Alaïa Café, the very Instagrammable, very pink and sweet-tooth-friendly café has taken over the space that once belonged to Aroma Espresso Bar. It's Canadian, Indian and Arabic inspired, with elements being borrowed from all three cultures.
Alaïa is a women-owned business, all POC, and the three young entrepreneurs, Zaina Moussa and Rafaa and Radiyah Chapti are operating Alaïa pop-up style until May 2023. Although none of them have previous experience in the food and beverage business, they've always wanted to open up a coffee shop and when the opportunity came, they went for it. Zaina and Rafaa are also the minds behind Night Market Toronto and Run the World Summit so running and operating successful businesses is something they already have under their belts.
Zaina, Rafaa and Radiyah borrowed from their travel experience, especially in London and Dubai which are home to so many iPhone friendly aesthetic cafés. There is currently no pink café in the GTA, definitely not with a fully halal menu, so they're very excited to bring this space to Square One. They knew what they wanted for the design concept, and worked with an interior expert to bring the insides to life. Big butterflies hanging off the ceilings, fluffy pink clouds, neon signage, painted pink brick with gold accents, it's an Instagrammer's dream.
Their menu is just as fun with crowd hits like their karak chai, Spanish latte, rose oat latte and mint mojito cold brew (inspired by San Francisco Philz Coffee, although they've been told it's better) on permanent rotation. The rest of the menu follows a more seasonal style, including the Pink Unicorn Hot Chocolate (white hot cocoa with a pink hot chocolate that comes with edible sparkles and pink marshmallows). Their standard espresso is also excellent, the coffee beans are roasted locally, and after a painstaking sampling process, they are very confident it's some of the best coffee you'll find in Mississauga (their goal was for the flavours to be bold and free of acidity).
If you're feeling peckish, the rainbow bagels are a hit with the Instagrammers. If you want something both visual and sweet, opt for the unicorn doughnuts which come sitting in a bed of cotton candy. All their doughnuts are made fresh-to-order. Other goodies include freshly baked chocolate croissants, plain croissants, danishes, macarons and a recent collaboration with Cinnabon has brought in cheesecake and chocolate mousse cake.
They're going to go hard for the holiday season with a new menu, new décor, and possibly even a fairytale Christmas tree Instagrammable set-up on their patio, follow their Instagram for updates. You can also rent their space Sunday evenings for private events, shoot them a DM or email to confirm. Is it worth making a pink pilgrimage to Mississauga? For pink life aesthetic subscribers, absolutely.
