East Lansing location for Yemeni coffee franchise set to open
EAST LANSING — A Dearborn-based coffee house chain that specializes in Yemeni coffee drinks, pastries and desserts is poised to open its latest outlet on East Grand River Avenue, near Michigan State University's campus.
Haraz Coffee House, which has just over a dozen locations, will open a franchise in a 2,400-square-foot building on March 18. The storefront was previously home to Campus Corner, a retail store that carried MSU clothing and gifts.
Haraz is the second Yemeni coffee shop to open in East Lansing in the last six months. Moka & Co. opened in mid-December in a 2,700-square-foot space at 565 E. Grand River Ave.
Haraz has grown quickly since its first location opened three years ago, said Hamzah Nasser, the company's CEO. His family is originally from Yemen. Haraz Coffee House honors his heritage, Nasser said.
"I'm the third generation in America and so happy to be the first entrepreneur in the family," he said. "I really want to give back to, not only my community, but my ancestral home so this really drives me to do better and build something that will be a legacy one day to leave behind."
The franchise owner was a customer first
East Lansing franchise owner Dina Elhout, 37, became a loyal customer at the Dearborn location of Haraz Coffee House before she considered starting her own.
Elhout, a dentist, works near the coffee shop and instantly fell in love with Haraz Coffee House, despite not being a fan of coffee before visiting.
"I would actually go to pick up coffee for my husband on our way to work and then I could smell the place, how it smells," she said. "I mean, we've been to so many coffee shops, but this shop smells differently. The atmosphere, just the ambiance, is just different."
Once she tried the coffee, Elhout was hooked.
"I joked to my husband that I'm going to own this place one day and he would say, 'No you're not. You've got patients,'" and here we are," she said. "I just love it. I love it so much that I wanted my own. It brought me so much happiness."
Space near campus will cater to students, community
Nasser has wanted to expand the company to East Lansing since last year, even visiting the area to look for available spaces.
When he learned Campus Corner was closing last summer and the space would be available, it seemed like "a very nice coincidence."
Renovations at the property have been underway since August, he said. The interior includes "a green, ceramic tile wall to complement the MSU campus," Nasser said. And warm interior lighting throughout "to give the customers the perfect ambiance to sit and enjoy working and studying and socializing with family and friends."
Haraz Coffee House will offer a menu featuring traditional Yemeni coffee drinks, including Adeni, a drink that contains both tea and coffee, along with creations unique to the franchise, such as a pistachio latte and a Haraz latte, made with organic coffee and honey. Desserts on the menu will include milk cakes and pastries made at the company's bakery in Dearborn.
The coffee shop's dining room will seat 77 people, Elhout said. It's expected to employ about 15 people.
Learn more about the company at www.harazcoffeehouse.com or on Instagram at "harazcoffeehouse."
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Contact Reporter Rachel Greco at rgreco@lsj.com. Follow her on X @GrecoatLSJ .
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Haraz Coffee House to open East Lansing location this month
