By Issa A. Mansaray
The welcome sign at Midway Rendezvous Coffee reads, "Coffee of the day – Sidamo Ethiopian Coffee.” The customers sitting around the small circular table are from Somalia, Ethiopia, and Eritrea.
As they sipped their tea from porcelain and glass cups, they talked about the latest news from their countries. African businesses in St. Paul are mostly family oriented, but open to everybody.
"This is a good place to talk to friends and families. Many don't want to forget
 |
| Amare Alemu at Piazza Market |
Opened in November 2005 by Ethiopian Darwit Jida and his wife Senait Kifle, Rendezvous, on 518 North Snelling Ave. encourages its customers to stay for a cup of coffee or more. As the name implies, Rendezvous is a meeting place for people from different countries. Africans as well as non-Africans add to the list of frequent customers.
"I like here. It is just nice," said Macy Salzberger, a student from
Central High School. "It is located next door to my drum lessons. I
come here every Thursday for about three years." Salzberger, 15, said
she enjoys the Ethiopian coffee, but stays for few minutes on each
visit before going to her drum lesson.
SOURCE: TC Dailyplanet, October 23,2007