Bonito is not your average coffee shop. This queer and Latinx-owned gem on the corner of Melrose and East Olive Way is becoming a vibrant haven of culture, community, and delicious coffee. Open for less than a month, Bonito has already become a beloved fixture at the gateway to Capitol Hill, drawing in visitors from all over with its infectious energy and warm hospitality.
Bonito is more than a coffee shop – it’s a gathering place and a celebration of culture. Whether you’re a longtime resident or just visiting, Bonito is a must-visit. Come for the coffee, stay for the conversation, and leave with a full heart.
In the following interview, owners Daniel and Ismael Calderon open up about their journey, the inspiration behind Bonito, and what visitors can expect. With their infectious enthusiasm, it’s clear Bonito is here to stay.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Where is Bonito located?
Bonito is located on the corner of Melrose and East Olive Way, on your way into Capitol Hill. Bonito has been open for less than a month, and honestly been beautiful. We’ve had so many people come out be very supportive.
What is your journey as entrepreneurs?
Ismael: We’re both photographers, so we have our photography business, we’ve been doing that. I was working a 9-to-5 in corporate program management, and now I’m 100% focused on Bonito and our businesses.
Daniel: Before, I was also in corporate, an executive assistant for our finance department, and then I will be 100% in Bonito in just a few weeks.
We started off with Aqui Mercado, a monthly Latinx and queer-focused market. We started a year and a half ago, monthly, and we kind of grew from there. Everyone kept wanting more and more markets, and so we decided, “why not make a place where you can experience ‘El Mercadito’ and grab coffee with the community and hang out” – so that’s kind of where Bonito was born.
What do you serve at Bonito?
Daniel: The cliche answer we could give what we’re serving at Bonito is culture. But I think it’s a lot of familiarity. There’s a lot of familiar flavors that we grew up with. A lot of familiar ponduce that we knew growing up.
Ismael: One of our favorites is we actually have café de olla, but it’s our interpretation of Café de Olla.We take a really beautiful single origin coffee, and we add a café de olla syrup. And we can make that in lattes, add that to cold brew, and it is fantastic.
What was the impetus behind starting Aqui Mercado, and how did it evolve into a coffee shop?
When we started Aqui Mercado, we had lived here for six years, and we had seen a really beautiful Latinx culture, and we just wanted to contribute to that. Our big mission was just to kind of bring something interesting to Seattle proper. We’d grown up in our small hometowns where it was easy to just go down the street and get pan dulce, and we hadn’t really experienced that here.
So in looking around Seattle, we’re like, “let’s host Aqui Mercado, and let’s really put our queer identities on in front, let’s put our Latino identities in front, and let’s see what beauty comes out of it”. And it blossomed. Every month, it just got bigger and bigger.
At our last Mercado, we had about 3,200 attendees! The community is really excited to come and celebrate culture once a month, but now they get to celebrate that every day at Bonito.
How did you find this space – it’s kid of iconic, and the gateway to Capitol Hill.
Daniel: The space was abandoned for some time, and we lived down the street, and we walked by often. We were on our way out of town to go to Mexico to visit some of Ismale’s family, and we agreed that if the space was still available when we got back, we would move forward/
Lo and behold, it was available, and we felt like the universe was speaking to us and we had to jump in. We were surprised at how long it had been abandoned, how graffitied it was and dirty. And I don’t know, we saw a lot of beauty in the space that just needed a good little nudge in the right direction.
It’s not your traditional cafe space.The music is loud, the area is very lively. We wanted to create a cafe where you could be productive, but also meet people and create organif connections with your community.
Ismael: El Mercadito pays homage to Aqui Mercado. All of the vendors that are here are all vendors that have done Aqui Mercado since we’ve started. They took a chance on us when we started super small. This is like a thank you to them for believing in us and having them here is really special.
We have a grab-and-go station with Rojo’s Mexican Food from Pioneer Square. Our baked goods are from Pan de la Selva. It’s super important to us to keep it local, and keep it within our community.
Our goal is to bring good energy and bring all of these things into one space where you can support local, have good coffee.I think one of the most important things for us was just the intention behind everything. Everyone who’s been with us along this journey has also put really good intention into their own communities, into their own passions. That is what we want to be surrounded with.
What should a first-time customer expect when they come in?
The one thing you’re going to notice when you walk in is that the music’s loud, it’s very vibrant, we have Spanish music playing. We have a very loud environment, people are having loud conversations. It should feel welcoming!
Horchata is a big staple in our upbringing, so we put a spin on it and made a horchata chai that has been extremely popular. Our cafe de olla has also been really popular. We have a Mexican Coke with espresso – that’s not something you typically see in Capitol Hill
Some of our menu items are 100% in Spanish. We want to take this opportunity to teach. All of our team and us are ready to teach people the flavors, give the opportunity to learn something different.
We want to give customers an experience that is more than “what can I get you today?”. You can expect us to pay you a compliment. We’re noticing that putting that energy out there is attracting people who have a willingness to engage and a willingness to connect. And it’s been beautiful.
What are you proud of as new small business owners?
One of the things we’re most proud of is seeing how there is no limit to how far your community can grow. When you are a small business owner, there is that uncertainty – are people going to like it? Are people going to come? What if someone doesn’t like it? Those are all things that I think are common in opening a small business. Because WE love it, but now we have to sell it to someone else.
I think it’s been really beautiful to see so many people come out, and from all over to experience Bonito. It’s only our first month, but we’ve had people from Portland, Eastern Washington, and Canada. Everyone is just so excited to see a space that’s authentically Latino, authentically queer, all under one. People are always excited when they come through the door.
Tell me about the photo booth!
So being photographers first, we knew we wanted a photo booth in the space. We see it as an extension for creating a memory while you are here. You can experience something really beautiful with someone you love while you’re here – get it in the photo booth. Everyone has been loving it. We’ve tweaked the lighting and a customer told us that the lighting was really friendly to people of color. It was awesome to hear that.
What are some of your favorite businesses around town?
Obviously everyone that is incorporated with us here – Rojo’s Mexican Food, Pan de la Selva.
Jose at Bad Chancla has been really good to us, and our neighbors next door at Donna’s. We are on such a cool corner because there’s a very trendy bar that opens at night. We complement each other very well.
We go to La Cocina Oaxaqueña a lot after work. We love the watermelon margarita at La Josie’s.
The community, especially in Capitol Hill, has been so excited to welcome new businesses. A lot of business owners have come and introduced themselves and shared best wishes, which has been really cool to see. It’s awesome. It eases the nerves a little bit!