Welcome to Café de Lipa!
Featuring local coffee beans from across the Philippines such as Robusta from Batangas, Cavite, Ilocos, and Basilan; Excelsa from Batangas, Quezon, Basilan, and Mindoro; Arabica from Benguet, Bukidnon, and Cotobato, and most importantly the Barako of Batangas, we connect you to the tastes and flavours of our country.
Convenience does not need to mean diluted or artificial flavours. At Café de Lipa, we keep it simple. Let’s enjoy ourselves over a pleasant cup of coffee—authentic local flavours—heartier, healthier, and so drinkers are happier.
For us, we don’t believe in creating the standard perfect cup. People’s palettes should be nurtured, so come and visit to find your perfect match. Find your perfect cup today by scheduling a Coffee Cupping session. Our friendly baristas are always on hand to take your inquiries.
Taste it for yourselves. Connect with us today.
Our Story
The first coffee beans were brought to the Philippines by two Franciscan friars from Spain in 1740. Liberica, the type of coffee that they brought over, flourished in Lipa City.
The extraordinary wealth of the people of Lipa grew exponentially due to the coffee industry. At one point, Lipa became the world’s biggest supplier of coffee beans.
Liberica, better known by its local monicker Kapeng Barako, became a popular beverage due to its remarkable aroma, pleasant acidity, and heavy body. Lipa left it’s mark in coffee history. The Lipeños continued on growing Liberica and making this magical brew—perfecting their craft thru the years and passing it on from one generation to the next.
This passion for great coffee continues on with Jose H. Mercado and his family, who are direct descendants of original coffee traders in Lipa City. Barako Joe, as he is fondly called by his friends and colleagues, started from the humblest of beginnings, as he jokingly recalls “I was born in a coffee sack under a coffee tree.”
His father Macario Mercado had a dream to serve Barako from bean to cup. Fueled by this dream and the love for everything coffee, the first Café de Lipa opened its doors in October 26, 2006.
For the people to connect to history, culture, and the passion for local coffee has since been the mission of Barako Joe and family here at Café de Lipa.
HISTORY. PASSION. CONNECTION.