The community is excited about the new Mexican coffee shop, Pana’s Cafe, located in Bellflower.

The cafe opened on Nov. 1 2024, and during its opening weeks, Pana’s Cafe blew up on TikTok which attracted many customers.

The owner of Pana’s Cafe, Lizbeth Velasquez, said, “The first couple weeks we opened, we were consistent which our worry was, are we going to have enough customers, we’re new to the area, and what not. But it was pretty consistent and we had a lot of regulars starting to come.”

“Then we made a TikTok video on our holiday menu and it just blew up and went viral and we got slammed with people coming in. Which was such a blessing but at the same time, it was a learning curve for us because at that time we were only open for like two and a half weeks and it was a lot for us to take in and learn,” Velasquez said.

She added, “But I think through that process, we were able to adjust and find a flow that really worked for everyone in there.”

“The great part is we have an amazing team who really puts a lot of effort into everything they make and when we see those TikTok videos of people coming in, the girly pops, and all their cute videos and the recommendations, it really does make our day to know that we brightened up someone else’s day.”

Pana’s Cafe is named after Velasquez’s father whose nickname is Pana which means “close friend.” Velasquez said that their father didn’t know about the cafe being named after him until the opening week because they wanted it to be a surprise.

Velasquez shared, “When we were doing the taste testing for this and talking to the landlord about getting the location, our dad was actually very very sick. He was on his deathbed. It just strengthened the idea of, “we’re doing this in his honor and we’re truly sticking to our roots of what Pana’s cafe is.”

“So when we eventually told him, once he got a little better, he was so ecstatic about it. He tells everyone over there in Guadalajara. He’s like, “I have a coffee shop, I’m Panas, Pana Nice is trending and going viral,” Velasquez said.

When the opportunity presented itself to open up their cafe, Velasquez revealed they had minimal experience in the field.

She said, “This was a dream – ownership came through networking, we knew them and they offered it to us and we said sure, we’ll learn as we go.”

“You’ll never be an expert until you throw yourself into a field so I think that’s truly one of the American dreams. Our parents come here not knowing anything, not even knowing the language, and this is truly a testimony that you can succeed in anything if you truly put a passion and an idea into it,” Velasquez said.

The cafe’s menu includes specialty coffees, teas, non-coffee drinks, espressos and handmade pan dulce. According to Velasquez, the most popular drink on the regular menu is Pana’s latte and horchata latte.

The most popular drink on the holiday menu is the cookie butter latte.

“It feels great [to open our family-owned latina coffee shop]. I think, more importantly, it’s a staple to the community. And we’re able to bring those flavors and those cultures in and share it with other people who also have those cultures and those who want to experience that, who aren’t part of the Latino culture. So it’s nice to be able to share that within the community and bring that to life,” said Velasquez.