a voice in the community.’” The culmination of these eorts can make running the business harder at times with producers having limited supplies. But Castellanos said he believes it is all worth it to make a dierence in the world and in the lives of those he works with and serves. “It makes me happy to see that we’re helping somebody that nobody knows on the other side of the planet, and at the same time we are also making people happy [right here],” Castellanos said. “For me, it’s a very good feeling.”

PROTECTING THE PLANET AND PRODUCING COFFEE Joel Castellanos and Pascale Petronin have a unique vision for the coee roasting company they own.

The cafe’s design was inspired by a Cuban hummingbird.

RESPONSIBLY SOURCED Castellanos ensures the coee he buys does not come from farmers who participate in deforestation. SUPPORTING WOMEN Cafe ZunZun makes an eort to support female producers, giving them the pay and recognition they deserve. ECOFRIENDLY The building was made with minimal waste and materials that were built to last. RECYCLABLE From reusable cups to paper straws and compostable packaging, Cafe ZunZun ensures its products are free of harmful materials. SMOKEFREE ROASTING Cafe ZunZun uses a Loring coee roaster, which is known for its minimal environmental impact.

Espresso-based beverages, coee and tea are on the menu.

Cafe ZunZun 12716 Telge Road, Cypress 281-914-4906 www.cafezunzun.com Hours: Tue.-Fri. 7 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Sat. 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Sun. 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., closed Mon.

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CYPRESS EDITION • AUGUST 2022