Tierra Mia Coffee Expanding to Uptown Oakland

Tierra Mia Coffee, the L.A.-based coffee juggernaut that opened its first NorCal location in Bernal Heights a few months back, is ready for its next act in the East Bay. Founder Ulysses Romero has secured a second Bay Area location for the mini-chain on the ground floor of Uptown Oakland's former I. Magnin department store, which most recently housed Café Madrid. The 1,900-square-foot space, which features soaring 25-foot ceilings, should seat around 40 people, with a mix of table and couch seating.

Like the Bernal location, Tierra Mia will primarily offer coffee drinks with a Latin twist, like horchata lattes and Mexican chocolate mochas. The company currently roasts its own coffee in L.A. and sends it up to the Bay Area, but Romero says Tierra Mia's expanding presence here may merit a new roastery: "Oakland is the main port for coffee importing on the West Coast, so it would be a perfect place to roast," says Romero, who envisions a roastery that could double as a warehouse for the company's green beans on their way to L.A. Romero uses Patisserie Philippe as his pastry provider in SF, but says he'll find an East Bay-based baker (still TBD) to provide treats to the Oakland location. Tierra Mia's lease starts in December, and Romero expects to open sometime in January.

· Tierra Mia, Now Perking Up Bernal [~ ESF ~]
· L.A.'s Tierra Mia Coffee Headed to Bernal [~ ESF ~]