7 Leaves Cafe

7 Leaves Cafe is an American beverage and café chain built around Vietnamese coffee, cold tea drinks, flavored specialty beverages, and macarons. The business originated in Westminster, California, where its first shop operated from a roughly 1,100-square-foot space in a small shopping center. It was created by a group of Vietnamese American relatives and associates whose backgrounds included information technology, software engineering, banking, law, restaurant development, and related professional fields. The founders’ family histories are closely connected to the Vietnamese refugee experience: the brothers’ parents left Vietnam in the 1990s, while the brothers themselves had fled earlier, in 1983. That background informs the brand’s emphasis on Vietnamese and broader Southeast Asian beverage traditions, although the company operates as a contemporary U.S. café business rather than as a traditional Vietnamese restaurant. The concept was principally developed by Quang, who became interested in the commercial potential of made-to-order tea after observing a successful street vendor in Bangkok. He later traveled through Vietnam to investigate iced coffee styles and identify flavors that could be adapted for American customers. On returning to the United States, he pursued a restaurant lease and brought in his then-girlfriend Mai Ly, her younger brother Denny Ly, and childhood friend Triet Ho, alongside his brothers Vinh, Son—also known as Sonny—and Ha. The name “7 Leaves” refers both to the seven ingredients associated with the chain’s signature herbal tea and to the seven people involved in establishing the original concept. The founders initially opened the business without telling their parents, who reportedly expected their professionally successful children to avoid the risks of retail and food service. The family eventually learned about the venture when their father, Chanh, encountered the construction of what was to become the company’s fifth store. After the first location, the chain added a shop in Garden Grove and expanded through California and other parts of the Southwestern United States. Its reported footprint includes Orange County, Los Angeles County, San Bernardino County, Santa Clara County, Riverside County, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, and Duluth, Georgia. The chain had 43 U.S. locations as of 2026 according to the referenced Wikipedia material. 7 Leaves Cafe’s menu combines coffeehouse staples with drinks associated with Vietnamese, Thai, and other Asian beverage cultures. Its coffee range includes Vietnamese coffee, house coffee, and black coffee. Its tea selection includes Thai tea, milk tea, soy-based tea drinks, matcha, jasmine, herbal tea, and hibiscus beverages, with many served cold. Customers can add toppings such as grass jelly, aloe vera, boba, and custard pudding. The company also sells macarons in eight flavors, extending the offer beyond drinks into small desserts. The brand emphasizes hand-pressed or hand-prepared ingredients, and the referenced material reports sales of more than one million drinks per quarter, with particularly busy stores exceeding 3,000 drinks in a day. These figures are descriptive claims from the cited reference rather than independently verified financial disclosures. The chain has been informally compared by employees and customers to an “Asian Starbucks,” a nickname reflecting its combination of standardized café operations, strong regional recognition, and Asian-influenced drinks. Its customer base includes students and younger consumers, including students near institutions such as the University of Southern California and California State University, Fullerton. In 2021, 7 Leaves Cafe also participated in Artisan, a partnership with Crema Bakery in Fountain Valley. The 3,000-square-foot brunch-oriented venue combined 7 Leaves beverages with bakery dishes in a more expansive restaurant setting. 7 Leaves Cafe remains an active U.S. regional chain, but pu…

7 Leaves Cafe began in Westminster, California, in a small shopping-center unit measuring approximately 1,100 square feet. The business was established by four brothers—Vinh, Quang, Son, commonly called Sonny, and Ha—whose professional backgrounds included IT, software engineering, banking, and law. They were joined in developing the restaurant concept by Mai Ly, Denny Ly, and Triet Ho. The founders’ family histories shaped the cultural setting of the brand: their parents had left Vietnam in the 1990s, while the brothers had escaped Vietnam in 1983. The brothers’ escape involved a boat that ran out of fuel and drifted for seven days before rescuers from a refugee settlement in Palawan found them. Quang is credited with conceiving the café after seeing a Bangkok street vendor prepare Thai tea successfully. He subsequently traveled through Vietnam, exploring different districts and studying iced coffee in search of flavors that could be adapted for the U.S. market. After returning to the United States, he responded to an advertisement for a restaurant lease and assembled the initial operating group. The enterprise was initially kept from the founders’ parents because the family expected the brothers to continue in their established professional careers rather than enter a risky retail venture. Their father, Chanh, eventually discovered the business while plumbing work was being carried out at what became the fifth store. Following the Westminster opening, 7 Leaves Cafe added a second shop in Garden Grove and expanded across California. The chain later moved beyond its Southern California base into other Southwestern markets, including Nevada and Arizona, and subsequently established locations in Texas and Georgia. Its reported presence includes counties in Southern California, Santa Clara County, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, and a satellite shop in Duluth, Georgia. As of 2026, the referenced material states that the chain had 43 U.S. locations. The business developed a menu centered on Vietnamese coffee and cold tea drinks. Its offerings span Vietnamese, house, and black coffee; Thai, milk, soy, matcha, jasmine, herbal, and hibiscus beverages; and add-ons such as grass jelly, aloe vera, boba, and custard pudding. Macarons in eight flavors provide an accompanying dessert category. The company’s preparation model reportedly relies heavily on ingredients pressed or prepared by hand. The same reference material reports more than one million drinks sold per quarter and daily sales above 3,000 drinks at some high-volume stores, though these are not public financial statements. The chain has developed a reputation among customers and employees as an Asian-influenced counterpart to a large standardized American coffee chain, sometimes being called the “Asian Starbucks.” It has been particularly visible among students in Southern California, including students connected with the University of Southern California and California State University, Fullerton. In 2021, the brand expanded its hospitality format through Artisan, a partnership with Fountain Valley bakery Crema Bakery. Artisan occupied approximately 3,000 square feet and paired 7 Leaves beverages with bakery dishes in a setting designed to feel more like a casual home or brunch gathering than a conventional takeaway café. The available references establish the brand’s origins, founding group, geographic expansion, menu categories, and Artisan partnership, but do not provide a reliable founding year, headquarters address, revenue history, ownership structure, detailed leadership chronology, or evidence of a stock-market listing. 7 Leaves Cafe is therefore best characterized as an active, privately held U.S. regional café brand with a strong Vietnamese and broader Asian beverage identity.

1. 2026Reported U.S. footprint reaches 43 locations

   The referenced material reports that 7 Leaves Cafe has 43 locations across the United States as of 2026.

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2. 2021Artisan opens

   7 Leaves Cafe and Crema Bakery launch Artisan, a larger Fountain Valley venue combining café beverages with bakery dishes.

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3. First Westminster café opens

   The founders open the first 7 Leaves Cafe in an approximately 1,100-square-foot shopping-center unit in Westminster, California.

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4. Second location opens in Garden Grove

   After establishing the Westminster store, the company opens another café in Garden Grove as the beginning of its broader Southern California expansion.

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A regional U.S. café chain specializing in Vietnamese coffee, Asian-inspired cold teas, customizable toppings, and accessible modern café experiences.

• Vietnamese coffeecoffee

  A core product family inspired by Vietnamese iced coffee and related Vietnamese coffee traditions. The category is central to the brand’s identity and reflects Quang’s effort to study Vietnamese coffee styles before adapting them for a U.S. café chain.

• Tea beveragestea beverage

  The chain’s broad tea range includes Thai, milk, soy, matcha, jasmine, herbal, and hibiscus drinks. Many are served cold and are positioned as accessible specialty beverages influenced by Asian drink traditions.

• Herbal teatea beverage

  A signature herbal-tea direction associated with the brand’s name. The name “7 Leaves” refers to the seven ingredients used in a popular herbal tea offered by the chain.

• Matcha beveragestea beverage

  Matcha-based drinks extend the menu beyond Vietnamese coffee and Southeast Asian teas, serving customers seeking contemporary green-tea flavors and milk-based café beverages.

• Coffee rangecoffee

  In addition to Vietnamese coffee, the menu includes house coffee and black coffee, giving the chain familiar café options alongside its more culturally distinctive drinks.

• Drink toppingsbeverage customization

  Customers can customize drinks with additions including grass jelly, aloe vera, boba, and custard pudding. These toppings reinforce the brand’s connection to Asian tea and dessert-drink formats.

• Macaronsdessert

  7 Leaves Cafe sells macarons as a complementary food category, with the referenced material identifying eight flavors. They broaden the offer beyond beverages and pair with the chain’s café-oriented service model.

• Artisancafé and brunch venue2021

  Artisan is a 2021 partnership concept with Crema Bakery in Fountain Valley. It combines 7 Leaves Cafe drinks with bakery dishes in a roughly 3,000-square-foot, brunch-oriented setting.

• 2021Launch of the Artisan partnership venueProduct launch

  7 Leaves Cafe had primarily operated as a beverage-focused café chain, while Crema Bakery brought a complementary bakery and food offering.

  What changed. The two businesses partnered to open Artisan in Fountain Valley, combining 7 Leaves beverages with bakery dishes in a larger brunch-style venue.

  Aftermath. Artisan added a broader dine-in and food-oriented format to the brand’s operating portfolio. The available reference does not provide financial results or later expansion details.

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• 20267 Leaves Cafe reaches 43 U.S. locations

  Referenced biographical material describes the chain as having 43 locations across the United States as of 2026.

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• 20217 Leaves Cafe launches the Artisan partnership

  7 Leaves Cafe partnered with Crema Bakery in Fountain Valley to operate Artisan, a larger brunch-oriented venue combining the café’s drinks with bakery food.

  Product launchM&A
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1. 7 Leaves Cafe
2. 7 Leaves Cafe official website