What do you get when you mix phở, a Vietnamese noodle soup, with shots of espresso? For Chloé Cà Phê co-owner Charley Phung, it’s more than just a unique flavor combination — it’s an opportunity to share his culture and prove that businesses like his can thrive in Sacramento’s competitive coffee scene.
Phung said the phở-inspired americano, which infuses traditional spices with espresso shots, incorporates Vietnamese flavors in innovative ways, while still being approachable. He explained that the process involves toasting cinnamon over an open flame, charring it and letting it simmer in simple syrup so that the spices are infused.
“We take a shot of that and put it into our shot of espresso and we make it an americano,” he said. “It highlights a lot of what the coffee drink should be.”
Chloé Cà Phê March 25, 2025, at 2521 Jazz Alley in Sacramento.(Gerardo Zavala/CapRadio)
Phung said the phở-inspired cocktails or lattes can be found worldwide, but his is unique because it’s served as an americano rather than a latte. He said that’s because cardamom doesn’t pair well with milk.
“We collaborated with bartenders in Vietnam to experiment with different ways of charring cardamom and cinnamon until we found a profile that sang,” he added.
He said this drink is special to him because he grew up somewhere with few Asian people and virtually no restaurants serving phở.
“So now, wherever I go, I carry my culture with me,” he said.
Although it's not located in Little Saigon, Phung's shop, which he started with his wife, Crystal, still has its roots there. In the 1980s, Crystal's family owned Café Chiều Tím, a coffee shop that provided a gathering space for their community. The family, however, decided to close the shop when Crystal was born because coffee shops at the time were often smoke-filled, and her parents wanted a healthier environment for her.
Phung argued that although it would've made sense to open his shop in Little Saigon, placing it in Midtown allowed him and his wife to introduce Vietnamese culture to a wider audience.
“There's nothing wrong with South Sac,” he said. “But if the home of specialty coffee culture is in Midtown, we belong in Midtown. We're doing this because we want to show our people that, if you get lost along the way to finding your way home to Vietnam or your culture, I'm here for you.”
Phung said he is setting his shop — named after his daughter — apart by sourcing his coffee directly from Vietnam and by attracting the city's car community. A 1971 911 Porsche was parked in the shop during the grand opening and the week that followed.
Charley Phung leans on a 1971 911 Porsche Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at Chloé Cà Phê in Sacramento.(Gerardo Zavala/CapRadio)
“There will be another car in here — it might be a Porsche or no,” he said, noting that they plan on rotating cars. “Oftentimes, because of my relationship with the brand, it will be.”
Phung worked in the automotive industry for companies like Audi and Porsche. He said he still works closely with Porsche Vietnam as a brand strategy and equity consultant.
Serge Demchuk visited the shop after hearing about it through social media. He follows Sacramento's car scene and saw the custom Porsche parked in the shop, so he decided to check it out.
“There's a similar one called Fast Cat in Carmichael,” he said. “They're also car-themed, like vintage racing themed. It's a lot smaller than this one and they have good coffee too, but this is more focused on the coffee itself less than the syrups.”
Demchuk is a computer science student at Sacramento State. He spent three hours studying at the shop and recommended it as a good place to study for other students.
“The cars and coffee combination without having to wake up on a Saturday morning is really nice,” he said, noting that car meets tend to happen then. “This is accessible without having to wake up super early on a Saturday morning.”
Similarly, Melody Saephan saw social media posts about the car-themed shop.
“We got influenced just to come and see this cafe and to look at the car that's in the cafe,” she said. “It's basically just a cafe and cars concept, but we thought it was pretty cool. The concept of bringing cars out is unique because we don’t really have any concepts like that in Sac.”
Saephan also liked that the shop is Asian-owned.
“It’s just pretty cool to see another up-and-coming Asian cafe that’s brought into Sac,” she added.
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